20 April 2010

The Perfect Vegan Scoop (again)

This post originally ran on Oct. 22, 2007. Even after time, the recipe still stands up.Also, if you don't have Mimicreme, you can use coconut milk.

The Perfect Vegan Scoop



This is a double review of sorts, although not so much a review of "The Perfect Scoop," as much as a confirmation of its recipes' flexibility. I was able to completely veganize and make a carob version of David Lebovitz's "Chocolate Ice Cream, Philadelphia Style" without much of a fuss at all. More importantly, I was able to produce a rich, fudgy carob ice cream that is just about the tastiest dessert I've had in a while.

To do this, I used Mimicreme, a new non-soy, non-dairy cream substitute and almond milk for the dairy products. According to the Mimicreme site, the ingredients of the unsweetened version I used comprise: Purified Water, Almonds, Cashews, Bicarbonate Soda, Rice Starch, and Salt. After trying this recipe, I have to say that for the ice cream trial, Mimicreme lived up to its promises. I plan to try it in different applications soon since I have a bit of it left over from this recipe. Any requests for trial recipes??



At first, I had my doubts about Mimicreme since it appeared so gray.



But, I poured out some almond milk and saw that it was around the same hue, and I realized that the color would be completely carob-y when all was said and done. Thus, I stopped fretting about Mimicreme.



One of the primary reasons this recipe is so rich and fudgy is that it contains both carob powder (Dutch process cocoa in the original) as well as unsweetened carob chips. It's a pretty easy recipe, and the most time consuming part of it is waiting for the mixture to chill before freezing it in the ice cream maker. That always takes too long for my taste, so it's best to make it before going to bed, so you can chill your soon-to-be vegan frozen delight over night.

Here's the recipe as I made it:

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups Mimicreme
6 tablespoons sifted carob powder
3/4 cup agave nectar
Pinch of salt
6 oz unsweetened carob chips
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla paste

Directions:

1. Whisk together the Mimicreme, carob powder, agave nectar, and salt in a large saucepan, heating until it just boils.



2. Cut the heat and whisk in the carob chips until they melt completely. Make sure you use a silicone spatula to get the carob that might stick in the corners of your saucepan.



3. Whisk in the milk and vanilla until completely incorporated.
4. Using an immersion blender or a regular blender, blend the mixture until completely smooth. (I used an immersion blender, but I poured my mixture into the container I would chill it in before blending.)



5. Chill the mixture for at least 6 hours.



6. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.



7. Enjoy!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, man I wish I had an ice cream maker... :-) I have the exact same immersion blender, by the way!!

Courtney

Deb Schiff said...

The ice cream maker is actually an attachment for the KitchenAid mixer. I'm trying to get through all the frozen veg in the freezer so I can start keeping it in there. I have quite a few cans of light organic coconut milk I bought on sale that I'd like to make into ice cream.

Don't you just love the immersion blender. I use it all the time to make hummus.

Anonymous said...

You are making me even MORE jealous...I want a KitchenAid mixer and have lusted after them for years, lol!

I love the immersion blender too, but I use my Vita-Mix for hummus--it makes it soooooooooo creamy and silky smooth!

Courtney

Deb Schiff said...

Keep an eye out for sales on Amazon.com or at Macy's with coupons. You can often get a good buy on discontinued colors. Also, estate sales might yield a good buy.

I don't have vita-mix, but only because I don't really blend much except hummus and salsa.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the tips--I will keep my eyes peeled for sure :-)

Courtney

Erica said...

Thank you for supporting agave! We're big fans of it here at Wellness Foods and it's great to read recipes from like-minded folks. Those Cherry Fig Not-ins look incredible!

Thanks,
Erica (erica@wellnessfood.ca)

Deb Schiff said...

Thanks a bunch, Erica!

April said...

I have seen another ice cream recipe using Mimicreme. I just assumed I would substitute almond milk for it, but it looks like I must find some Mimicreme. Maybe my health food store stocks it.

I know they have carob chips.

My daughter (6yo) loves using Carob powder to make her chocolate pudding, she actually prefers it to cocoa:
2 Bananas
1-2 Tblsp carob powder
1 TBlsp nut butter
2-3 Tblsp almond milk

She puts the ingredients into the Blendtec and blends all by herself. She loves it! Everyone else loves smoothies, she eats pudding...sure, why not? It's all good, right!?

Thanks for the recipe.
Blend Well!! Live Well!!