BLUEBERRY FRENCH VANILLA ICE STICKS

I have always been fond of ice cream.

Okay… wait. Let me rephrase that.

HI, MY NAME IS SOPHIE AND I AM AN ICE CREAM LOVER.

I don’t know anybody in my life that does not like ice cream. Or, I probably don’t want to know anybody in my life that does not like ice cream. Ha ha.

How can you NOT like ice cream? It’s creamy, and velvety and delicious and cold and fun. Ice Cream are all those things I have listed, UNLESS you have an allergy to dairy, like I do.

First of all, I can’t really digest cow’s milk.

Second of all, I have never liked the taste of cow’s milk.

Third of all, Cow’s Milk makes me gassy and bloated.

Fourth of all, if you think your only source of calcium is from cow’s milk, then you have been misled. Cow’s milk actually leeches your calcium from you.

Fifth of all, I am not going to go into more details, because you can always do some research on point number 4, and also because I want to get to this super delicious recipe quickly.

So, in short, because of my intolerance towards dairy products, I have stopped consuming them. Guess what? I feel so much lighter in mood and balance, probably in weight too ( I got rid of my weighing machine a long time ago) . I also  never suffer from scratchy throats, mouth ulcers, bloatingtummy and shortness of breath anymore. Yayyyyy!!

But, I must say, I do miss it! So what did I do, ever since I STOPPED taking all kinds of dairy milk 8 years ago? I tried to recreate that texture and taste in a healthier option. I found CASHEWS!

WAIT… I am not saying that cashews are the best food on earth. But I know, it’s a better option in a lot of ways for me. And come on, you’re not supposed to eat THAT MUCH cashews anyways.

This is a TREAT kind of dish…ON A STICK. Ha Ha.

I turned this ice cream into popsicle style.

When I first started to make this recipe in the kitchen, I didn’t think of anything else, but to make a French Vanilla Ice Cream creation come to reality in a healthier option. But then, I looked into my refrigerator and saw that i had had a bit of frozen blueberries standing by. So, what’s a chef to do? Throw it ALL in and baptize it with a new name !!

Here’s the recipe for you now. You can thank me later!

BLUEBERRY FRENCH VANILLA ICE STICKS

Ingredients:

1 cup raw cashews (soaked)
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup almond milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup coconut nectar
1 teaspoon vanilla powder (scrape off from vanilla pod)
1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 Tablespoon rum

Method:
1. Blend Raw Cashews with almond milk and water + coconut nectar in a high powered blender until you achieve a smooth and creamy consistency

2. Next, add in all the other ingredients into the blender and blend until well incorporated. A little tip from me is to add in the blueberries last and just blend it in quickly, so you end up with a coarse mixture of the blueberries in your cashew mixture. It will just look better in pictures, I think.

3. Pour into rectangle jelly moulds and freeze for about 4 hours. After 4 hours, take it out of the moulds and slowly stick in ice cream sticks. This step needs to be done gently but quickly so you do not break the rectangle ice cream. (If you live in a hot country and find that at this step the ice cream is still soft and mushy, stick it back in the refrigerator and wait a bit more)

4. Stick it back in the fridge and it will be ready to be devoured  in another 8 hours. I like to leave mine overnight. It just tastes better and firmer.

Note:
This is the simplest form of homemade ice cream. I have found that if I use a bit of guar gum, I get a better texture. Also, if you have an ice cream machine, you are more than welcome to use it before you put them in moulds and freeze.

Here’s the picture again, JUST IN CASE you decide to procrastinate—which I’m sure you won’t 😀

PLEASE PLEASE make this recipe. And let me know how it goes. You can leave a comment here, or TAG me on instagram at @sophienavita so I can see your creations

If you’re family gets hooked on this recipe, you will be beaming with joy. You’re welcome!!

P.S: This recipe works very well if you need to impress people like: FUTURE MOTHER IN LAW

If you haven’t subscribed to my #LoveLettersFromSophie , you should NOW. Because nobody ever writes or receives love letters anymore these days, except for some rare species of human like ME! Here’s that link again. Click NOW.