Saturday, 28 July 2018

Coffee Ice Cream

A Sweet Pea Chef
Coffee Ice Cream
Coffee Ice Cream

Follow this easy ice cream recipe to make healthy and dairy-free Coffee Ice Cream. You don’t even need an ice cream maker!  This nice cream is paleo, vegan, clean, and gluten-free! 

Coffee Ice Cream | Follow this easy ice cream recipe to make healthy and dairy-free Coffee Ice Cream. You don’t even need an ice cream maker! This nice cream is paleo, vegan, clean, and gluten-free! | A Sweet Pea Chef

If I could, I’d always have ice cream for breakfast. Honestly. Especially during summer, when even the mornings are hot, I wake up needing to cool off.

But, then ice cream would probably lose its luster if I had it that often. Plus, I’d get hungry in a matter of minutes probably…so I’ll stick to other, more filling breakfast options and save the ice cream for later.

Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t make ice cream taste like your favorite morning drink though! Homemade coffee ice cream may not wake you up, but it still serves a yummy punch and is full of creamy coffee deliciousness — plus ICE CREAM + COFFEE 4 LIFE, am I right? 

An overhead image of a kitchen counter with all the ingredients for Coffee Ice Cream including chiller full fat coconut milk, pure maple syrup, brewed and chilled strong coffee, instant coffee and vanilla extract.

This coffee ice cream recipe is made with whole ingredients and is much better for you than the store-bought stuff or even the iced coffee from your favorite barista, which is usually very low in nutrients and high in sugar and unhealthy fats.

Making ice cream at home is super easy, even if you don’t have an ice cream maker. Any food processor or heavy duty blender will do. Just combine all the ingredients and blend well until you reach the desired consistency, and then freeze.

Never made ice cream at home before? Follow a few easy steps and make my healthy Coffee Ice Cream today!

An overhead image of a blender with all the ingredients for Coffee Ice Cream including full fat coconut milk, pure maple syrup, brewed and chilled strong coffee, instant coffee and vanilla extract.

HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY ICE CREAM

You can make pretty much any dessert healthy by sticking to one simple rule. Are you ready? Ok, so the secret is to… keep it short and simple. Yes, it’s that easy.

Stick to just a few healthy, whole ingredients that you know are good for you. Instead of using cream, go for coconut milk and sweeten your frozen delight with pure maple syrup or raw honey. It’s all about making the right choices and then using them moderately as part of a well balanced diet.

If you want to make healthy ice cream at home, all you need to do really is swap the unhealthy, sugary ingredients for the equally flavorful, but healthier options. Easy peasy.

For inspiration, check out some of my favorite homemade ice cream recipes, like this 1 Ingredient Banana Ice Cream or this Fresh Pumpkin Ice Cream.

An overhead image of a blender with all the blended ingredients for Coffee Ice Cream including full fat coconut milk, pure maple syrup, brewed and chilled strong coffee, instant coffee and vanilla extract, ready to be placed in the freezer. An overhead image of a pan with Coffee Ice Cream mixture ready to be placed in the freezer.

HOW TO MAKE COFFEE ICE CREAM

In the spirit of my simple rule (see above), I have a way to make the whole process of making homemade Coffee Ice Cream as straightforward as possible. So, follow these easy steps for how to make coffee ice cream:

Place the cans of full fat coconut milk in the freezer for 10 minutes to chill (or refrigerate overnight). Once the coconut milk is chilled, add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Taste the ice cream and add more pure maple syrup to make it sweeter or more coffee if you want a stronger coffee flavor. Once you’re happy with the flavor, transfer the mixture to a freezer-safe dish and place in the freezer. Freeze for a minimum of 4-6 hours until mostly solid.

And then, of course, step #6: EEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTT!

A side image of an ice cream scoop scooping up Coffee Ice Cream made with full fat coconut milk, pure maple syrup, brewed and chilled strong coffee, instant coffee and vanilla extract.

DOES COFFEE ICE CREAM HAVE CAFFEINE?

