June 2019

Yup, its Saturday and I am in Mexico…well, not literally but virtually. After eating a bowl of this sinful, ultra glamorous and ever graceful ice cream, I can only imagine people enjoying their favorite Cafe De Olla in Mexico and sipping their way to renewed energy every day. Before you start wondering about my Mexican obsession, let me tell you I am way more obsessed about Tuscany and Austria…What brings me to Mexico is this lovely and decadent ice cream which is inspired by the Cafe De Olla coffee which is a traditional Mexican coffee beverage. This type of coffee is principally consumed in cold climates and in rural areas.

The “Olla” here refers to a tall, ceramic pot used in Mexico for simmering stews and beans. It is also the preferred vessel for brewing this traditional sweet coffee beverage as it gives a special flavor to the coffee. This method uses fewer beans than other brewing methods to produce a less concentrated extraction. Boiling the grinds enhances the beans’ bitterness and acidity, so piloncillo (a dark Mexican cane sugar with molasses-like flavors) and cinnamon are used to tame the coffee’s bite in Mexican households.

Being a marvelous adaptation of this ice cream and an inspiring delight in itself, it is really easy to make this ice cream as well. I have tried to mold the recipe on such a way that you enjoy an ice cream which is as creamy, light and rich in flavor as a market bought ice cream. Two secret ingredients – CMC powder and GMS powder give you a creation which won’t melt that fast and has the perfect texture. Just hop onto our all-time favorite – Amazon to get these products delivered and everything else you will find right in your fridge.

Let me tell you where the magic lies in this ice cream recipe and what makes it so incredible:

• The mild coffee flavor rather than a strong mocha one makes it superbly delicious and helps the coffee to blend rightly with the other ingredients.
• It superbly creamy, just so smooth and silky – you literally see a shine on the surface as you make it.
• I have used way less sugar and that makes it a little healthier if not more and extremely graceful. It’s not like any other ice cream which is loaded with a lot of sugar.
• The flavor of the orange and the spices added to it helps to distinguish the ice cream from all its peers. The orange blends with the coffee like long lost friends and the spices help to enhance their delightful combination.

One thing to note – I have used a dark roast Kenyan coffee here and Nescafe as well. The dark roast and strong Kenyan coffee gives the ice cream a different kind of flavor and to prevent the ice-cream from becoming too much of it (the strong dark roast flavor), the Nescafe is a good addition. You can use any strong coffee you have and mix it with Nescafe to do justice to this lovely creation.

Well, give this recipe a go and do post me updates….enjoy the impressive and delicate flavors of Cafe De Olla as you transport yourself to a Mexican sojourn within the confines of your balcony….its Mexico calling this season!

RECIPE:

A sinful combination of spices, orange and coffee, this ice cream is a tad hard to resist and forget. Inspired from the traditional Cafe De olla coffee from Mexico, it is the best coffee flavored ice cream you will ever have….Take my word….tastes like death!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup hot brewed coffee (I added 1 1/2 tbsp of dark roast coffee and 2 1/2 tbsp of Nescafe in some water to make this brew)

100 ml full fat milk

2 1/2 tbsp of Nescafe

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground cloves

4 tbsp sweetened condensed Milk

1 cup Amul cream

1/2 tsp finely grated orange peel

1/4 tsp CMC powder

1 Tbsp GMS powder

1 Tbsp cornflour

Method:

• Combine hot coffee, sugar, cinnamon and cloves in a bowl. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir in sweetened condensed milk until blended.
•  Cover and chill until cold.
•  In a small bowl add the corn flour, CMC powder and GMS powder . Take about 3-4 tbsp of milk from the 100 ml milk to make a smooth paste of these.
• Now heat the remaining milk in a pan and let it come to a boil. Add sugar and mix well. Then add this paste and stir well with the help of a whisk to prevent lumps from forming. Keep the flame on medium.
• The mixture will tend to thicken in 2-3 minutes. Take it off the heat and let it cool down.
• Then strain the mixture with the help of a wire mesh to eliminate any leftover lumps.
• Add the cream in a bowl and add the above mixture to it. Combine them well. Now add the chilled coffee mixture and mix everything well together.
• Add the ice cream mixture in a container, cover it up and let it chill for 5-6 hours.
• Then take out the chilled mixture. Let it be at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
• Use a beater to beat the ice cream mixture. Within minutes the volume will almost double up and the mixture will be smooth, creamy and thick.
• 
• Pour it into your ice cream container now. Cover the top with a foil. Place the lid on top and let freeze for next 10-12 hours.

