Posts tagged ice cream

If you don’t remember this article I posted last month, here it is again.  Don’t worry, it’s short.  Read it and then I’ll be right back:

“Lots of people consider me a paleo expert.  But that doesn’t mean I can’t keep learning.  Last year I found out that vanilla bean isn’t a bean at all, it’s actually the seed of a fruit (and therefore paleo).  Today I found out from Nell Stephenson, The Paleoista, that cacao beans aren’t beans either, they’re also the seeds of a fruit (she actually didn’t tell me that, I looked it up myself, but her latest article inspired me to do some research)!  So although I still cannot endorse dark chocolate, which is usually highly processed, I can endorse 100% raw organic cacao nibs, made from crushed cocoa “beans.”  Full of antioxidants!  As Nell warns though, ‘Remember… we’re talking about the real deal, not an ultra processed, adulterated version of something that used to be healthy it its original form.’

I’m gonna buy some myself to see if I can get my chocolate fix from time to time.  Can’t wait to mix it into my frozen banana ice cream!  Here’s a link to Nell’s full article:

http://paleoista.com/news/paleo-chocolate-alkali/”

Okay, I’m back.  You might be wondering what the difference is between cacao and cacoa, and cocoa, and cocao.  There is no difference, just a lot of misspelling.  Cacao beans are the raw form of chocolate.  Cacao nibs are crushed cacao beans, and cacao powder is pulverized cacao beans.  It is very bitter and NOT sweet at all!  The dark chocolate you’re used to is highly processed, and has sugar added.  Many people consider that stuff paleo, but I can’t bring myself to accept it, even as a mini-cheat.

So I bought a bag of 100% raw organic cacao nibs recently and gave them a try.  They smell like dark chocolate, and as you know, smell is a major part of taste!  So I mixed some into my frozen banana ice cream, and the smell, and crunch, reminded me completely of dark chocolate chips!  Like Nell assumed, my taste buds didn’t take long to adjust to the bitter flavor (as long as it was mixed with something sweet like banana).

Then I mixed the cacao nibs with some almond butter, and a drop of honey, and it tasted just like a dark chocolate peanut butter cup!  YUM!!!!  The math at that point was simple.  I used to go to Steve’s Ice Cream and get peanut butter cups mixed into my ice cream, and it was outrageous!  So I got rid of the honey, and mashed together frozen banana, cacao nibs, and almond butter.  Caveman Minions, I now present to you… Dark Chocolate Chip/Almond Butter Swirl!

I have had this every night for a week, and I’m totally addicted!  Be warned, the nibs are very bitter on their own, so it needs something sweet like bananas or honey.  But if you like dark chocolate, and haven’t had it in ages like me, you will go Ugga-Bugga for this!  Enjoy!

Not every omelet turns out perfect, and not every picture does a meal justice, but this was delicious.

An 3 pasture-raised-egg omelette with sautéed swiss chard, kale, red onions, garlic, red and green Serrano chilies.  All organic, of course.

And for dessert, creamsicle paleo “ice cream.”

Ugga-Bugga!

Lots of people consider me a paleo expert.  But that doesn’t mean I can’t keep learning.  Last year I found out that vanilla bean isn’t a bean at all, it’s actually the seed of a fruit (and therefore paleo).  Today I found out from Nell Stephenson, The Paleoista, that cocoa beans aren’t beans either, they’re also the seeds of a fruit (she actually didn’t tell me that, I looked it up myself, but her latest article inspired me to do some research)!  So although I still cannot endorse dark chocolate, which is usually highly processed, I can endorse 100% raw organic cocoa nibs, made from crushed cocoa “beans.”  Full of antioxidants!  As Nell warns though, “Remember… we’re talking about the real deal, not an ultra processed, adulterated version of something that used to be healthy it its original form.”

I’m gonna buy some myself to see if I can get my chocolate fix from time to time.  Can’t wait to mix it into my frozen banana ice cream!  Here’s a link to Nell’s full article:

http://paleoista.com/news/paleo-chocolate-alkali/

For my family growing up in Brooklyn, dessert in an Italian restaurant always meant Tortoni!  Tortoni is an ice cream dish, mixed with some fruit (usually maraschino cherries), and topped with toasted almonds.  It’s incredibly simple to make a paleo version of this delish dish!

All Ingredients, All Organic All the Time:

1 frozen banana (1 serving)
About 6 frozen grapes (or whatever fruit you prefer, I like grapes)
Almond Meal (just ground up almonds, also known as almond flour) 

Toast the almonds first for extra flavor, but I was a lazy bastard when I made this, and it still tasted great!

Thaw the frozen fruit for 5-10 minutes, then whip up the banana in the food processor until creamy (a few seconds).  Then add the other fruit and pulse until you reach your desired size pieces.  Serve and top with the crushed almonds.  That’s it!

Here’s a serving suggestion of how it usually looks:

And here’s one where you can see the ice cream:

Either way, it’s really friggin’ delicious!  Leave the fruit out to make a paleo ice cream dish that tastes like a toasted almond bar (the kind I loved from the Good Humor truck when it came down my block in the summertime).  This is a dessert not just for cavemen, but for anyone who’s lactose intolerant, but still wants to enjoy a healthy ice cream substitute.  I have plenty of paleo ice cream flavors to choose from on my RECIPES page, so check them out for ideas.  Enjoy!  Ugga-Bugga!

Organic blueberries are in season right now, so go get some!  Tried making my first blueberry muffin, using my paleo pie dough recipe with coconut flour.  Unfortunately came out like cobbler in a paper wrapper, but tastes pretty amazing.  Gonna scoop some out and plop some organic frozen banana “paleo ice cream” on top.  When I tweak the ingredients to get it right next time, I’ll post the recipe.

