Early Summer Indulgence

Was my last post really in February? How time flies!! I have come to a really wonderful realization and I wanted to share. I started this blog to see if it would be possible as a full-time working mom of 3 little boys to sustain a mostly locally sourced seasonal diet and the verdict is: you can. It's a lot of work, but very rewarding. The thing I find the most challenging? Finding the time to blog about it!!

I've had the wonderful opportunity to write my first guest blog post about coconut milk rhubarb ice cream here: http://www.lifeinpleasantville.com/category/suzy-homemaker/ Please check it out :)

With local farmer's markets now back for the season, I'm inspired to discover new flavours and share them with everyone!!


Rhubarb Ice Cream



2 cans of coconut milk (400 ml) - not light kind
2 cups chopped rhubarb
6 medium egg yolks or 4 large
2/3 cup sugar (divided) - note: you could also try 1/2 cup agave (divided) if avoiding refined sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon



Rhubarb compote



Chop rhubarb and place in saucepan with maple syrup, 1/3 cup sugar and cinnamon.
Heat on med-low until stewed, purée until smooth then transfer to a bowl and cool.

For the ice cream

Here is the coconut milk right from the can

Heat coconut milk on med-low until smooth then increase to medium and bring to just before boiling. Watch it closely, you don't want it to boil!

Here is the coconut milk warmed up and smooth

In a glass bowl, whisk egg yolks with remaining sugar until pale yellow.

Dark yellow yolks

Light yellow yolks

Temper the eggs. Basically what this means is whisk eggs with one hand while slowly pouring in about half the warm coconut milk, then pour the eggs back in the pot with the remaining coconut milk. Keep whisking until it's fully incorporated.

Heat until the mixture begins to thicken. It will not thicken like a dairy custard but will coat the back of a wooden spoon.



Prepare an ice bath. When the custard is ready, strain into a clean bowl and sit in ice bath. Whisk in rhubarb compote and chill for about 20 minutes.



Place some plastic wrap directly on the mixture and chill in the fridge for a few hours. You just want the mixture to be very cold. I've left it overnight, it's not a problem.

Before placing the custard in the ice cream machine, you'll need to give it a good whisk.

The mixture has separated a bit - no worries!

Churn according to manufacturer's instructions.

The hard part is the waiting!!

It will be soft when you remove it from the machine so transfer it to a container and freeze for about an hour. If it is frozen solid when you pull it from the freezer, let it sit for 5 minutes and it will be easier to scoop.

I served this ice cream in a waffle bowl topped with stewed strawberries. It would be delicious with strawberry shortcake!!

Taste tested: 5 kids, 4 adults, 10 thumbs up!!

For the love of ice cream!

Been a little distant from my blog lately. It's not because I've increased my consumption of foreign foods or because I've revolted against #sugarpurge or #dairypurge, it's simply because life is hectic. I've also been experimenting in the kitchen with a few recipes but none have been blog worthy... Until today!

This idea has been churning in my head since Xmas (no pun intended). See, it all started with a box of Toffifee. I know what you're thinking, "what happened to #sugarpurge"? Well, we all have out weaknesses and a box of Toffifee is mine. I could eat a whole box in one sitting, I have no self control when it comes to those little nougat lovelies!

My hubs knows they're my favourite. Last weekend he picked up some snacks at the grocery store, including a box of Toffifee. I told him no treats for me, I was back on #sugarpurge but he was so happy to have bought me a box of my favourite treats, how could I say no ;)

I could have eaten that whole box of 48. But instead, I chopped them all up (well, all 36 remaining) and made some ice cream. I used coconut milk as the base because even though I may have my ups and downs with #sugarpurge, #dairypurge is holding pretty strong. It would certainly be delicious with half cream, half whole milk.

Coconut milk Toffifee ice cream.

36 Toffifee (cause let's face it, you'll want to eat some)
2 cans of coconut milk (organic, 400 ml)
3 egg yolks (just found a local supplier, very excited!)
1/2 cup brown sugar (organic, fair trade)

Slice each Toffifee in half and separate.

Chop nougat into small pieces. Chop caramel cups into small pieces and add half of the caramel bits to the nougat pile. Place into a large heat-proof glass bowl. Place a fine strainer over the bowl. Chop hazelnuts and place in a small bowl with other half of caramel bits.

Shake the coconut milk cans and add to sauce pan. Heat on med-low for a couple minutes so that the coconut milk becomes a consistent liquid. You can skip this step if you successfully managed to shake your coconut milk into a uniform texture. Take out 1/2 a cup.

