Towards the end of my detox, I started thinking about adding any treats back into my diet. My biggest downfall is ice cream. It doesn't matter what time of year it is, either. I just want it. I felt as though this time I was not going to cave in to that sugar-laden, dairy treat. I started searching through official Pinterest page, and found that there are some nice looking recipes made with ingredients like carrots or butternut squash. One of the popsicles subbed a green tipped banana for sweetener. This gave me the idea of making a banana sweetened, coconut milk ice cream base that would work with the detox. There was only one problem. I didn't have an ice cream maker.
Flash forward another week...
I stated in my last post that I moved back with my Dad. He has an elliptical machine, some dumbbells, and a weight bench, in his basement that I've been using to supplement my workouts on days that I can't make it to the gym. On one of these times, I was doing some weighted lunges across the room and happened to look up at one of the shelves along the wall. Low and behold... I spotted an ice cream maker. (Queue heavenly music) I was so excited to see it that I dropped the 20 lb dumbbells that I was carrying and started jumping up and down. (Yes, I'm that much of dork for becoming giddy at the thought of using a new kitchen gadget...) I realized that I could finally create my 21 Day Sugar Detox approved ice cream. After a little finessing, I was able to come up with something that I think you'll like.
21 DSD Chunky Monkey Ice Cream
Ingredients:
- 4 green tipped bananas, cut into pieces
- 2 cans full fat coconut milk
- 4 egg yolks, slightly beaten
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- a pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4-1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
- 1/4 cup smooth almond butter
- a tbsp or so unsweetened cocoa powder
Method:
- Heat the coconut milk, bananas, salt, and cinnamon stick in a medium pot over medium heat. Let the mix come up to a simmer.
- Add a few tablespoons of the heated coconut milk to the eggs slowly, stirring constantly.
- Turn the heat down to medium-low. Pour the tempered egg yolks into the pot and let everything cook for 3-5 minutes, or until it becomes thick and coats the back of a spoon. Be sure not to let the mix come up to a simmer or it will cause the eggs to cook too much and curdle.
- Add 1/4-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (depending on your tastes) and the vanilla extract.
- Pour everything into a blender and puree until smooth. You may need to do this in two batches.
- Pour the custard base into a bowl, cover, and let chill overnight.
- Take your ice cream maker bowl out of the freezer.
- Add the chopped walnuts to the custard base.
- Pour in the base into the ice cream maker and use per your brand's directions.
- Mix the unsweetened cocoa powder and almond butter.
- Once the ice cream is most of the way done, add in the chocolate almond butter to create swirls.
- Once done, cover, and chill until the custard is firm (3-5 hours). Let it sit out 10-20 minutes prior to serving to soften it up.
- Top with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
This is DIVINE! The ice cream is smooth and... creamy. It has a wonderful banana flavor that's offset with the toasty walnuts. Throw on some toasted coconut and hazelnuts and you've got yourself a winner! I totally call this a success.
