ez coconut "ice cream"

Dairy free and delicious. There are a bunch of ways to make this depending on what you're in the mood for: chunky, smooth, or different types of herbs.

1/2 can of full fat coconut milk
1 cup of chopped fruit
a handful of fresh herbs
1 spoonful of sugar

Strawberry & Mint (or Basil)

For chunky:
Slice 1 container of strawberries. Slice mint leaves. Stir both, along with the sugar, in a bowl with the coconut milk.

For smooth:
Cut up 1 container of strawberries. Toss strawberries with mint leaves into single serving blender, along with the sugar and coconut milk. Blend until smooth.

Mango
For smooth:
Cut up 2 mangoes. Toss with coconut milk into single serving blender. Blend until smooth.

strawminty ice cream

I haven't tried this yet, but I've found a couple of recipes that I want to combine to make a delicately minty strawberry ice cream.

2 pounds fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced (about 5 cups)
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups light cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large handful of mint

Soak the mint leaves in the cream and rest in the fridge overnight.

In a large bowl stir together strawberries and sugar until combined well. Chill mixture, covered, stirring occasionally, overnight.

Drain strawberry mixture in a sieve set over a bowl and reserve 2 cups strawberry slices. In a food processor purée remaining slices with strained liquid until smooth and transfer to a bowl. Stir in cream and vanilla extract until combined well.

Freeze mixture in an ice-cream maker for 25 minutes. During this time, place remaining strawberries in the freezer. After 25 minutes, add reserved strawberry slices for the last 5 minutes of freezing time.

Adapted from Epicurious

strawbarb crumble

My man loves all things strawberry rhubarb, and though it's not my favorite when I found rhubarb on sale at the store I thought I would give a crisp a try. I wanted to make it with as little flour as I could, so I adjusted the recipe I found for a regular crisp.

4 to 5 stalks of fresh rhubarb
1 lb fresh strawberries, hulled
1 cup turbinado sugar
half an orange worth of grated orange zest
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 1/2 cups Kind Oats and Honey Clusters granola
1/2 stick butter
Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Slice the rhubarb into 1 inch pieces and cut the strawberries into pieces the same size as the rhubarb. In a large, ovenproof bowl, toss the fruit with 3/4 cup of the turbinado sugar, the orange zest, and the cornstarch dissolved in the orange juice.

For the topping, melt the butter and 1/4 cup of sugar in the microwave. Once melted and combined, stir the granola into the butter and coat well. Spread the topping over the fruit, covering it completely. Bake for 1 hour, until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden brown.

Let cool for 10 minutes and serve warm with ice cream.

Adapted from Food Network

all the ice creams

We just got an ice cream maker attachment for our Kitchenaid mixer and after our first less than perfect attempt we've found a really great base. We made strawberry ice cream with it and I can't wait to try it out with peaches once they're in season.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups half-and-half
3/4 cup of brown sugar
1 1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 pound strawberries, hulled
1 tablespoon sugar

Directions:

Stir together the half-and-half and 2 cups sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the vanilla extract. Heat the mixture until it's hot but not simmering or boiling.

In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks vigorously with a whisk until they start to lighten in color, about 2 minutes.

Pour half a cup of the hot half-and-half mixture and very slowly drizzle it into the bowl with the egg yolks, whisking the whole time. Repeat with another half cup of hot half-and-half mixture, making sure to whisk the whole time.

Pour the tempered yolks into the saucepan with the rest of the half and half mixture and stir gently with a wooden spoon for 2 to 4 minutes, cooking it slowly until it's thick enough to coat the spoon.

Pour the thick liquid through a fine mesh strainer and into a clean bowl. Add the heavy cream to the bowl and stir gently to combine. Refrigerate this mixture for 2 hours, or until chilled.

Here is where you can add whatever flavoring you like. Below are the directions for strawberries.

Meanwhile, combine the strawberries and 2 tablespoons of sugar in a blender. Puree until smooth (or you can stop just short of smooth if you want a little texture.) Pour the pureed strawberries into the chilled custard mixture and stir.

Now pour half the mixture into the ice cream maker and freeze it according to its directions. Remove the first batch and freeze, and then pour the second half into the ice cream maker. Freeze ice cream for at least 4 hours, or until frozen firm.

Adapted from The Pioneer Woman