One of my favorite food ever is ice cream. When I found out my son was allergic to dairy,  we had to ban ice cream from our house. And because I was still nursing him, I also had to forego having my favorite treat even outside the house, otherwise he would get an allergic reaction from drinking my milk. It was a hard thing for me to give that up. Yes, sure I could still have sorbet but I really wanted and missed the “cream” part of ice cream

So imagine my joy when I found out I could have vegan ice cream. I was so excited to put my ice cream maker to good use again after it sitting idle on its shelf because I had to give up making frozen yogourt.
One way of getting the “cream”factor is using coconut cream. I like it best with non-fruity flavor like chocolate or vanilla, as the coconut blends well with those flavors.
But for fruity flavors I prefer using avocado, because the flavor is less dominant and it goes well with fruits. And boy, is it creamy! I actually have to cut it out with some juice otherwise it gets pretty heavy.

For this berry ice cream. I actually mixed avocado with a bit of coconut cream and fruit juice and blend it well. I first tried to just add pureed berries in but then the fruity taste is not very strong  as the fruit is diluted in with the avocado cream. I found out that reducing the blueberry puree first with a sweetener intensifies the flavor when it mixed with the coconut cream. The result is a fruity creamy bliss.

Very berry avocado ice cream
– 1/2 lbs of frozen berry mix (fresh works as well). I use the Very berry Cherry blend from Trader Joe’s
– 1/3 cup honey + more to sweeten to taste if needed
– 2 medium avocados or 3 small
– 1/3 cup of coconut cream (from a can of full fat coconut milk)
– 1/4 cup orange juice
– Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 1-1.5 tablespoon)

To get coconut cream, place the can of coconut milk in the fridge for 24 hours or more. this will cause the cream (the fatty part of coconut milk) to separate. Upon taking the can out, gently invert it upside down, open it and pour out the clearer liquid now on top. It can be discarded or it can be used for smoothies. The creamy part that is left is the coconut cream. Reserve it in the fridge until use.

In a sauce pan, mix the berries with the 1/3 cup of honey, heat on high until it simmers then reduce the heat and keep it only stirring but not boiling over. Stir regularly to avoid it to stick. Heat until it is reduced and the liquid a bit syrupy, about 15min or so. Cool it down to room temperature. When cool, blend the mix until very smooth. Pass the fruit puree through a sieve to remove the seeds.

Place the avocado, the orange juice and the lemon juice in the blender and blend until very smooth. Add in the coconut cream and mix again until very smooth. Finally, add the fruit puree and mix well. Taste for sweetness and if necessary, add some honey and tablespoon at a time as desired.

Churn the mix in an ice cream maker until ready (about 15-20 min). This results in a soft-serve consistency. For scoopable ice cream, place in the freezer for 2-3 hours.