Vegan Toasted Coconut and Pecan Ice Cream

Before making this, I was intimidated by homemade ice cream. I thought making ice cream from scratch entailed either spending a fortune on and wasting cabinet space with a fancy machine or performing some complicated ice-shaking routine. But this recipe proved me otherwise.

I saw a delicious looking (and masterfully photographed) rhubarb and pistachio vegan ice cream on What's Cooking Good Looking that suggested using David Lebovitz's no-machine ice cream method. This method only required freezing and some intermittent stirring I was dying to make her recipe, but alas, my rhubarb isn't quite ready to harvest. So, I decided to make an ice cream without the rhubarb and with a few other modifications.

I wanted my ice cream to be scoopable when frozen, so I started searching around for suggestions. I stumbled on another suggestion from David Lebovitz: adding a bit of alcohol to the mixture. Since alcohol doesn't freeze, this addition makes the ice cream a little more scoopable when frozen. Genius.

The toasted coconut in this recipe is another a stroke of genius, this time by yours truly. Toasting the coconut and nuts before adding them to this ice cream adds a deeper flavor that is just perfection.

Let me know what you think of the recipe and don't forget to follow the sustainability tips below!

Time: 6-8 hours

Makes: About 4 cups ice cream

Serves: 6-8 people

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup pecans, chopped

• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

• 27 ounces coconut cream

• 2/3 cup maple syrup

• 1 tablespoon vanilla

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 1/2 tablespoons vodka

  • This helps keep the ice cream more scoopable when frozen

Steps

1. Heat the chopped pecans in a medium skillet over medium-low. Toast until fragrant and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Then add the shredded coconut to the pan and toast until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove skillet from heat and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, add the coconut cream, maple syrup, vanilla, salt and vodka. Use an electric hand mixer to beat until well-combined. Add the toasted coconut and pecans and beat again until incorporated. Place in the fridge for several hours until completely chilled.

3. Transfer bowl to the freezer and let sit for 45 minutes, or until the edges start to freeze. Remove and beat with a hand mixer until the frozen bits are completely incorporated. Freeze again for 30 minutes and then beat again. Repeat freezing and beating every 30 minutes for about 4-6 hours, or until the ice cream is your desired consistency. Serve immediately. In subsequent servings, you may need to let the ice cream sit for a few minutes to soften.

Sustainability Tips

• Pecans: Try to get local pecans if you can find them. If you don’t live in a pecan-growing area, feel free to substitute with your favorite local nut.

• Coconut products: Make sure your coconut products are organic and Fair Trade. Organic means that no nasty synthetic pesticides or fertilizers were used in their production and that Fair Trade logo means that the workers and environment were treated well during production.

• Maple Syrup: Go as local as possible with your syrup. By doing this, you’re cutting down on how far your syrup needs to travel, which is preventing a bunch of nasty GHGs from getting into the atmosphere.