Chocolate certainly has me crushing over it like nothing else…It makes me dance around, behave like a princess, like a mad lover, and like an annoying aunt! When it comes to white chocolate, it is way milder and little sweeter than the dark chocolate. If you love white chocolate, don’t look for a more prominent flavor of it in this ice cream, but it tends to enhance the taste of the banana and makes the simple banana ice cream much richer in flavor. Try and have an only banana ice cream and you will notice the difference. There is a certain change in flavor which I could perhaps gauge within the first bite (I am proud to have a strong sixth sense and an innate sense of flavor 🙂

When I decided to make this recipe, I had like loads, I mean literally loads of cranberry and had to put them to good use. Cranberry and pistachios could go well together, I thought. As I happened to open my freezer at that very instant, I saw my transparent frozen plastic container with a whole packet of pistachios as if they all were literally telling me to let them dance and merge together for a wonderful creation! A glance at the fridge door shelf and my white chocolates came handy. I always tend to keep some white and dark chocolate bars in the fridge just in case I run short of my Morde cooking chocolates at any time.

The only thing you have to remember here is that you can’t just melt the chocolate and add here. When the melted chocolate incorporates with the frozen bananas, it can freeze and solidify rather than mixing well with the bananas. The mixture of cream and chocolate here is the best way to go about it.

Also, be generous with the white chocolate. Be a little greedy with the chocolate, add a good amount. I added about a half cup but you can also add around one cup to this ice cream. It will, of course, have more of the chocolaty flavor then.

When it comes to cranberry and pistachios they both make the recipe complete. Cranberry helps it to stay away from getting too sweet and you will love the tiny bits as they come and melt away as the ice cream does in your mouth. These are smooth and silky in texture and never a hindrance. When it comes to pistachios, ahh….they add the crunchiness that I always look for in an ice-cream and the mild flavor helps in retaining the taste of the more flavourful bananas and white chocolate.

My folks went all crazy when I scooped out the perfect scoops for them. Well, yes they enjoyed their parts at an odd hour of 9:00 am in the morning leaving their breakfast halfway.

One thing very important to keep in mind, something I always stress upon when making an ice cream recipe which is without eggs or shipping cream – never freeze your ice cream for more than 12 hours. It tends to go too hard and you would never to able to get perfect scoops out of it. At 12 hours, it is simply in the best form.

Tell me if you have any queries here, just leave a comment……….I am sure you are going to fall in love with this adorable ice cream 🙂

RECIPE:

A deliciously rich white chocolate ice cream studded with pistachios and cranberries, to be had any time of the day. Made without a base of cream and a heavy dose of refined sugar, it is simply your healthiest choice. Just freeze some bananas and your healthy white chocolate ice cream is on its way!

Ingredients:

3 frozen bananas (cut into slices and frozen)

80 gms White Chocolate

1/3 cup Heavy Cream (Amul cream)

2 tbsp dried cranberries that were soaked in water for about 30 minutes and squeezed to remove as much liquid as possible

1- 1/2 tbsp shelled roasted pistachios, coarsely chopped (make sure they’re coarsely chopped or any finer powder will give the ice cream a sandy texture)

METHOD:

• Peel the bananas and cut them into small pieces.
• Freeze them for 12 hours or more.
• Put the frozen bananas into a food processor or blender and pulse until smooth. Scrape down the sides as necessary.
• Take the cream in a pan and slightly heat it over. Do not boil. Then take it off the heat and add the white chocolate to it. Keep mixing the white chocolate until it melts and combines well. (Make sure you have broken the white chocolate into pieces here).

• Add the cream and chocolate mixture to the bananas mixture and combine well. You can also pulse this again.
• Add the cranberries and pistachios now and incorporate well. Transfer the ice-cream mix to an airtight container. Add some cranberries and pistachios again on the top. Cover the container with a foil. Freeze for 10-12 hours.

I really wonder if there exists a world without Coffee and Hazelnut. The woman that I am, I did have varied combinations of these two everyday! Hazelnuts are simply the most consistently rewarding nuts. Lay your hands on them during autumn and you’ll experience them when they are youthfully mild and juicy. As hazelnuts dry out or are dried for storage, their persona emerges, one that can make other nuts seem dull.

Bake them gently, and that haunting taste deepens and becomes utterly seductive. Without hazelnuts, French praline is just a pile of caramel. Take hazelnuts down the savory route, and they give you world-class dips…..Ah well, in this slush, the hazelnut butter helps to add the much needed mild nuttiness!

As for the Bananas – they are mushy and everyone’s forever love. This is one fruit we all love to eat, any time of the day. Here banana goes extremely well with the coffee and becomes the base item of this crush.

The white chocolate combines well with all the ingredients. You don’t have to worry about getting the white chocolate syrup from the market. Simply take some cream, heat it and add the white chocolate to it. Mix well and whoa, it’s ready to be added to the crush! The same goes for hazelnut butter here, no fancy market-bought item. Simply grind the hazelnuts till it becomes a smooth silky paste (for about two minutes).

I like this crush strong. For me, it’s no honey in the recipe, really! I just add the honey as a topping when its finally in the glass and enjoy it. You can do without honey as well if you don’t prefer the other way. The little sweetness comes from the bananas and the white chocolate that has been added.