I use brewed and chilled strong coffee to make my Coffee Ice Cream, which does contain caffeine. If you want to cut out the caffeine, making coffee ice cream partially or entirely with decaf coffee is an option and can be completely substituted in this recipe. I personally don’t mind the caffeine, especially since the coffee is mixed in with all the other ingredients so it’s definitely not as strong as it would be if you’re drinking a regular cup of coffee.

Coffee Ice Cream | Follow this easy ice cream recipe to make healthy and dairy-free Coffee Ice Cream. You don’t even need an ice cream maker! This nice cream is paleo, vegan, clean, and gluten-free! | A Sweet Pea Chef

HOW TO MAKE ICE CREAM WITHOUT AN ICE CREAM MAKER

Not owning an ice cream maker should not stop you from making ice cream at home!

All you need is either a food processor or just the plain ol’ kitchen blender.  Just blend all the ingredients until you reach a smooth, creamy texture, but not pureed. You can serve immediately or transfer to an air-tight container and freeze for a couple hours for a harder consistency. Simple as that!  

A side image of a serving of Coffee Ice Cream in an ice cream bowl, made with full fat coconut milk, pure maple syrup, brewed and chilled strong coffee, instant coffee and vanilla extract, sprinkled with instant coffee.

Coffee Ice Cream

Coffee Ice Cream

Follow this easy ice cream recipe to make healthy and dairy-free Coffee Ice Cream. You don’t even need an ice cream maker! This nice cream is paleo, vegan, clean, and gluten-free!

2 13.6-oz. cans full fat coconut milk, (refrigerated or frozen for 10 minutes) 2/3 cup pure maple syrup 1 1/2 cups strong coffee, (brewed and chilled) 1 tbsp instant granulated coffee, (plus more for topping) 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

If the coconut milk is not previously refrigerated, place cans in the freezer for 10 minutes to allow for the cream to solidify on the top.

Add all ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.  (Use just the hardened cream in the coconut milk and discard the watery liquid).

Add all of the ingredients to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Taste the mixture to test for flavor.  If needed, add more pure maple syrup to sweeten and/or more instant coffee to make stronger coffee flavor.

Pour mixture into freezer-safe dish or container and place in freezer.

Freeze for 4-6 hours, until mostly solid.  Allow to thaw for 5-10 minute on counter, as needed, before stirring and scooping to serve.

This post contains affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.

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Cookie and Kate
How to Make Vinaigrette (Plus Variations!)

basic vinaigrette recipe

We’re going back to basics today with one of my most essential everyday recipes, vinaigrette! You know how much I love salads, and I’m surprised I didn’t think to share my basic vinaigrette recipe with you until now.

Homemade salad dressing tastes infinitely better than store-bought dressings. It’s fresh, bold and preservative-free, and you’ll only need a few ingredients to make it.

Vinegar and olive oil-based vinaigrette offers a light, zippy, heart-healthy salad dressing that’s great on greens, vegetables and fruits. You can change up the flavor by using different vinegars. Vinaigrette is easy to adjust to taste, and I’ve included notes how to do so in the recipe.

how to make vinaigrette

Homemade vinaigrette keeps for 1 to 2 weeks in the refrigerator, so it’s worth the 5 minutes it takes to mix it up. Then you can keep it on hand for all of your salad needs.

The traditional French vinaigrette formula calls for 1 tablespoon vinegar for every 4 tablespoons olive oil. I like my vinaigrette a little more zippy than that, so I typically use about 1 tablespoon vinegar for every 3 tablespoons olive oil. Kale salads can tolerate more zingy dressings, while you’ll want to use less vinegar for mild greens like spring greens.

In addition to olive oil and vinegar, you’ll also need Dijon mustard for some flavor complexity and creaminess, maple syrup or honey for a little sweetness that balances the vinegar, garlic for oomph, and salt and pepper. Let’s get to it!

Continue to the recipe...

The post How to Make Vinaigrette (Plus Variations!) appeared first on Cookie and Kate.