Who doesn’t love ice cream when summer comes around? It’s even better when it’s made with ingredients that nourish your body. Homemade ice cream can be a fairly-healthy treat when using ingredients such as summer ripened fruit, full-fat dairy, and egg yolks from organic and pasture-raised animals, plus little unrefined sweeteners. Fruit provides vitamins and minerals, as well as other phyto-nutrients that are very important for our health. The fat from grass-fed and pasture-raised animals, found in cream and egg yolks, is rich in fat soluble vitamins A, D, and K, which support a strong immune system. Raw milk kefir adds probiotics. (Worried about raw eggs? Read my last recipe for more information.) If dairy is not an option for your diet, full-fat coconut cream can be used as well. Coconuts contain lauric acid, a fatty acid providing strong antimicrobial properties that help fight infections.
Looking for a fall-inspired treat? Use baked sweet potatoes with cinnamon for a special, seasonal ice cream.
Ingredients
3-4 cups frozen fruit (or frozen baked sweet potatoes)
¾ cup cream, either dairy or coconut
¼ cup raw milk kefir (if not available then substitute with milk or cream of your choice)
2 egg yolks, ideally pasture raised (optional)
1-4 tbsp sucanat sugar or honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon (if using sweet potatoes)
Directions
- Put all ingredients, except the fruit (or sweet potatoes), in a blender and mix. Add frozen fruit, and blend on high speed just until ice cream becomes smooth and creamy.
- Take a sample, decide whether to add more sweetener, and mix again if needed. However, work briskly, as this ice cream starts to melt with prolonged blending. Serve immediately.
Notes
- This recipe is very versatile; almost any frozen fruit will do. My favorite combinations: cherries and cream and kefir; mango and coconut cream; mixed berries with a bit of pineapple, mango, and cream; baked sweet potatoes with cream and cinnamon
- The amount of sweetener can vary widely. For example, frozen cherries are sometimes so sweet that hardly any additional sweetener is needed, while other times more sweetener is needed to bring out more flavor.
- For frozen yogurt, use plain yogurt instead of cream.
- For sweet potato ice cream, the sweet potatoes need to be baked, cooled, peeled, and frozen ahead of time. To freeze, I cut them in ½ to ¾-inch slices and freeze them on a plate.
- Leftovers can be filled in popsicle trays and frozen to enjoy later.