Separate your eggs, keep eggs whites for tomorrow's healthy omelet :). Make sure your 1/2 cup of coconut milk is cool then whisk your egg yolks with the cool coconut milk.

Add brown sugar to the warm coconut milk in the pot and increase heat to medium. Whisk until sugar is dissolved and heat until it starts to bubble but not boil. Temper the egg yolks then whisk the warm egg mixture back into the pot. Heat on medium stirring constantly for 5 or 6 minutes. It will thicken slightly but will not thicken like a dairy custard. If you're using milk and cream, you might need to head for a bit less time.

Pour the warm liquid through the strainer over the nougat and caramel bits and whisk until fully melted. Prepare a large bowl of ice water and place custard mixture bowl inside, let cool completely, maybe 45 minutes. Place a plastic wrap directly over top of the mixture and chill completely, at least 3 hours.

When ready, place in ice cream maker, churn according to directions. In the last 5 minutes, pour in chopped nuts and caramel. You can eat it right away, may be a little soft, or chill in freezer for a few hours to harden.

Share the Toffifee, share the love :)

Yes you can!

Let me say this: the most difficult thing about taking dairy out of my diet is giving up ice cream. And it's summer so it's doubly difficult! What have I gotten myself into? Well, fortunately, I have discovered that you can make a lovely custard-based ice cream with coconut milk. The result is incredible!

I was on dessert duty for a family birthday party and I thought I would surprise everyone with some dairy-free-sugar-free-chocolate-peanut-butter-cup cupcakes. I mean, why should I make a lovely dessert and not be able to eat it right? Plus, the birthday girl loves crazy wild food ideas. I searched the web for hours to find a great recipe and came across this recipe for {vegan} dark chocolate peanut butter filled cupcakes. 


I doubled the recipe (as per the blogger's advice!) and in the first batch I substituted the cup of cane juice for 3/4 cup of honey and in the second batch I used 3/4 cup of brown rice syrup. The whole batch looked a bit wet so I added an extra 1/2 cup of flour and 3 tbsp of cocoa. They baked perfectly! 


For the icing, I already knew what I was going to use. I came across this most delicious chocolate frosting and I put it in a piping bag to make rosettes on top. I doubled the recipe because I didn't know how much I would need by using it in the piping bag. When it chills, it hardens a bit. It's delicious! Don't be afraid of the combination. Most people think of guacamole when they think of avocado but this is far from a garlic and lime taste :) At the party, all the guests were shocked when I revealed the mystery ingredient! I had them all fooled, he he he...


Cupcakes made, I had a large quantity of chocolate avocado icing left over. I decided to try a custard based ice cream with coconut milk. I was divine! Here is my recipe:


Topical Chocolate Ice Cream 


1 can of regular coconut milk (organic preferably, look for a can with the fewest ingredients)
1 can of light coconut milk (as above)
3/4 cup honey (local, yay!)
3 egg yolks (also local, yay!)
1 recipe of the chocolate frosting (I replaced the agave syrup with maple syrup which is local and I already had some in the fridge).


Shake both cans of coconut milk very well. Very very well. Place the can of regular coconut milk in a pot on the stove along with 1/2 the can of light coconut milk. Add the honey. Whisk together and heat on medium until the honey is dissolved and the liquid starts to bubble a bit. Do not let it come to a full boil and stir often to prevent from burning. 


Meanwhile, place the egg yolks in a large bowl and whisk with remaining light coconut milk. When the milk is warm, you will have to temper the egg yolks. Basically whisk your egg mixture while pouring in 1/4 of the warm milk then pour the egg mixture back in the pot whisking as you pour. Heat the mixture and stir almost constantly on medium heat for 5 or 6 minutes. Normally a regular milk custard would thicken enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon but this does not really happen with coconut milk. It does thicken a bit but you will have to trust your gut on this one. 


Once thickened, remove from heat and stir in the chocolate frosting until it is melted. Prepare an ice water bath by filing a large wide bowl with ice and cold water half way. Pour the mixture through a fine sieve into a clean glass bowl then place the glass bowl in the ice bath to chill for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the bowl from the water, dry off the bottom and place a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the custard. Chill the custard overnight in the fridge and churn it in an ice cream machine the next day. It was pretty soft when it came out of the ice cream machine so I placed it in the freezer for about 4 hours and it scooped out very nicely. 


Unfortunately I don't have any pictures! Rest assured it was fantastic!