I’ve been making this all week, only instead of mixing the almond butter all the way in, I’ve just folded in ribbons of it, making a new favorite flavor, PB&J Swirl!  This way, you get different tastes in every bite, instead of the whole thing tasting like almond butter.  But here’s the original recipe from last summer (I also cut out the added honey now, it’s not needed).  Time to stock up on frozen organic bananas with summer unofficially starting next weekend!  See you at the beach!

July 20, 2011

Paleo PB&J Ice Cream!

Oh man, was this good!  Some of my long time readers might remember my Paleo PB & J substitute, which is simply almond butter and crushed fresh fruit (all ingredients, all organic, all the time) on paleo bread.  Well, I used a similar technique with my new favorite dessert, Paleo Ice Cream!

Assuming you’re all not lazy bastards and have clicked all those recipe links by now, while my frozen banana (excuse me?) was thawing, I cut up some frozen grapes into eighths.  Then I whipped up the banana in the food processor, and in a bowl folded together the banana and grapes and almond butter with a touch of raw honey until it was all blended together with the taste and color I was looking for.  Check it out:

The best dessert I’ve made so far!  Banana and almond butter go great together, and the grapes add the taste normally provided to a PB&J by grape jelly, with the frozen texture giving it an outrageous ice cream feel!  Throw a few almonds into the food processor to make it Chunky Style!  Or if you prefer, use strawberries instead of grapes.  How good would this bad boy be sitting on top of one of my Caveman Apple Pies a la mode?  Huh?  Huh?!  You’re Ugga-Buggin’ right it would!

The weather has finally heated up here in Southern California (I wish they’d fix this global warming problem already, I’m freezing my ass off here in L.A.!), and who doesn’t love ice cream as a summer treat?  Well, on paleo, you don’t have to miss it anymore!  Cherries just came into season out here, so I’m re-posting this delicious dessert (which I devoured last night as well!).  Enjoy!

July 9, 2011

Paleo Ice Cream!

I’ve long discovered the joy of eating frozen bananas as an ice cream pop, but thanks to tumblrs like JessicaBlossoming, I’ve realized that I’ve been living a very boring dessert life eating them JUST as frozen bananas.  Using frozen bananas as a base (organic of course, as are all my ingredients), you can make an infinite amount of paleo ice cream flavors.

Tonight I made Pistachio-Cherry-Mint Paleo Ice Cream!  So simple, so fresh, and what’s most mind blowing, it’s an ACTUAL HEALTHY ICE CREAM substitute!  Only paleo can offer you healthy “ice cream!”  Unbelievable.  I still pinch myself that I eat this way while others consider it “dieting.”

First I pitted some fresh cherries this morning (in season right now) and threw them in the freezer.  I also roasted some pistachios (I buy them organic and raw, and throw them in a 350 oven for 10-15 minutes.  You haven’t lived until you’ve tasted fresh roasted pistachios!).  When I came home from the beach, I threw 2 bananas into the food processor (let them thaw for a few minutes, otherwise you’ll make your food processor work too hard) and ran it until smooth.  Then I took the bananas, cherries and pistachios, along with some freshly chopped mint leaves, and mushed it all together in a bowl.  It was one of the best pistachio ice cream experiences of my life!  Check it out:

Can you believe it?  If anyone ever tells you they can’t go paleo, because they’d miss ice cream too much, just make this for them!  They’ll be saying Ugga-Bugga within one bite!  This will work with any combo of fruit, nuts, berries, etc!  What flavors will make you go Ugga-Bugga?

For those of you who don’t know about paleo ice cream, it’s slightly thawed frozen bananas (organic!) whipped up in a food processor. It’s outrageously good, and completely believable as ice cream. Perfect if you’re paleo, raw, lactose intolerant, on a low-fat diet, republican, reptile, etc.

So far I’ve made the flavors Pistachio-Cherry-Mint, Creamsicle, Orange Sherbet, Strawberry, Pumpkin, and PB&J, but this one might be the best so far! You know how much I love roasted brazil nuts wrapped in dates (if you don’t know, click the link, you ignorant bastards), well, I decided to add it to the banana, and a new flavor is born! It’s like eating butter pecan ice cream and finding chunks of delicious caramel in almost every bite. You will FLIP OUT!

I took one bite of this experiment, and quickly ran to my camera before I ate it all:

Without a doubt, I’m making this again tonight too! Dieting does NOT mean deprivation! Ugga-Bugga!

Oh man, was this good!  Some of my long time readers might remember my Paleo PB & J substitute, which is simply almond butter and crushed fresh fruit (all ingredients, all organic, all the time) on paleo bread.  Well, I used a similar technique with my new favorite dessert, Paleo Ice Cream!

Assuming you’re all not lazy bastards and have clicked all those recipe links by now, while my frozen banana (excuse me?) was thawing, I cut up some frozen grapes into eighths.  Then I whipped up the banana in the food processor, and in a bowl folded together the banana and grapes and almond butter with a touch of raw honey until it was all blended together with the taste and color I was looking for.  Check it out:

The best dessert I’ve made so far!  Banana and almond butter go great together, and the grapes add the taste normally provided to a PB&J by grape jelly, with the frozen texture giving it an outrageous ice cream feel!  Throw a few almonds into the food processor to make it Chunky Style!  Or if you prefer, use strawberries instead of grapes.  How good would this bad boy be sitting on top of one of my Caveman Apple Pies a la mode?  Huh?  Huh?!  You’re Ugga-Buggin’ right it would!