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Indulgent No Churn Banana Ice Cream Sandwich

Posted on January 14, 2018April 16, 2020 by flavourie

Ice cream should be eaten all year round, it’s just a question of matching the flavours to the season! This recipe is a tiny bit awesome, but it won’t be for anyone that doesn’t like a powerful taste of banana. It is really simple to make which is the good news. The even better news is two scoops inside a deliciously warmed Almond Croissant makes it completely epic and very much an adult-only indulgence!

I like the challenge of making ice cream when I don’t have an ice cream maker. Let’s face it, who hasn’t watched a Masterchef contestant announce that they are going to make an ice cream and the first thought in your head being “I hope the machine doesn’t break down!” When a kitchen tool is that unreliable, I feel it best to practice the art of the no churn ice cream and then you will never be let down!

All this takes is time really…so a little patience is an essential ingredient!

Ingredients (makes 500ml of ice cream):

2 ripe bananas – as ripe as they can be;
250ml double cream
1 tsp of vanilla bean paste
2 tbsp / 35ml of Dulce de Leche caramel sauce
Almond Croissants and more Dulce de Leche to serve

Method:

Mash the two bananas with a fork until they resemble a loose paste;
Whip the cream into soft peaks, just firm enough to hold their shape, but be careful not to over whip;
Fold the cream into the mashed bananas gently. Add the vanilla bean paste and the caramel sauce and gently mix again until combined.
Place into a 500ml container – a plastic takeaway carton is perfect for this, cover with the lid firmly and place in the freezer.
After 2 hours in the freezer, open the lid and draw through the mixture with a fork. This helps to reduce the ice crystals forming. Recover and place back in the freezer overnight.
The ice cream will freeze very solidly, so when ready to use, take out of the freezer and let sit for about 10 mins or so . The ice cream will be soft enough to scoop but still be firm and hold its shape.
When ready to make your ice cream sandwich you will need to work fast: take the warm croissant (it shouldn’t be piping hot, just a hint of warmth otherwise the ice cream will disintegrate!), cut in half along the spine of the croissant and butterfly out. Place two generous scoops of ice cream inside the croissant and drizzle a final flourish of the Dulce de Leche caramel sauce on top.
Dispense with cutlery, but a napkin is essential as I heartily recommend to allow the ice cream to dribble all the way down your chin!

ENJOY!

Super Quick Rhubarb Fool Tarts

Posted on June 24, 2015April 16, 2020 by flavourie

Following on from my last post about cheat ingredients where I shared my loved for ready made puff pastry, I’ve decided to carry on the theme for a little bit longer (if you let me indulge)! I’ve long been a fan of mid-week puddings, but even with the best will in the world having the time to knock something up can be difficult!

Ready made pastry cases are a boon, and the recipe below for a simple, tasty filling will make you look like a mid-week-dessert-creating-rockstar! And you’re welcome!

Ingredients (makes 6):

Packet of six ready made sweet shortcrust pastry cases
150g of rhubarb chopped into 5cm pieces (fresh or frozen, it doesn’t matter)
3 tbsp of sugar
1 tsp of vanilla bean paste
2 tbsp of water
250ml ready whipped cream
Small handful of freeze dried strawberry slices
Fresh mint leaves to garnish

Method:

Place the rhubarb, sugar, vanilla bean paste and water in a saucepan, cover with a lid and heat over a medium heat until the rhubarb has softened and cooked through to be able to mash.
When cooked, check for sweetness and tartness balance and add additional sugar if needed, but don’t overdo it on the sugar as you need to have the tartness of the rhubarb coming through.
When cooked through, spoon out into a bowl and allow to cool, and mash with a fork.
In a pestle and mortar, grind down the freeze dried strawberries until they are a powder (this is a really satisfying thing to do!)
When the rhubarb mixture has cooled slightly, scoop out the ready whipped cream and gentle fold together. Don’t over stir otherwise the cream will collapse!
Spoon out generously into the pastry cases.
Garnish with a line of freeze dried strawberry powder and a sprig of fresh mint.

And…enjoy!

Perfect Pavlova with “Decide As You Go” Toppings

Posted on March 20, 2015April 10, 2018 by flavourie

I make Pavlova quite a bit in our house, mainly because it’s my husbands favourite desert and for me, any opportunity to eat something slathered in whipped cream is all good in my book!

Continue reading “Perfect Pavlova with “Decide As You Go” Toppings”

Tumbler Desert #2 – Plum Peach & Orange with Custard and Whipped Cream

Posted on March 20, 2015April 16, 2020 by flavourie

It’s time for another Tumbler Desert everyone! Yes, you thought I’d forgotten about them, but deserts are thin on the ground whilst I’m working through my 6 week 5:2 reboot programme!

Ingredients (serves 2):
Two small handful of amaretti biscuits.
Small slug of Cointreau liquer.
A single square of Green & Blacks Maya Gold (spiced orange and dark chocolate).
4 peaches (round or donut) destoned and quartered.
4 ripe plums, destoned and quartered.
Zest of 1 orange.
1 tsp of Vanilla Bean paste.
2 tblsp of brown demerara sugar.
Fresh cream vanilla custard (good quality shop bought one like Avonmore is a great cheat ingredient!)
Whipped cream.
Method:
Put the oven on 180 degs celsius.
Place the quartered fruit on a baking tray along with the orange zest (I use a veg peeler for this recipe so you can take out the orange zest after the fruit has cooked – that way you get the lovely orange taste without it going bitter after it cools).
Sprinkle over the sugar and pour over the vanilla bean paste.
Place in the oven and cook until the fruit is lovely and soft and the juices have been released.
Once cooked, take out of the oven and remove the strips of orange zest.
Put the amaretti biscuits in the bottom of each tumbler (a small handful per glass) and using the bottom of a rolling pin, crush them to a fine crumb (very satisfying!)
Put a small slug of Cointreau onto of the biscuits – be careful, not too much; just enough so that when you stir the biscuit and liquer together with a spoon it gently comes together but does not melt away.
Spoon in a good measure each of the fruit mixture and include some of the liquid too.
Spoon over the top a couple of dollops of vanilla custard, and a generous plop of whipped cream over that.
Grate the Maya Gold over the whole lot – as much as you like really!
Serve immediately, and Enjoy!

There should be plenty of fruit mix left over. If you chill this, it will make a lovely alternative breakfast mixed in with some low fat natural yoghurt and a sprinkling of flaked almonds.

Indulgent No Churn Banana Ice Cream Sandwich

Kate Ryan