Yes, that’s right, you read it correctly, Ice Cream. I’m devoting a newsletter to ice cream, can you believe it?! Natalie Ice Cream, but ice cream nonetheless. Any way you look at it, people love ice cream. Maybe not each and every one of you, but almost. With the 4th of July around the corner, I wanted to share with you some seriously amazing ice cream recipes.

I hesitate to tag these ice creams with a term because I don’t want a label to deter you. Tagged or not, these are delish – no joke! All of these recipes are vegan (hence, dairy-free to be clear), gluten-free, free of refined sugars, paleo friendly, and even keto friendly. You can make these recipes without an ice cream maker – a good blender or food processor will suffice. Some use banana as the base, others coconut, and one uses avocado. For sweeteners, I used 100% pure monk fruit powder; you could also use the extract. Monk fruit adds zero sugar (i.e., carbohydrates) and is more mild in flavor compared to stevia. Beware that many of the monk fruit products in the stores add sugar alcohols (think erythritol); I ordered the 100% pure monk fruit online. If you don’t have monk fruit or prefer not to use monk fruit, you could substitute more typical sweeteners, such as 100% pure maple syrup or Medjool dates.

Seriously, major kudos to the original creators of these ice creams. I’ve merely modified the recipes to remove or lower the sugars. These are delicious. For the past few years, the Banana Peanut Butter Swirl Ice Cream has been hands down, my favorite. That changed a few weeks ago when I tried the Vegan Pistachio Ice Cream. I now have two favorites, but all of these are tasty.


Banana Peanut Butter Swirl Ice Cream
Recipe modified from www.beamingbaker.com

Ingredients

Peanut butter ice cream

• 3 medium bananas, sliced and frozen

• ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons coconut cream or coconut milk (coconut cream will yield a thicker, creamier product, but I’ve used regular coconut milk and it too works well) [Note that Trader Joe’s has organic coconut milk and coconut cream with no added ingredients.]

• ½ cup unsalted, natural creamy peanut butter (or other preferred nut butter)

• 1/3 teaspoon (or 3/8 teaspoons to make it easier) 100% pure monk fruit powder OR 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Peanut butter swirl

• ¼ cup unsalted, natural creamy peanut butter

Instructions

1. Add bananas to a food processor or blender (I used a Vitamix). Blend until crumbly. Add coconut cream/coconut milk and blend until somewhat smooth. If coconut cream is firm, try melting in the microwave for about 8 seconds to liquify (this will prevent coconut chips from forming, but isn’t necessary).

2. Add ½ cup peanut butter, monk fruit/maple sugar, and vanilla. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the processor as needed.

3. Pour half of the mixture into a freezer-friendly, airtight container. Tap the container a few times to create an even layer. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of peanut butter over this layer of ice cream in a large zigzag pattern, creating big pockets of peanut butter. Keep it uneven for more chunky swirls!

4. Pour the remaining half of the ice cream mixture over the peanut butter swirl. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of peanut butter over the ice cream. Dip a butter knife straight down into the ice cream, almost hitting the bottom of the container. Gently swirl the knife around the ice cream in a clockwise motion–starting near the edge of the container and ending in the center, creating pretty peanut butter swirls. Do not over-stir, as that will fully mix the peanut butter into the ice cream and remove swirls.

5. Freeze for 3-6 hours, or until completely frozen. Allow to thaw for 5-20 minutes before scooping. Enjoy!

Vegan Pistachio Ice Cream

Recipe adapted from https://feastingonfruit.com/vegan-pistachio-ice-cream/

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups non-dairy milk (I used almond, but could also use cashew, coconut, oat, or other)

• 1 large avocado OR 1 ½ medium avocados OR 2 small avocados

• 1 cup unsalted pistachios, shells removed

• ½ teaspoon 100% pure monk fruit powder OR 1/3 cup pure maple syrup OR ½ cup Medjool dates (note that dates do influence the green color and make it brown-ish in color)

• ½ teaspoon almond extract

Instructions

1. Combine the milk, avocado, pistachios, and monk fruit/syrup/dates, and almond extract in a blender. Blend on high until smooth.

2. Pour the mixture into a loaf pan, topped with chopped pistachios, and freeze 3-6 hours or until frozen.

3. Remove from the freezer and let thaw 10-15 minutes or until soft enough to scoop.

Almond Joy Vegan Paleo Ice Cream Recipe
Recipe adapted from www.beamingbaker.com

Ingredients

• 3 medium bananas, sliced and frozen

• ½ cup coconut cream or coconut milk (coconut cream will yield a thicker, creamier product, but I’ve used regular coconut milk and it too works well) [Note that Trader Joe’s has organic coconut milk and coconut cream with no added ingredients.]

• 1/3 teaspoon (or 3/8 teaspoons to make it easier) 100% pure monk fruit powder OR 1–2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

• 2 teaspoons almond extract (you could substitute vanilla extract here, but the almond makes it really tasty)

• 1/3 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut

• 1/3 cup unsalted almonds, chopped or sliced

• ¼ cup 72% dark chocolate chips, chopped or opt for mini chips

Instructions

1. Add bananas to a blender or food processor. Blend until crumbly. Add coconut cream, monk fruit/maple syrup and vanilla, blending until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the blender as needed.

2. Add coconut, almonds and chocolate chips, blending until just incorporated (2-4 pulses).

3. If you like super soft, melty ice cream, enjoy immediately. If you want firm and scoopable ice cream: pour into a freezer-friendly, airtight container.

4. Freeze for 3-6 hours, or until completely frozen. Allow to thaw for 5-15 minutes before scooping. Enjoy!

Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream – only 2 or possibly 3 ingredients

Recipe adapted from www.saltandlavender.com

Ingredients

• 1 (1.3 pounds/21 ounce) bag organic, frozen strawberries

• 1 (13.5 ounce) can full-fat coconut milk

• 1/3 teaspoon (or 3/8 teaspoons to make it easier) 100% pure monk fruit powder OR 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup (optional)

Instructions

1. Add the strawberries, coconut milk, and if desired, the sweetener of choice, to your food processor or blender.

2. Process on high until the mixture is smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides.

3. Serve immediately. If you opt to freeze, note that it will become icy, so you’ll want to thaw at least 20 minutes. And, if you want to make it creamier, you could always add back to the food process or blender.