an ice cream for cashew fanatics

Do you like the taste of cashews? Then you'll love the taste of this cashew milk ice cream that has cashew butter and actual cashews in it! To really be extra, have it with some cashew milk chocolate. 

Every nut can be turned into the following things: 

1. Milk
2. Nut butter
3. Flour

Yea, flour doesn't really apply to ice cream, but the milk and nut butter sure do! 

Cashews are unique in that they can also be turned into cream and cheese, but making both is a time-consuming process and unnecessary for the purposes of this recipe. 

Did you know cashews grow on apples in the rainforest? When cashews are harvested, they're detached from the apples it grew on and the apples are usually left for the livestock since they don't travel well fresh. 

If you do manage to find cashew apples in the states, it'll probably be in a Hispanic supermarket in the frozen food aisle. I tried using cashew apples in this recipe but I just couldn't stand the smell of the fruit after boiling it to remove the exterior wax. It smells like fruity gasoline to me. Yuck! 

The cashew butter I used had a rubbery aftertaste to it that was hidden by the sweetness of the maple syrup and the cashew milk chocolate. Me thinks it must've been the brand of cashew butter I was using since cashews don't have a rubbery aftertaste. 

The only drawback with this ice cream is that it's hard to scoop out immediately after removing it from the freezer, so you need to let it sit uncovered at room temperature for 15 minutes before attempting to scoop. I think the maple syrup makes it hard to scoop, so using granulated sugar probably would've been better. 

This ice cream is creamy and doesn't melt easily as much as dairy-based ones.

My dad said this ice cream was nutty and likened it to Haagen-Dazs ice cream in that it's heavy, which is a pretty big compliment, especially coming from my dad!  

​HELPFUL LINK: Cashew Milk Chocolate: eatingevolved.com/products/cashew-milk-primal-chocolate

You will need: 

For the cooking equipment: 

A blender
An ice cream maker
An ice cream tub

For the ice cream: 

16 oz. cashew butter
2 cups cashew milk
3/4 cup maple syrup
Whole, roasted cashews
Cashew milk chocolate bar for garnish(see HELPFUL LINK)

1. Put the first 3 ingredients into a blender and blend on high for 3 minutes. 
2. Turn the ice cream maker on and pour the blended ice cream mixture into the bowl of the machine. Let the ice cream churn for 11-13 minutes. 
3. Add some cashews into the bowl of the machine and let the ice cream churn for an additional 2-3 minutes. 
4. Turn the ice cream maker off and pour half of the ice cream into an ice cream tub. Top that ice cream with more cashews and top those cashews with the rest of the ice cream before topping that with additional cashews. 
5. Put the lid on the tub and let the ice cream harden overnight in the freezer. Once it's frozen, let the ice cream soften at room temperature, unopened, for 15 minutes before scooping. 
6. Top with a piece of cashew milk chocolate. 

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