Chocolate Cookies & Cream Ice Cream

Hey guys, last Friday I produced my first guest post for Liz from Blog is the New Black! Click here to check it out. I thought the recipe was to great not to share on my blog, so here it is. 

It’s now officially summer, so what better way to celebrate and cool off from the heat than with chocolate cookies & cream ice cream? Those like myself who don’t own ice cream machines and can’t stand the thought of hand-churning the mix every few minutes will be glad to hear that this ice cream can be made entirely by hand and requires absolutely no churning.

Because it’s made from coconut milk, the ice cream thickens naturally in the freezer which means that it takes a lot less time to freeze than traditional homemade ice cream. You don’t have to return to the freezer every 30 minutes to churn it by hand, either, which frees up plenty of time to pig out on the remaining Oreos that you didn’t use in the ice cream.

Since this recipe replaces the traditional egg yolk and cream base with coconut milk, you can also kid yourself that you’re actually eating healthily by devouring bowls full of the stuff and who doesn’t enjoy feeling healthy whilst sporting a face covered in chocolate?

Chocolate Cookies & Cream Ice Cream

Generously serves 2

Ingredients

1 + 2/3 cup coconut milk

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

4 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

4 Oreo cookies

Recipe

1. Combine the coconut milk, cocoa powder and brown sugar in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over a medium heat. Stir regularly and when the sugar has completely dissolved, remove the pan from the heat and leave to one side to cool.

2. Place the Oreo cookies in a Ziploc bag and roughly crush them with a rolling pin. You can use a food processor for this step, but bashing the cookies with a rolling pin gives better results because you get a mixture of small crumbs and large chunks.

3. Stir the vanilla essence into the cooled chocolate coconut milk mix and place in the refrigerator for an hour or so until fully chilled.

4. When cool, remove the ice cream base from the refrigerator and fold in the Oreo chunks. Mix thoroughly so that the chunks are evenly distributed.

5. Place in the freezer and leave to set for around 2 hours.

Remove the ice cream from the freezer at least 10 minutes before you’re ready to serve so it has the chance to soften up. Sprinkle on top crushed Oreos or even decorate with whole mini Oreos and you’re ready to enjoy a decadent, but not so naughty, chocolate frozen treat.

Here are the link parties I take part in.

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Honey Oat Frozen Yoghurt with Chocolate Chip Cookie Chunks

I don’t know what it is about healthy ice cream, but I can’t get enough of it. Earlier this week I was starring at a bowl of Greek yoghurt just wondering what I could add to it to change it from a rather dull snack into a delicious frozen dessert.

This frozen yoghurt is so suitable to have for breakfast. Yoghurt, oats and honey are all breakfast items and I specifically remember my Grandma eating a cookie for her breakfast (even though it was an incredibly dull Rich Tea) every day, making this perfectly acceptable to have for you first meal of the day. I bet even Jaime Oliver wouldn’t have a problem with you serving it to your kids before sending them off to school. Although maybe it’s best not to mention it to him.

Don’t forget to top your Honey Oat Frozen Yoghurt with caramel curls and extra chocolate chip cookie chunks. Who am I kidding? Throw another whole chocolate chip cookie in there, too! You can never have too many chocolate chip cookies.

Honey Oat Frozen Yoghurt with Chocolate Chip Cookie Chunks

Ingredients

1 cup Greek yoghurt

2 teaspoons vanilla essence

¼ cup oats

4 tablespoons honey

1/3 cup chocolate chip cookie chunks

Recipe

Mix together the Greek yogurt and vanilla essence then stir in the honey and oats. If your honey has been in the fridge and is a bit stiff, microwave it in short bursts until it becomes pourable. Gently break some chocolate chip cookies up into small chunks and stir them into the yoghurt.

Pour the mixture into a plastic container suitable for freezing and leave in the freezer for at least 4 hours to set. Remove at least 15 minutes before serving and top with whatever you want – I recommend caramel curls, extra chocolate chip cookie chunks and chocolate sauce. 



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Come and join the fun!

