Thai Chai Ice Cream
You know you love it, even if you won’t admit it! During the summer when the thermometer starts hitting the triple digits and humidity is damn near 90% most days, I often find myself craving something that will cool down my body, and satisfy my nostalgic palate. Growing up my parents would treat us to ice cream on the weekends, and I remember having to test taste each flavor although I had already decided that coffee was what I was always going to choose. Fast forward a few years, something changed, why was I running to the bathroom with gut wrenching stomachaches every time I ate ice cream (or yogurt, cheese, and milk)? Or why was my skin breaking out? Also why did I have a constant supply of phlegm in the back of my throat? Obviously it was a lack of knowledge and understanding of what food intolerance’s were and how they manifest as different symptoms for everyone. Partially it was DENIAL, because milk is good for you right?
Where are surrounded by cleaver marketing tactics that have conveyed the fact that dairy is necessary for strong bones, and muscles. However, science has shown that countries with the highest consumption of dairy products correlates with higher rates of osteoporosis in later life. Dairy is very acidic to the body, and congests the mucosal lining of digestive and respiratory tract. It is also estimated that upward of 50% of individuals do not produce the enzymes necessary for digesting dairy. This is a problem of course because…. It tastes so good!!
So many of my friends and clients tell me that they could stop eating meat, or give up sugar, but no way in hell would they EVER be able to give up dairy. This could quite possible be because dairy is actually addicting. Casomorphines are a peptide of dairy products that stimulate the same addictive opioid receptors in the brain that heroine, cocaine and other addictive drugs activate. Your body literally becomes addicted to dairy, and withdrawal symptoms often surface when we decide ditch all these white substances.
But what if I told you that there are alternatives. Nut milks and coconut products have become pretty mainstream in the past few years, and for good reason. They offer a delicious substitution in recipes for dairy, as well as a more diverse range of flavor that can spark creativity in the kitchen… for example this fantastic Coconut Ice Cream! Its so decadent, creamy and satisfying. Also there is no guilt involved and I have happily eaten it for breakfast nearly everyday in the past week.
COCONUT ICE CREAM
A thick, creamy non-dairy ice cream made from coconut milk. A twist on a classic coconut flavored ice cream.
INGREDIENTS
- 2, 15 ounce cans of organic full fat coconut milk
- 4 large dates, pitted (stevia for sugar free option)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp turmeric and ginger
- pinch of sea salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper and cardamom
INSTRUCTIONS
- Chill the full fat coconut milk cans overnight.
- Combine all ingredients into a high speed blender or food processor and blend until thick and creamy.
- Blender Method:
- transfer mixture to ice cube tray and freeze for about 1-3 hours to harden up
- throw cubes back into the blender and whip it up until you’ve reached the desired consistency
- grab yourself a healthy serving and store the rest in a freezer safe container
- Ice Cream Machine Method:
- If you have one, you can use it and get the best results. After blending, you simply add the mixture to your ice cream maker and let it do the work for you.
- Enjoy chilled with typical ice cream garnish and toppings.
Recipe For this remake of Cherry Garcia variety coming soon.....