No-Churn Rhubarb Crisp Ice Cream

About a ten months ago this recipe for no-churn chocolate ice cream landed on my screen. Was it possible? A no-churn ice cream that was worth an almost perfect rating? Even after making it, I was boggled by how darn good (and easy to make) it was. That moment was a game changer, because I realized how easy it would be to adapt that chocolate ice cream recipe into any flavor I could dream of.

First I folded chunks of grain-free peanut butter cookie into the chocolate base. (That was amazing, highly recommended for PB lovers). Then, I skipped the cocoa and folded in instant coffee powder, along cacao nibs and extra caramel sauce I had in the fridge (from this recipe). Also a hit — best afternoon pick me up. 😍

Next, I made pistachio paste and mixed that in. This recipe was proving itself to be extraordinarily adaptable. But there was one thing I couldn’t get out of my head: rhubarb crisp ice cream. I have a thing for ice creams named after baked goods — or at least, the few ice creams I’ve had that fit this bill have been amazing. One was Ben & Jerry’s Pecan Pie Ice Cream, which they later discontinued (though I found out in the process of writing this post that they now have a similar flavor as a regional special). The second was oatmeal cookie ice cream from Lucky’s Bakehouse & Creamery in Boulder — wonderful with fresh peaches!

Anyways — the best part of this ice cream, to me, is when the sweet vanilla cream swirls with the crispy, butter oat topping. 🤤

No-Churn Rhubarb Crisp Ice Cream

Published April 9, 2019 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 12   |    Active Time: 20 active minutes; 5 hours in freezer

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Ingredients:

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

2 cups heavy cream, cold

Pinch salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

About 1 cup of leftover rhubarb crisp, full cooled! — if crisp is at all warm, it will melt the ice cream into a slop. Tip: the oaty crisp is the best part! Make sure you have some of that in there.

Directions:

1. Whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, salt, and vanilla in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. In a separate large mixing bowl, whip heavy cream until peaks form (about 2 minutes on medium-high speed with a hand mixer).
3. Fold 1 cup of the whipping cream into the condensed milk with a rubber spatula, then fold condensed milk mixture into whipped cream, folding gently so as to keep as much air in the whipped cream as possible. Fold until fully incorporated and few to no streaks of condensed milk remain (avoid over mixing).
4. Pour mixture into a a 9x9 glass dish with a lid (a bread pan, or large pyrex Tupperware will work too). Cover and freeze for about 2 hours.
5. Meanwhile, cut or crumble rhubarb crisp into small pieces. Rhubarb chunks should be bite-sized or smaller (aim for 1/2 inch pieces or smaller). Sprinkle rhubarb crisp over ice cream mixture, and then use a rubber spatula to gently swirl into the ice cream. Smooth ice cream in container, and then return to freezer for 3 more hours before serving.
6. Store in an air-tight container in the freezer.

Soft & Chewy Flourless Ginger Tahini Cookies

In January, well after holiday season was over, a client sent a big box of Tate's Cookies to the office, where they filled the kitchen counter for half a week. It was the worst (but also the best) kind of way to kick off January. I had been wanted to make a gingery version of these tahini chocolate chip cookies for some time -- I even had made a batch over the holidays that didn't quite work out. Despite it being peak resolution season, that counter full of cookies was just the push I needed to dive back into recipe development. 

The dream: a chewy, rich, flourless ginger cookie with chunks of crystallized ginger. 

I knew that tahini would be the perfect base, but my first attempt used far too much molasses and the cookies were WAY too soft. I learned, on that attempt, that coconut sugar really imparts enough molasses-y flavor anyhow, as it's unrefined so still carries all of the minerals that are stripped from refined sugars when molasses is made. 

Tips for making these chewy tahini ginger cookies: 

• STIR THAT TAHINI. This is in all caps because it's no joke. Tahini separates fast and if your tahini is all oil or all solids you're batter won't work. Last time I published a tahini cookie recipe someone asked about how to best stir tahini, which is a really good question because it's not the easiest to stir. But don't worry! Just scrape the entire jar into a blender, and let it rip. OR, carefully put your immersion blender into your tahini container (this is what I do, but also can foresee what a mess this might make in the wrong circumstances) 

• Let them cool. Really! I too like hot-out-of-the-oven cookies, but these cookies need a minute to set up. More like 5-10. They'll still be warm, and they'll stay soft for a week at room temperature. BUT, if you try to pick one up while it's still piping hot it will just collapse and melt in your hand (if you can even get it into your hand). 

Ok, "mom" warnings over. Now, the recipe! 

Soft & Chewy Flourless Ginger Tahini Cookies

Published February 21, 2019 by Caitlin Sherwood

Yields: 16   |    Active Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients:

1 cup coconut sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/16 teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup tahini (stirred very well - try blending it with your blender if it is separated)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

1-1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger grated on a microplane

Optional: 1/3 cup ginger chips or finely chopped crystallized ginger

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine coconut sugar, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, and ground cloves. Whisk briefly.
3. Add tahini, vanilla, egg, and fresh ginger to bowl, and use a spatula to stir until a stiff, sticky batter forms.
4. Optional: place bowl of batter in the fridge for 10 minutes to allow dough to stiffen a bit more.
5. Using your hands, roll dough into spheres by the heaping tablespoonful. Place spheres at least 2 inches apart of a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and flatted slightly with your fingers.
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until cookies have spread and are golden. Cookies will still be quite soft when you remove them from the oven. Allow them to cool at least 10 minutes before attempting to move them to a cooling wrack or a plate.

Chocolate Chip Energy Bites

This is an older recipe from Foraged Dish that I wanted to spruce up with new photos and a video. These energy bites are so darn delicious — they’ve been in my snack draw at work and I SO look forward to snack time each day! 

Last week I went on a hike in the Front Range with nothing in my bag but my camera, my phone, and a ziplock stocked with these Chocolate Chip Energy Bites. I thought I had my car key too, until 30 minutes in when — oh no! - I noticed the pocket where I keep my key was open. Open and empty. 

I immediately turned on my heels and spent the whole hike downhill with my head turned down, eyes constantly scanning the trail. I tried to soothe my inner chatter box, which, by the time I made it back down to the trailhead with no sign of my keys in sight, was freaking out.  In the end, I had to call for a ride to go get a spare key (thanks, Dad!). 

But I digress. Casualties of hiking alone are not what this post is about!

These energy bites call for only six ingredients and they just go into your food processor and you roll them up. That’s it!  Why macadamias and cashews? Macadamia nuts are extra buttery, which lends very well to this recipe, which taste a lot like a healthy version of cookie dough! At the same time, cashews are a bit starchier than most nuts, and their sweet flavor also gives these bites a bit of a “cookie dough” flavor. 

Mini chocolate chips are best in this recipe because they distribute into each energy bite well. Each bite has a bit of chocolate and a bit of nut mixture, which sticks everything together. 

Happy hiking! Take these with you — and don’t lose track of those keys!! 

Chocolate Chip Energy Bites

Published January 15, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

Yield: 12   |    Active Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

1/3 cup dates, pitted

1/2 cup macadamia nuts

1/2 cup cashew pieces

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon honey

3 tablespoons mini chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Add dates, macadamia nuts, cashews, salt, and honey to bowl of food processor. Secure lid on food processor and run until the nuts are ground into a corse meal that begins to clump.
2. Add mini chocolate chips to food processor and pulse, 2-3 times, just until chocolate is evenly distributed.
3. Scoop a heaping tablespoonful of the mixture into your hands and roll into a ball. Repeat until all of the mixture is used.
4. Enjoy immediately or store in an air-tight container in the fridge.