Healthy Oreo Ice Cream

A thick and creamy ice cream tickled with crunchy Oreo chunks – you’d never guess this Oreo ice cream was healthy! The Greek yoghurt and light cream cheese provide the thick, smooth ice cream texture, whereas the vanilla extract and hot cocoa powder sweeten it up. This recipe doesn’t call for an ice cream maker, either – you can make it all by hand in a matter of minutes.

I’m not really bothered about ice cream – I’m much more of a brownie or cupcake girl – and when I think of all the cream and sugar that goes into it, I’m even less keen on it. This recipe tackles those issues – it calls for only a small amount of sugar and replaces double cream with a healthy substitute – Greek yoghurt.

My Official Treat Taster and I were having a discussion about the definition of a healthy recipe. I was arguing that I think a healthy recipe is one that’s pretty low-cal with hardly any fat and sugar. He was insisting that in order for a recipe to be healthy, it has to have nutritional value. For some reason, he would not humour my attempts to convince him of the uncountable health benefits of Oreos.

What’s your definition of a healthy recipe?

Healthy Oreo Ice Cream

Ingredients

250ml Greek yoghurt

4tbsp Light cream cheese

1tsp Vanilla extract

4tbsp Sugar

4 Crushed Oreos

1tbsp Hot cocoa powder

Recipe

1. Mix together the yoghurt, cream cheese and vanilla extract.

2. Stir in the sugar, hot cocoa powder and Oreos.

3. Place into a tub suitable for freezing and leave in the freezer for around 4 hours to set.

4. Remove from the freezer at least 15 minutes before you want to serve.

Here are the link parties I take part in.
Come and join the fun!

Cranberry Vanilla Swirl Ice Cream

This recipe for Cranberry Vanilla Swirl Ice Cream uses a basic vanilla ice cream recipe dotted with chopped cranberries for its base. The ‘swirl’ is made using a sweet and thick cranberry coulis folded into the ice cream just before it fully sets.

You may think it’s a bit early in the year for ice cream recipes, but the temperatures are already rising in Tenerife. During the weekend, the island experienced a calima and the average temperature during the day was 32C/90F! Ice cream seemed the perfect way to cool down.

There was another reason for whipping up an ice cream recipe this weekend. My Official Treat Taster had throat and nose surgery on Thursday and was really struggling to breathe let alone eat. He was more than happy for me to busy myself in the kitchen making him frozen treats to try and I was pleased that he was getting at least some nutrition. (Cranberries are a fruit and are packed with anti-oxidants, therefore cancel out the negative effects of all that cream and sugar...right?)

Cranberry Vanilla Swirl Ice Cream

Ingredients

250ml cream

125ml milk

¼ cup and 2tbsp sugar

1tsp vanilla extract

1 cup cranberries

3tbsp water

Recipe

1. Over a medium heat, warm half of the cream (125ml) and ¼ cup of sugar until the sugar has completely dissolved.

2. Remove from the heat and add the remaining 125ml of cream, the milk and the vanilla extract and stir well. Pour into a container suitable for the freezer.

3. Roughly chop half of the cranberries and place them on top of the ice cream mixture – do not stir! If you stir at this point, the custard mix will turn pink and that’s not what we’re looking for – we want beautiful swirls! Seal the container with the ice cream and place in the freezer for 2 hours.

4. After 2 hours, remove from the freezer and stir – the cranberries will have frozen by now and will not leak any colourful juices. Place back in the freezer and leave for another hour.

5. In a saucepan, combine the rest of the cranberries, 3tbsp of water and 2tbsp of sugar. Let simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring and crushing the cranberries until you have a thick coulis. Cool this mixture down by removing the saucepan from the heat and placing it in cold water.

6. When fully cooled, pour the cranberry coulis mix into the ice cream and stir it in with a spoon. Try to be gentle and almost fold the coulis in – remember, we’re looking for a swirling effect.

7. Place the ice cream back in the freezer for at least another hour to fully set and we’re done!

Don’t forget to remove the ice cream from the freezer at least 15 minutes before you want to serve it so it has time to soften.



Here are the link parties I take part in.
Come and join the fun!