It’s kind of a healthier option when you are in the mood to indulge for something really cooling. It works way better to give you that extra kick than your favorite cold coffee crush or the frappuccino! If the icy thing doesn’t excite you, simply enjoy it as a super cold blend by adding less ice and more milk…I tell you, this works almost like a shot of tequila on a bad summer day!

Easy, weasy, smooth and silky….this crush will simply have you crushing all over it!

RECIPE:

Wonderfully creamy banana crush that is infused with coffee, hazelnut, and white chocolate. An indulgent drink for coffee lovers that is way healthier than your all-time favorite branded coffee! It is refined sugar-free, and SO delicious.

Ingredients:

3tsp Nescafe

50 ml milk

1-1/2 tbsp Hazelnut butter

2 tbsp White chocolate syrup

1 Full banana + small slices for garnishing

3 tbsp + 1 tsp Honey

2 digestive biscuits crushed

10-15 Ice Cubes

Method:

• Put all the ingredients except the honey, extra banana slices and crumbled cookie in a blender

• Blend all the ingredients together for a minute or two, until the mixture is thick and smooth
• Carefully pour the mix into a serving glass
• Garnish with the honey, crumbled biscuits, banana slices and enjoy!

Like summers and ice creams go together, I and chocolate go hand in hand. We are practically inseparable. Yeah, rather than a prince charming, chocolates make me go weak in the knees, they literally make me blush and transport me to a way better world…I almost lose touch of reality whenever there’s that brown piece of heaven in my mouth.

As much as I love everything that’s sugary, dessert and just outstanding in taste, I also love to try out and explore healthier versions of the same. Being one of the most common flavors you must have enjoyed, you must have enjoyed chocolate ice cream a lot of times from gelato to full-fat ones from different brands but I bet never ever this one!

In three words- it’s decadent, dreamy and death like!

It’s also instant, doesn’t melt like normal ice cream (be assured, I have made in super humid Mumbai temperature), creamy, super chocolaty and of course healthier than you can imagine! Perfect to be made and had every single day of your life without worrying much about calories! Ask me how, well its made from our favorite bananas and that’s the base of the ice cream.

I used, cocoa powder, Hide & Seek biscuits, a few bits of chocolate along with the bananas to give the chocolate flavor. But what added the exotic touch to it is the addition of some special ingredients which made it all the more unique and added the special touch! I made a coarse mixture of some peanuts, fennel seeds and chili flakes and added to the ice cream mix. The result is, of course, palatable and luscious ice cream with the freshness of the fennel, spiciness of the chili flakes and the nuttiness of the peanuts! I bet you wouldn’t be able to control your taste buds after this deadly combination!

It is this wonderful spice blend which makes the ice cream different and wonderful creation in itself!

As far as the rest of the ingredients go, you can add just about add anything to give the chocolate flavor – cocoa powder, Oreos, any other chocolate biscuits, chocolate syrup, chocolate chips, etc.

What’s also nice about this ice cream is that it can be had instantly or you can also freeze it as long as you want. It has a texture of gelato. When you freeze it, it will become a little firmer but still have a gelato-like texture……super creamy, I tell you!

Why you need this Chocolate Banana Ice Cream:

• It tastes EXACTLY like soft serve chocolate ice cream.
• It’s every bit as refreshing as your favorite ice cream recipe only made with healthy ingredients.
• This is the best recipe ever for tricking your kids, spouse, friends, or yourself into eating healthy food.

Tips:

• Try the ice cream when is done. If it’s too bitter, add some natural sweetener or more Hide & Seek biscuits and blend again. If you like bitter chocolate ice cream, add more cacao.
• I used cocoa powder, but sweetened chocolate powder and carob powder are okay.
• If you use very ripe bananas the ice cream will be sweeter. It’s best to use ripe ones.

Well, why waste more time…go ahead guys and let me know how do you like it? Happy weekending!

RECIPE:

Sinfully rich, indulgently dark, and secretly healthy chocolate ice cream! No cream, no added sugar, no guilt! My favorite way to eat it is as soft serve right out of the blender but you can also freeze so it’s firm enough to scoop into ice cream cones.

INGREDIENTS:

4 bananas chopped and frozen

2 tablespoon cocoa powder

7-8 Hide and seek biscuits

2 tbsp chocolate chunks (chocolate broken into small pieces). You can also add melted chocolate

1-1/2 tbsp mixture of fennel seeds, peanuts and chili flakes (roughly grind all these together to make a coarse powder)

METHOD:

• Peel the bananas and cut them into small pieces.
• Freeze them for 12 hours or more.
• Put the frozen bananas into a food processor or blender and pulse until smooth. Scrape down the sides as necessary.

• When the mixture is smooth, add the cocoa powder, Hide & Seek biscuits, chocolate chunks, spice mixture and blend until incorporated.

• For a soft ice cream, serve immediately.
• For a firm chocolate banana ice cream, transfer it back to the freezer for at least an hour. Enjoy!