coconut stuffed ice cream
/Oh, hey there.
Long time no chat.
I’m thinking that my brief absence will be completely forgotten if ice cream is involved. Am I right?
Thanks for hanging in there while we’ve been transitioning to our new house! We’re about halfway there and can’t wait to be fully settled. By halfway I mean we’re out of our old house, waiting to move into the new house, and living at our family’s house while they’re on vacation. No clue how the timing worked out on that one but it did!
It was definitely bittersweet leaving our first home. We poured so much time + love into renovating this house making it hard to close the door and say goodbye. So many memories, so many ups and downs, so much growth, so much life. However, it felt 100% right and we are filled with excitement and anticipation to start this next adventure in our lives. Our new house is pretty dang cute, too.
Now let’s talk food.
This ice cream is simple.
Like, 5-ingredient simple. And it includes toasted coconut, one of my very favorite food-flavors ever.
If you’re not a fan of plain coconut because of the texture but you do enjoy the flavor of coconut you have to at least give toasted coconut a shot! The texture becomes crispy and the flavor develops to basically taste like coconut magic.
This recipe idea came from a classic dessert my dad makes about once a year called, snowballs.
It starts with the most decadent, tacky, buttery, rich chocolate sauce you have ever tasted. It was a recipe from my great grandma and includes loads of butter, chocolate, and sugar and a lot of time gently stirring over the stove.
The next component is toasted coconut, which I remember eating fistfuls of as a kid. My dad would make a giant batch of the toasted coconut and store it in the fridge where my grubby paws had 24/7 access. I remember the toasted coconut scent filling the kitchen while we hovered around the stove watching it brown. I also remember countless burned batches of coconut when we took our eyes off it for 2.5 seconds.
The last component is vanilla ice cream.
vanilla ice cream + homemade chocolate sauce + toasted coconut = snowballs
Pretty much the all-time favorite and most asked for dessert in my family. Well, it may be tied with my mom’s 7-up Cake…but anyway.
This is kind of the next level version of snowballs. There’s no crazy homemade chocolate sauce but there is a ridiculously easy ice cream recipe and a quick chocolate drizzle for the top, plus tons of toasted coconut.
I’ve used coconut milk for 3 reasons.
It’s easy. It’s vegan. It’s coconutty.
And I’ve not only topped the ice cream with coconut but stuffed it full of this toasted delight as well.
Coconut Stuffed Ice Cream
gluten-free, vegan // yields ~6 servings
- 1 3/4 cups unsweetened flaked coconut
- 2 cans full-fat coconut milk, 13.5oz each
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar, sucanat or pure cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chopped [vegan] dark chocolate
*Be sure to freeze your ice cream canister for a full 24hrs before making your ice cream!
- Preheat your oven to 350*F and spread flaked coconut in a single layer on a large baking sheet.
- Place in the oven for about 2-3 minutes. Remove the pan, stir the coconut, and toast for another 1-3 minutes until golden brown. Watch very closely as it will burn easily. Let fully cool.
- Whisk the coconut milk and sugar in a pot over medium heat and bring to a boil for just over 1 minute, whisking frequently.
- Remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.
- Pour the mixture into a heat safe bowl and place in the fridge until chilled. [~3-4 hours – Stirring the mixture every once in awhile will speed up this process. Do not freeze to accelerate this process.]
- Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions for mixing time.
- Add 1 1/3 cups of the cooled coconut and the dark chocolate when your mixture is about 1/2 way done mixing [creamy soft serve texture].
- Once the ice cream has pulled away from the sides and is stiff, serve or immediately transfer to a container and pack in tightly. [The quicker the better to avoid ice crystals from melting ice cream!]
- Pour the remaining coconut on top and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the ice cream. Seal the container and freeze for 3-4 hours until fully hardened.
- Let sit out for 10 minutes to soften before serving.
- Top with more toasted coconut and chocolate sauce if desired.
notes: This ice cream is mildly sweet but perfect [for my taste] with the chocolate and naturally sweet-tasting coconut. If you like things on the sweeter side I would add 2-4 tablespoons more sugar at step 3. I stored my ice cream in a plastic container after reading this tip from, The Faux Martha.
Quick Chocolate Sauce
- 1 cup vegan dark chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon unrefined coconut oil
- Heat chocolate in 30 second increments in the microwave [or using a double boiler on the stove] and stir after each until fully smooth.
- Stir in the coconut oil until melted and combined.
- Let cool on the counter for about 10 minutes then drizzle over ice cream.
On my last day at the house while I cleaned from top to bottom this ice cream saved me. I had a wooden spatula and half a container of this ice cream left. I devoured it, and I suggest you do the same.
Be back again soon!
Ashley