Six-Layer Ice Cream Birthday Cake

This Six-Layer Ice Cream Birthday Cake is ideal for a baking beginner who wants to make a big impression. It’s actually a really simple cake to create, but you’ll need a lot of time so make sure you plan ahead.

It was my Official Treat Taster’s birthday last Friday and he asked for an ice cream cake. I've never made one before, so I brainstormed for a few days and came up with this. It took a lot of effort to make everything, but the result was definitely worth it.

The cake is comprised of three layers of light sponge cake separated by a smooth blackcurrant cheesecake ice cream and flavor-packed strawberry ice cream. The result is then topped with delicious raspberry-flavored whipped cream.

The best part about this ice cream cake is that you don’t need an ice cream machine at all! All the ice creams are made on top of the stove then placed in the freezer to set. It takes a little bit more effort than without a machine, but you won’t regret it when you’re enjoying this decadent treat.

Ingredients

Blackcurrant cheesecake ice cream

115ml milk

125ml double cream

1 tsp vanilla

60g cream cheese

2 egg yolks

300ml blackcurrant jam

Strawberry ice cream

115ml milk

125ml double cream

1 tsp vanilla

2 egg yolks

300ml strawberry jam

Sponge cake

2 eggs

175g flour

2 tsp baking powder

Pinch salt

113g butter

200g sugar

120ml milk

Dash lemon juice

Topping

40ml double cream

A few drops of raspberry flavoring

Recipe

Blackcurrant cheesecake ice cream

1. In a saucepan over a medium heat, bring the milk and cream to the boil. When the mixture begins to boil, immediately remove from the heat and leave to one side.

2. In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese, egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually pour the hot milk mixture into the egg mix to create your custard base. Stir constantly at this point to make sure the eggs don’t curdle.

3. Place the bowl with your custard base over a saucepan of simmering water and stir regularly until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. To tell if it’s ready, dip your wooden spoon into the custard base so it’s completely covered. Remove and draw a line through the mixture on the spoon with your finger. If the custard base does not immediately flow back and you can still see your line then it is ready.

4. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and blackcurrant jam. Mix well and leave to cool at room temperature before placing in the freezer to set.

Strawberry ice cream

1. In a saucepan over a medium heat, bring the milk and cream to the boil just like you did for the blackcurrant cheesecake ice cream. Remove from heat when it begins to boil and leave to one side.

2. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually pour the hot milk and cream mix into the egg mix to create your custard base. Stir constantly at this point to make sure the eggs don’t curdle.

3. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir regularly until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.

4. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and strawberry jam. Mix well and leave to cool at room temperature before placing in the freezer to set.

Sponge cake

1. Preheat the oven to 170C/350F and butter a round cake tin. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together.

2. In a separate bowl, beat the butter until soft then add 150g of sugar. Continue whisking until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks and beat thoroughly after each one. Stir in the vanilla extract and mix until combined.

3. Add half of the flour mixture, followed by the milk and the other half of the flour, stirring after each addition.

4. In another bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add a few drops of lemon juice and carry on beating until you have soft peaks. Slowly add the remaining 50g of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

5. With a rubber spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter then pour the mix into the prepared tin and bake in the bottom of the oven for between 40 and 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool on a wire rack.

To Assemble

Cut the cake evenly into three layers. Place one third in the bottom of the cake tin.

Spread the blackcurrant cheesecake ice cream on the sponge and top with another sponge layer.

Spread the strawberry ice cream on top of the sponge and top with the final sponge layer.

Whip the cream until it is really thick. Add raspberry flavoring to taste, before scooping into an icing bag and piping onto the cake. Store in the freezer and remove 10 minutes before serving.

Peach Melba Ice Cream

We've had several cans of peaches sat in the cupboard at home for quite a while now and I thought I'd make use of them. Personally, I'm really not fond of peaches at all. the only memory I have of enjoying peaches, is eating a Peach Melba from Gregg's bakery when I was really young. Now, a Peach Melba to me, implies a shortcrust tart base, piled high with a mixture of cream and peaches, coated in a peach icing.

