Bring on the (vegan) ice cream!

Dreena's Egg Nog Ice Cream (with caramel sauce)

Ice cream has always been a favorite dessert of mine.  As a child I loved it, and growing through my teens and twenties, I found all sorts of ‘low-fat’ and frozen yogurt varieties to tame my cravings.  These “healthier” versions never quite satisfied, however.  Later I discovered that they weren’t healthy either, since they were made with cow’s milk, and also white sugar.

For a long time I did without ice cream.  I don’t know how I survived!  I didn’t have an ice cream maker, and dairy-free ice creams were not available.  You new vegans have it easy, I tell you!  You’ll hear me telling my grandchildren:  “When I was a young vegan, we didn’t have dairy-free ice cream“…  

No, in my early vegan days, I recall finding a chocolate sorbet for a period of time, and that helped soothe the icy savage beast within!  Not entirely, though.  I longed for creamy, luscious ice creams that varied in textures and flavors, and ranged from basic vanilla to all-out decadence filled with cookie or brownie pieces tossed in ribbons of caramel or fudge.  I need a fix just writing this.

As a vegan, I accepted that I would do without ice cream, if even temporarily.  Temporily continued for several years (and wore thin), but eventually it happened… the dairy-free goddesses delivered vegan ice cream to my grocery store.  Oh happy day!

Yet, not all non-dairy ice creams are created equally.  They can be made from a variety of ‘milks’, including soy, rice, cashews, and coconut, and vary in tastes and textures.  Even within one category, there are a range of differences.  For instance, there are rice ice creams that are quite delicious with a full-bodied creamy texture (such as Good Karma), and then others that are more like sorbets and with a slight aftertaste that can be unpleasant, like Rice Dream.  Similarly, some soy ice creams taste better than others.  Coconut milk ice creams are the ‘new kid on the block’, and sadly, I haven’t been able to experiment with enough of them.  I’ve only tried a few flavors of the Turtle Mountain line, and would dearly love to get my spoon into Luna & Larry’s pints.  Ditto with Wheeler’s Black Label Ice Cream – just check out this list of flavors!  One of the drawbacks of living in Canada is that we don’t have access to many of the vegan products offered up in the United States – ice cream (unfortunately) included. 

Vegan ice creams can be pricey, however.  Depending on where you live, and whether your stores discount varieties as part of weekly or monthly specials, you can be shelling out a lot of money for this sweet indulgence.  Especially for the better quality brands that utilize organic ingredients and natural sweeteners.  

In the past year, I decided to try my hand at homemade ice creams.  Saving money was an obvious reason to get started.  But, I also wanted to get out of the soy ice cream rut that I was in (since these are the most commonly sold and discounted vegan ice creams), and I wanted to try to come up with flavors and combinations that I knew I would truly love, using wholesome ingredients. 

Most of the ice creams I have made include coconut milk as part of the base.  It lends a thick, substantial texture, but also gives the fat content that helps carry flavor and sustain creaminess after freezing.  Some of my ice cream blends also include cashews.  They are a naturally creamy nut and have a fairly neutral flavor perfect for creamy bases, both sweet and savory.  

While I continue to tinker with ice cream inspirations, I’ll leave you with one inspired by the holidays.  Christmas is not too far gone for me to delight in ‘egg nog’, and if you’re also be hoarding the last of those ‘holly’ or ’soy’ nogs, this ice cream will be right up your alley.  (And, for those of you that stocked up on a carton or four too many of the shelf-stable ‘holly nog’ over the holidays, this ice cream recipe will help you make very good use of it!)

Kitchenaid ice cream maker/stand mixer

To make this ice cream, I puree the base in my Blendtec.  If you have a high-powered blender, it really does wonders in smoothing out ice cream purees before churning.   (I use my Blendtec anywhere from 1 or 2 to 4 times a day – it is genius!)   If you don’t have a high-powered blender, start pureeing the cashews with about half of the egg nog to get them pulverized.  Once they are smoothing out, add the remaining liquid and ingredients.  As for an ice cream maker, I have the ice cream bowl attachment that fits on to the Kitchenaid stand mixer. I use my mixer more for making ice cream than for anything else!  

Egg Nog Ice Cream

Dreena’s Egg Nog Ice Cream
2 1/2 cups non-dairy egg nog (brand of choice, I use “So Nice”)
3/4 cup + 2 tbsp regular (not light) coconut milk (using cream on top)
1/2 cup raw cashews
2/3 cup unrefined granulated sugar (see note)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp guar gum (optional, see note)

Option: Vegan graham, vanilla, or gingerbread biscuits, crumbled; to churn into finished ice cream.

In a blender, add all ingredients and puree until very, very smooth, scraping down sides of blender as needed.  Transfer mixture to an ice-cream maker (following directions of specific model), and churn until mixture is soft-serve consistency.   (Once ice cream is just about finished, if you like, throw in a couple of handfuls of crushed vanilla or graham biscuits.  Let churn until just blended in.)  Transfer to containers to freeze.

Note:  This amount of sugar makes the ice cream sweet enough for my taste, but feel free to increase or decrease slightly to your own preference.  The sweetness will also be affected slightly by the brand of non-dairy egg nog used in the mix.  You may want to start with ½ cup of sugar, and add several additional tablespoons to taste after blending.  Keep in mind that the room temperature ice cream mix will taste sweeter than the frozen ice cream, so you may want to add a touch extra sweetener to ensure it is sweet enough after churning/freezing. 

Note:  The guar gum helps the texture with freezing/thawing, but you can certainly make it without the guar gum, so don’t hold off if you don’t have guar gum in your pantry!

Spoon up!  And enjoy…