I am not a big fan of summer, but one of the things I do love about warmer weather is ice cream! Being that warmer weather lasts longer in the South, I figured it would still be decent ice cream eating weather for this month’s Secret Recipe Club Reveal when, not long after I started looking around on the blog I was assigned for this month, Cupcakes with Sprinkles (gotta love a name like that!), authored by Meghan, I discovered 5 Minute Ice Cream!
I was intrigued by this recipe title. I’d never heard of it before! Homemade ice cream takes me back to my childhood when I loved eating the vanilla ice cream my dad would make every now and then. It was pretty labor intensive though, and we tried an ice cream maker some time ago but it was not as good as I remembered.
I also liked the thought that this 5 Minute Ice Cream seemed like a perfect activity for kids to do with moms and dads or special aunts or grandparents. Most kids love helping out in the kitchen, and I think it’s something we should give them opportunity to do as often as possible.
How is 5 Minute Ice Cream Healthier?
This recipe also gave me a chance to try a new type of sweetener. During one of our Foodie Talk with Chef John and Anne episodes on Blog Talk Radio, our guest, Ellen Wood, talked about how much “healthier” home made ice cream is. The store bought ice cream has so much sugar in it, and so if you are trying to watch your sugar intake (Ellen also has an amazing story about why we all should be doing that! Listen here… especially if you have concerns about Alzheimer’s.), if you make your own ice cream you can control what type and how much sweetener is in it.
Ellen gave a recipe during the episode for Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream, and she used Stevia in it. But she also had recommended coconut nectar as a better natural sweetener to try in recipes. I did not plan ahead so was unable to shop around to see if I could find some locally, so The Chef suggested I try agave nectar.
UPDATE (11/08/2013): Someone challenged me regarding agave nectar, so I did some research, wanting to find out the differences between agave nectar versus coconut nectar. Wow, they were right! I found this article with lots of helpful information, not only about the differences, but also about the benefits of coconut nectar, as Ellen had recommended: Agave Nectar vs. Coconut Nectar ~ The Secret and Truth about Agave
Truly, if you are going for a healthier ice cream, use coconut nectar or sugar! I since have had time to look for it and actually ended up finding coconut sugar at our Publix. But if you don’t have a grocery store that carries it, try a health food store. Or you can get the same brand I got from Publix on Amazon (affiliate):
Whatever brand you get, just check the ingredients to make sure it does not have any cane sugar, as the article referenced above said some packages claiming to be organic raw coconut sugar actually contain cane sugar!
The Result
Meghan had said this ice cream was rich and creamy, compared with others she’d tasted before from home ice cream machines. I found this to be the case as well! We celebrated my son’s 7th birthday this weekend and had a conference at church tonight, so a busier than usual weekend. I had to make this after my kids had already gone to bed, so they did not get to taste it, and neither did The Chef. But I had some left over that I put in the freezer and I can’t wait for them to taste it tomorrow and to make it with them. They will love getting to make their own ice cream!
If you like your ice cream really sweet, you will need to adjust the amount of sweetener. I loved the mild sweetness that the 1 tablespoon of agave nectar gave it. We try to keep sugar intake at a minimum, so we are not used to super sweet tastes day-to-day, and it was plenty enough sweetness for me.
Definitely… if your family loves ice cream, give this a try! I think you will love it.
Healthier 5 Minute Strawberry Ice Cream
Adapted from 5-Minute Ice Cream Recipe found on Cupcakes with Sprinkles
- 1 gallon Ziploc bag and 1 sandwich size Ziploc bag
- Ice cubes
- ½ cup rock salt
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 tablespoon agave nectar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 frozen strawberries, thawed and chopped
- Fill 1-gallon Ziploc bag halfway full with ice cubes and add rock salt.
- Mix half and half, agave nectar, vanilla extract and strawberries.
- Pour into sandwich size Ziploc bag and seal. Put inside gallon Ziploc bag with ice and rock salt and seal.
- Wrap with kitchen towel and shake vigorously until frozen (about 5 minutes).
Check Out the Other Reveals from Group A
About the Author
Adopted at age 2, grew up in the Charlotte, NC area. Obtained Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Appalachian State University. Loves being a Mom of two and taste-testing Chef John's culinary creations and sharing them with readers.
Thanks for posting this more natural ice cream recipe. It seems like agave nectar is a more natural sweetener.