What do I do with all of the beautiful winter squashes I am seeing at the Farmer’s Market? I make ice cream with it.  It is fall in Central Texas but still fairly warm (this is my excuse for making ice cream!).  This is a dairy free ice cream recipe made with coconut milk. It is rich and creamy and my secret is adding gelatin which keeps it that way and allows for easier scooping.

Ingredients

1 can full fat coconut milk

1/4 C maple sugar or maple syrup

4 pastured egg yolks

2 Tbsp vanilla extractt

1 Tbsp gelatin (add richness and smoothness)

1/2 cup cooked and mashed pumpkin (available now at the Farmer’s market in Austin – you can substitute sweet potato or even acorn squash)

Directions

Heat the coconut milk and the maple sugar and gelatin in a medium sauce pan on medium heat, until steaming, but not quite boiling. Turn heat down to low.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks.

Once the coconut milk is steaming, add one small ladle of it to the egg yolks, and stir to combine. Slowly add two more small ladles full. This will temper the egg yolks, so they won’t scramble when you add them to the hot coconut milk. Slowly pour the egg yolk mixture back into the pan with the coconut milk, and whisk until slightly thickened, which will take several minutes. Make sure the mixture doesn’t boil, as this will scramble your eggs. When the mixture has thickened to the consistency of thin custard, remove from heat and add the vanilla extract.

Blend pumpkin with coconut milk mixture with a stand mixer or add all of it to a blender. Transfer to a jar and refrigerate until very cold, overnight is best. Once the mixture is cold, freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Photo credit: Gudlyf, on flickr

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