If you have no idea what I'm on about - you're not alone. I think a Peach Melba must be something entirely different in the north of England than in the south because to Boyfriend, a Peach Melba is vanilla ice cream with peaches, raspberry sauce and cream.

This recipe is for an ice cream which combines all the yummy aspects of his Peach Melba into one ice cream. This recipe yields around 1 litre of ice cream.

Ingredients

1 cup of single cream

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup of sugar

3 egg yolks

Pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup of chopped canned peaches

1/2 cup peach syrup

1 cup raspberries

2 tbsp water

2 tbsp sugar

Recipe

1. In a pan over a medium heat, combine the cream, milk, sugar and salt. Continue to stir until dissolved.

2. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks together with the peach syrup (the syrup the peaches were stored in from the can). Pour the warmed mix over the egg yolks, stirring constantly, before pouring back into the pan and replacing on the heat.

3. Continue to stir the custard mix until it is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Meanwhile, chop the peaches into small chunks.

4. When the custard is ready, remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature before adding the vanilla and chopped peaches. Stir well and place in the freezer.

5. Combine the raspberries, water and sugar in a pan on a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until you have a thick liquid. Strain this to get rid of all the seeds. Leave to cool. 

6. Remove the ice cream from the freezer every hour for at least two hours to stir for a silky texture. When you can feel the ice cream really beginning to take shape, pour the raspberry mix on top and gently swirl into the ice cream. Do not mix the ice cream after this stage or the swirl effect will be lost. 

Mint Choc Chip Ice Cream

Due to enjoying a friend's birthday party a little too much on Saturday, I was in no state to do anything outside on Sunday. After lying around and groaning for a while, I decided to get up and make some ice cream. I know is most countries autumn is already on its way, but in Tenerife the sun is still blazing everyday - which means I've still got a couple of weeks left to experiment with ice cream flavours. 

(I really need to buy an ice cream scoop!)

This recipe yields just short of 1 litre.

Ingredients

2 cups single cream

1.5 cups milk

1/2 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

4 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp mint extract

Few drops of green food colouring

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Recipe

1. Warm 1 cup of cream, milk, sugar and salt in a pan over a medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar is completely dissolved. 

2. Pour the remaining 1 cup of cream in a bowl and place a strainer above. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks - whisking constantly - then pour back into the pan.

3. Continue to stir the mixture over a medium heat until it thickens and can coat a spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Add the vanilla and mint extracts at this stage, as well as the green food colouring.

4. Chill the mixture in the fridge for at least 3 hours then place in the freezer. Continue to remove the ice cream from the freezer to stir every hour for at least 2 hours. Add the chocolate chips the last time you mix the ice cream.

Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

Next in my ongoing mission to find the yummiest ice cream - strawberry cheescake! I considered adding some crushed biscuit crumbs to this recipe, but I've experienced terrible textures of ice creams which claim to be biscuit flavoured - so I opted out. Instead, I decided to add small chunks of white chocolate which worked perfectly. The strawberry flavour in this ice cream wasn't very powerful - maybe try increasing the strawberry sauce if you try it.

This recipe makes enough ice cream for six portions.

Ingredients

230ml milk
250ml cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
115g cream cheese, room temperature
3 egg yolks
100g granulated white sugar
50ml strawberry puree

Recipe

1. In a small saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring the milk and cream to the scalding point (the milk begins to foam up). Remove from heat.

2. Beat the cream cheese, egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. 

3. Gradually pour the scalding milk and cream into the whipped egg yolk mixture, making sure you keep whisking constantly so the eggs do not curdle.

4. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, cook until the custard thickens enough that it coats the back of a spoon.

5. Immediately remove the custard from the heat and continue to stir the custard for a few minutes so it does not overcook. At this point stir in the vanilla extract and the strawberry sauce. 

6. Cover and let cool to room temperature before placing in the fridge for around 12 hours.

7. Place in the freezer for two hours and remove to break up any bits that are frozen. Continue to remove from the freezer every hour for at least two hours to mix the ice cream to ensure a smooth and silky texture.