It was my husband's birthday at the beginning of this month. When planning birthday treats I of course try to make something that the person we are celebrating loves and that all of us can eat together. My whole family drools over all ofSo Delicious's Purely Decadent Coconut Milk Ice Creams, so I thought it would be a great idea to make an ice cream pie for my hubby's B-Day celebration.
This pie turned out REALLY well. We all loved it! The great thing about making an ice cream pie like this is how flexible it is. YOU get to choose the flavors of ice cream you use (and even how many flavors to use)...clearly my husband is into chocolate!
The kids and I left the day after his B-Day celebration to go up to Northern California to help my parents out. I am sitting in a hospital waiting room as I type this because my mom is in the middle of having hip replacement surgery (doc just came out and said everything went really well!). We were able to leave 4 slices of the pie for my dear hubby and I fully expect it all to be gone by the time the kids and I roll back into town...no biggie...it will provide me with an excuse to make another one.
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INGREDIENTS
CRUST
1 ½ cups gluten free chocolate cookie crumbs
6 Tbs. melted Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread (Soy Free)
FILLING
2 pints So Delicious Purely Decadent Coconut Milk Ice Cream (flavors of your choosing)
2-3 Tbs. Enjoy Life’s mini chocolate chips (vegan and gluten free)
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Begin by making the chocolate cookie crumbs. I made my gluten free cookie crumbs by placing 2 cups of K-Kritters Gluten Free Chocolate Animal Cookies in a quart Ziploc bag and mashing them with a meat tenderizer.
Meanwhile melt the Earth Balance spread. Measure out 1 ½ cups of cookie crumbs and mix with the melted Earth Balance.
Pour the crust into a springform pan (like this one here). Press the crust firmly and shape it to the pan. I used a 6 ½” pan and was able to cover the bottom and sides of the pan. If you use a larger pan, form the crust only on the bottom of the pan. Place the crust in the freezer to harden for 30 minutes to an hour.
Remove the ice cream from the freezer 20-30 minutes prior to using (this will allow it to soften). Once the ice cream has softened, spread the first layer of ice cream on top of the prepared pie crust using an offset spatula. Make sure you press the ice cream down as much as possible in order to avoid air bubbles. At this point you can either return the pie to the freezer to harden prior to putting on the second layer, or spread the second layer immediately. I was not concerned with having perfect lines between my two flavors, so I spread my second layer immediately.
If you plan on topping your pie with chocolate chips (or nuts, or coconut, etc.) do so now prior to placing the pie in the freezer.
Return the completed pie to the freezer to harden. Remove the pie from the freezer 15 minutes prior to serving. Open the springform pan, slice the pie, and drizzle each slice with your favorite sauce before serving
For a printable version of this recipe click here.
Gretchen Tseng is a Nutrition Specialist with Certification in Plant-Based Nutrition through Cornell University. At a young age she experienced a series of illnesses which propelled her to seek nutrition based solutions. Gretchen is absolutely passionate about sharing the health benefits of a plant-based lifestyle and can be found doing so through her website Veggie Grettie (www.veggiegrettie.com ), as a Columnist for Chic Vegan (www.chicvegan.com ), and as a freelance writer. In addition to being a nutrition nut, Gretchen is a fitness fanatic and is thrilled to be a Brand Ambassador for a clothing line that she wears and loves, NEXT by Athena. Gretchen lives in Southern California with her husband, two children, and 4 legged best bud and dreams of living on a farm someday surrounded by animals and an amazing organic garden.
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