Ice Cream #7 (1-3): Chocolate (Dairy-Free/Vegan)

After much cajoling and encouraging, I was unable to convince one of my colleagues to try my ice creams. Turns out she is lactose-free. Well, of course I could not leave her out of the fun. Time for dairy-free versions! She admitted that she is not a fan of fruit. Um, excuse me? I suggested chocolate flavored, and we shook on it.

Immediately my thoughts go to the texture. The problem would be finding a good creamy texture without dairy or fruit. I decided to try the banana anyway and see just how strong the banana comes out. I was nervous when I made it because it definitely tasted more banana than chocolate, even though I only used two bananas. Disappointing. Well, if you like bananas, it is actually tasty. However, I was trying not to get a strong banana flavor. Dear bananas, if you could lend your texture without your flavor, that would be great. 

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Round two. I had to try again. This time without the banana. Maybe it really isn’t so bad. I decided to heat the chocolate in a small amount of water to make hot chocolate, which would dissolve the cocoa powder. For 7.1, I applied the solution to a blender to dissolve it entirely, but turned to the distinct hot chocolate flavor rather than a plain chocolate milk ice cream. 

Take-Home Tips: If you don’t like the hot chocolate flavor, then puree the chocolate mixture in a food processor/blender and pour it in. The chocolate banana does have a strong banana taste. In order to not be looking for the chocolate flavor, add more cocoa powder than you think you will need. The only suggestion I received was to add peanut butter to the chocolate banana (7.1) recipe. I did not do this for my recipe but if you want to add a creamy (sorry chunky lovers) peanut butter to the puree, try 1-2 Tbsp. You can always fold in some nuts to the final product.  Note: if you want to add any chocolate chips or similar, make sure they are also dairy-free.

Scoring: 7 of 10. As far as dairy-free ice creams go, they were all tasty. The flavors are true to their names, my critics (dairy-free and dairy eats alike) were all pleased and had little to suggest for changes. Compared to regular, creamy ice cream, this version does not imitate that consistency. It is a little icy, but not significantly so. The chocolate mixture, once prepared for the ice cream maker, is especially delicious and could be served as a drink on its own.

My mother is the worlds biggest fan of peppermint. I happened to have some candy canes, so naturally I made candy cane hot chocolate (a favorite of mine), chilled it, and added the flavor to the ice cream. What a treat!

7.1 – The Dairy-Free Chocolate Banana

Instructions:

1. Smash the bananas with a fork on a plate. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp of sugar over the bananas, set aside.
2. In a blender or food processor, add 2 Tbsp of granulated sugar, cocoa powder, and the chocolate milk. Puree mixture until all the cocoa powder is dissolved and not visible. Note: if you use unsweetened or plain nut milk, add the powdered sugar and 2 additional Tbsp of cocoa powder.
3. Allow the milk to chill in the fridge for 10 minutes. This is an opportunity to clean the dishes and prepare the ice cream maker.
4. Turn the ice cream maker on the lowest setting and pour the chocolate drink into the ice cream maker. Allow to churn for 18-20 minutes.
5. Serve immediately or place in a storage container in the freezer. Allow to thaw on the counter for 15 minutes before serving from the freezer.

Ingredients:

2 medium bananas

3 Tbsp. sugar, divided

2-3 Tbsp. cocoa powder

2 cups almond & cashew chocolate milk

2 Tbsp powdered sugar [optional]

7.2 – Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate (small portion)

Instructions: 

1. In a coffee mug, or similar, heat water for about 30 seconds in the microwave. Immediately add the cocoa powder and stir until dissolved. Then stir in the sugar, salt, and vanilla.
2. Allow to chill in the freezer, but not freeze. Tip: pour the liquid into another bowl or heavy bottomed dish with a spout or similar. The liquid will cool more quickly while it is spread out, but you will need to be able to easily pour it into the ice cream maker.
3. Combine the cold chocolate milk with the hot chocolate. Turn the ice cream maker to the lowest setting and pour the liquid into the ice cream maker.
4. Allow to churn for 25 minutes, or until desired texture is reached.
5. Serve immediately or place in a storage container in the freezer. Allow to thaw on the counter for 15 minutes before serving from the freezer.

Ingredients:

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup water

1 Tbsp. cocoa powder

½ tsp vanilla flavoring or extract

1 smidgen (1/32 tsp) salt

1 cup almond & cashew chocolate milk

7.3 – Dairy-Free Candy Cane Hot Chocolate

Instructions: 

1. Unwrap the candy canes and place them into a sealable plastic bag, or similar. Using a rolling pin, crush and smash them until they are close to powder. Some small chunks are okay, but try to get them less than ¼ inch.
2. In a coffee mug, or similar, heat water crushed candy canes for about 30 seconds in the microwave. Immediately add the cocoa powder and stir until dissolved. Then stir in the sugar, salt, and vanilla.
3. Allow to chill in the freezer, but not freeze. Tip: pour the liquid into another bowl or heavy bottomed dish with a spout or similar. The liquid will cool more quickly while it is spread out, but you will need to be able to easily pour it into the ice cream maker.
4.  Combine the cold chocolate milk with the hot chocolate. Turn the ice cream maker to the lowest setting and pour the liquid into the ice cream maker.
5.  Allow to churn for 25 minutes, or until desired texture is reached.
6.  Serve immediately or place in a storage container in the freezer. Allow to thaw on the counter for 15 minutes before serving from the freezer.

Ingredients:

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup water

1 Tbsp. cocoa powder

½ tsp vanilla flavoring or extract

1 smidgen (1/32 tsp) salt

2 candy canes, crushed

1 cup almond & cashew chocolate milk