This Cashew Butter Fudge Coconut Ice Cream is sweetened with Medjool Dates and no ice cream maker needed! Just six ingredients, vegan, gluten-free and paleo.
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This post is sponsored in partnership with Natural Delights Medjool Dates. All opinions expressed, as always, are my own. I only partner with brands who I trust and can recommend personally. Thank you for supporting Fit Mitten Kitchen!
Does anyone else get SUPER tempted by all of the specialty non-dairy/vegan frozen desserts in the ice cream aisle of the grocery store? I find myself just going down the aisle just because. No reason. I wasn’t intending to get ice cream (always seems to be the case) but then I walk by and am like, “Oh! SALE.” Then I buy a stupid little pint for like $5 (on sale) and I get home and I think, “Why did you just spend $5 on like two servings??” You know those servings lie…
Well, I really ought to stop getting sucked into those sales now that I have this coconut ice cream recipe here. I mean, there is really no need to buy a small pint of ice cream when you can make your own ice cream at home. And get 4x the servings too! AND not feel bad when you scoop yourself whatever serving you want because there is no label telling you what an appropriate serving size is… Right?
Of course it takes a little bit of time do the Suzy Homemaker thing, but I think we can all agree homemade is better. I know it can be this thing that you write off doing because you think it is going to be hard, or it takes too long, or you don’t have the patience. Pick your favorite excuse.
But then you set out to make said homemade ice cream and the whole time you’re thinking, “Oh, this is so easy.” Actually, this particular recipe is even easier than most because all you need is:
- coconut milk
- tapioca flour/starch
- vanilla extract
- cashew butter
- chocolate chips
I probably shared this last month in this Cinnamon Cherry Berry Medjool Date Smoothie post, but in case you missed it: I’m partnering with Natural Delights Medjool Dates this year and could not be more excited about it! Why? Because Medjool dates are INCREDIBLE. I was head over heels in love with Medjool dates as soon as I discovered their power in energy balls. And then I realized you could add them into smoothies, make salad dressings with them, sweeten cookies with them, and the list goes on. They’re quickly becoming one of my favorite fruits. I always keep them on hand because you never know when hanger will strike. They’re a great source of natural energy – one of my favorite pre-workout snacks in the morning, actually.
They also make a great natural sweetener for recipes like this homemade coconut ice cream. No extra sugar or honey needed whatsoever here. Medjool dates are serious magic.
This particular vegan ice cream recipe doesn’t even require an ice cream maker. I *thought* it would, but when I was in the middle of the process, I realized it isn’t actually 100% necessary to churn this coconut ice cream here. So if you don’t have an ice cream maker, you’re in luck!
All you have to do is heat up the full-fat canned coconut milk, then add the vanilla and tapioca flour/starch and let the milk thicken. You then add that into the food processor (or high-powered blender) with the processed Medjool dates.
No-Churn Style
Simply pour the coconut milk and Medjool date mixture into a lined bowl until very cold and creamy, about 2 hours. Then transfer half the coconut ice cream into a lined loaf pan. This is where you’ll add half of your cashew butter “fudge”, cover with the rest of the coconut ice cream, and top with more cashew butter fudge. Freeze this for an additional 4-6 hours until frozen and scoop-able.
Ice Cream Maker
Pour the coconut milk and Medjool date mixture into a lined bowl for a couple of hours, but instead of transferring directly to your lined loaf pan, you’ll pour the mixture into your cold ice cream maker bowl (I use the KitchenAid attachment) and churn for about 30-40 minutes, until the ice cream is thick. Transfer half of the mixture into your lined loaf pan, drizzle on some cashew butter fudge, cover with the rest of the churned coconut ice cream, and top with the rest of the cashew butter. Freeze this for an additional 3-5 hours, or until desired consistency.
Either way works, but using an ice cream maker will get you slightly creamier results.
Let me know if you make this recipe! I always love seeing your creations 🙂
Vegan Cashew Butter Fudge Coconut Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 14 oz cans full-fat coconut milk*
- 10 oz Medjool Dates, about 16-18 , soaked for 5 minutes, pitted and drained.
- 1/2 TBS vanilla extract
- 2 TBS tapioca flour/starch, or cornstarch
- 1/4 cup creamy cashew butter
- 3 TBS dairy-free mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- 1. Before you begin make sure your ice cream bowl is completely frozen, at least 12 hours, preferably 24 hours. Store it in the coldest part/back of the freezer.
- 2. In a medium saucepan on medium heat, combine coconut milk and vanilla. Whisk together until warm, almost hot to touch. Sprinkle in tapioca starch one tablespoon at a time, whisking thoroughly. Continue whisking mixture on medium heat for 5 minutes, until mixture has thickened. Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
- 3. In bowl of a large food processor, add drained pitted dates. Process until dates break down, then add 1-2 tablespoons of water to form paste.
- 4. Add cooled coconut milk to bowl of food processor with date paste and blend until smooth – about 1-2 minutes scraping down the sides of bowl as necessary. Some date pieces may remain.
- 5. Transfer to freezer safe bowl and chill in freezer for 2 hours. The mixture should be really cold and slightly thick before adding to the ice cream maker, but not frozen solid.
- 6. Once the mixture has chilled, add to the ice cream maker (follow manufacturer’s instructions) and churn mixture for 30-45 minutes.
- 7. In a medium microwave safe bowl, melt together the cashew butter and chocolate chips in 15-20 second increments, stirring together until smooth.
- 8. Transfer half of ice cream batter into a lined 8×4 or 5×7 loaf pan, drizzle in cashew butter “fudge”, then add the rest of the ice cream batter and top with more cashew butter fudge. Swirl with spoon to slightly mix in. Cover well with plastic wrap and foil. Freeze an additional 4 hours, until ice cream is more solid. 9. Your ice cream is now ready for your enjoyment!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information
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