Strawberry & Coconut Ice Cream (dairy-free)
Summer strawberries are one of the simple pleasures of life, and strawberry ice cream turns that simple pleasure into euphoria. This recipe is for ice cream lovers who want to experience the euphoria in a healthy AND delicious way!
This sumptuous and creamy ice cream is made without eggs or cream. It can be made without any sugar if the strawberries are sweet enough, because we will use raw honey to sweeten this delightful treat.
Why raw honey?
Did you know that there’s a BIG difference between raw and processed honey? The processing involves several steps, including filtration, pasteurization, or ultrapasteurization to increase shelf-life. All of these additional processes deliver a honey that is clear and liquid, BUT the trade-off is that most of the nutrients and health benefits are lost.
Unrefined, raw honey contains approximately 22 amino acids, over 30 different minerals, plus vitamins and enzymes. And since bees buzz around from plant to plant, the nectar they produce also contains many bioactive plant compounds, or polyphenols, that act as antioxidants. That’s why raw honey is famous for calming inflammation, both when used topically and when ingested. In contrast, commercially processed honeys contain far fewer health benefits.
And in case you’re wondering about plain white sugar, well, please read this post that I wrote a while back titled “Sweet Poison, Part One”.
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
1 cup strawberry puree
(I used frozen, but you can also use fresh strawberries.
You will need approximately 12 oz., or enough to make a full cup of the puree.)
1-1/3 cup coconut milk, full-fat
2 -3 Tablespoons coconut sugar
(Only add this if the strawberries are too tart. And use as little as possible.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 - 2 teaspoons raw honey
In a large (non-plastic) mixing bowl, stir the strawberry puree, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and coconut sugar, if using.
Pour the ingredients into an ice cream maker and churn until ready.
Scoop into a sturdy glass container for storing in the freezer.
Allow the ice cream to chill in the fridge for 2 hours before serving with a drizzle of raw honey on top.
(Confession: I haven’t always been able to wait for 2 hours, so it’s okay to serve this as a “soft-serve” as soon as it is churned.)
Moderation is key: Even though raw honey is much healthier than processed sugar, it is still a sweetener that raises your blood sugar levels, so don’t go crazy with drizzling too much honey over your ice cream! As honey tastes sweeter than sugar, you will discover that less is more!