Banana Coconut Sundae

Banana Coconut Sundae

A tropical sundae made with banana ice cream, drizzled with chocolate sauce and topped off with toasted coconut shreds and crushed cashews.

Caramel Delight Ice Cream

Caramel Delight Ice Cream


It is girl scout cookie season and I decided to make an ice cream inspired by the famous Carmel Delight cookies.

This is an caramel ice cream with toasted coconut.

To make this Carmel Delight ice cream you will need:

2/3 cups of Caramel
2 cups of heavy cream
1 cup of whole milk
1/2 cup of sugar
1/3 cup of toasted coconut strands
pinch of salt
4 egg yolks

In a medium size saucepan combine the sugar milk and 1 cup cream. Bring it to a simmer then temper the 4 egg yolks with the the warm milk and cream. Pour the tempered egg yolks and into the saucepan add a pinch of salt and the caramel. Slowly bring the custard base up to 165 degrees and then place in a heat proof bowl and then the ice cream base in ice bath for 1 hour. Refrigerate the base for at least 4 hours or overnight and then churn in your ice cream machine when the ice cream is almost done stir in your toasted coconut. Place your ice cream in a freezer proof container and let the ice cream set for at least 4 hours in your freezer before eating.

Please leave a comment if you have any questions.

Thank you!

Coconut Macadamia Nut Fudge

A couple weeks ago, my family spent our summer vacation on Poipu Beach in Kauai. We enjoyed 7 beautiful days in paradise. Sure, we've been to Hawaii before. In previous trips we had spent time amid the hustle and bustle of Waikiki Beach on the island of Oahu and we also have enjoyed the the slightly slower pace of Kaanapali on the island of Maui.

But staying on  Kauai is just pure relaxation. We stayed at the Marriott Waiohai, where each villa is furnished with a full kitchen, which we took full advantage of to make our meals and pretend we were residents in paradise. Our hardest daily decision was do we either go to the pool or the beach. We also got in some sightseeing and there was a reason why they call Kauai the Garden Island -- it is lush and green and you can see beautiful flowers and plants at every turn.

Of course on every trip I need to find a local ice cream shop. On this trip we stopped by one gelato shop, Papalani Gelato and we also visited a  Hawaiian ice cream institution - Lapperts ice cream. Both the gelato and ice cream hit the spot in the warm island breeze. One of the flavors I enjoyed most during my visit to Lappert's was the Coconut Macadamia Nut Fudge. The combination of the sweet and creamy coconut ice cream with freshly toasted and  buttery macadamia nuts and a hint of chocolate fudge satisfied my quest for finding the perfect flavor combination for Hawaii.

So to relive our summer vacation, I decided to recreate a taste of paradise. I present you my version of Coconut Macadamia Nut Fudge.

Coconut Macadamia Nut Ice Cream

6 egg yolks
3/4 cup of sugar
pinch of salt
2 cups of cream
1 cup of coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 cup of toasted coconut shreds
2/3 cups of roughly chopped and toasted macadamia nuts

Heat up the coconut milk, 1 cup of the cream, sugar, and salt in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Stir the milk and cream until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to slightly boil. Then temper the egg yolks with the ice cream base. Pour the tempered eggs back into the sauce pan and when the custard reaches 170 degrees F place the ice cream base in a heat proof bowl, add the vanilla extract and toasted coconut shreds, and let it sit over an ice bath. When the mixture has cooled, place in your refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Follow your ice cream maker instruction for churning.

Once your ice cream has reached a softserve consistency, add the toasted and chopped macadamia nuts. Top off with hot fudge when you dish it up. Sit back and close your eyes and just imagine the tropical breeze blowing and the sounds of the island while you enjoy every scoop of paradise.

Mahalo.

Che Chuoi (Banana and Coconut) Ice Cream

What is che? Che is a Vietnamese sweet dessert soup. Maybe soup isn't the proper description because when we think of soup, it is something savory and very seldom is it sweet.  Che in the Vietnamese culture can be a combination of sweet rice, red beans, mung beans and gelatins, usually swimming in a sugary syrup or in a bath of sweetened coconut milk. Che can be served either warm or cold -- I usually prefer mine on the chilled side. I grew up eating a lot of che. My mom and aunts were experts at making it; and that is part of the reason why I have such a big sweet tooth.

The event Delicious Vietnam is being hosted by A food lover’s journey and Ravenous Couple.   The challenge is to cook a Vietnamese dish or put a spin on a traditional Vietnamese dish. My challenge is to create an ice cream inspired by a Vietnamese dish.

One of my favorite types of che is Che Chuoi, which is traditionally made with bananas, tapioca pearls and coconut milk. The bananas that are used are not your typical store-bought bananas. These are Kepok bananas, which are fatter and not as round or long. They also have a starchier taste, usually not as sweet and are much firmer. You can cook these bananas and they won't get as soft as your regular bananas. You can find Kepok bananas in your local Asian market or even your Mexican grocery store.

Che Chuoi gets its wonderful flavor by simmering the bananas in the sweet and creamy coconut milk and tapioca pearls. The coconut milk gains some of the banana flavor and the banana is softened by cooking in the coconut milk.  This dessert has so much texture going on...the tapioca pearls dancing in your mouth, the soft texture of the bananas and the sweet coconut milk coating your entire mouth. The flavor just lingers on your tongue after each spoonful.

Che Chuoi Ice Cream:

2 Kepok bananas (you can substitute regular bananas)

2 cups coconut milk

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup sugar

pinch of salt

toasted sesame seeds or crushed peanuts for garnish

My Che Chuoi inspired ice cream starts off by simmering coconut milk with the Kepok bananas for 30 minutes on medium heat. Remove the bananas and save for later. Stir in sugar, salt and 1 cup of heavy cream. Bring the mixture to a low boil and then transfer to a heat-proof bowl. Add the remaining cup of heavy cream to ice cream base. Place the ice cream base into an ice bath for 1 hour and then refrigerate for at least 4 hours. 

Follow your ice cream makers instructions. At this time, slice up the bananas into small bite size pieces. When the ice cream reaches a soft -serve consistency transfer the ice cream into freezer safe bowls. Alternate scooping the ice cream and sprinkling the banana pieces. Do this until the bowls are full of the coconut banana goodness. Let the ice cream harden in your freezer for a couple hours before serving.  When serving the dessert you can top it off with some salted, crushed peanuts or toasted sesame seeds, just the like how Che Chuoi would normally be topped off before serving.

Cam on (Thank you),

Bao

For St. Patrick's Day -- Godzilla's Favorite Ice Cream!!

How is that for a catchy title? Well, if Godzilla had a favorite ice cream, I'm thinking it would be my Green Tea and Toasted Coconut ice cream....I've even added some homemade green tea mochi to top it off! Now what 20,000-ton Japanese mutant dinosaur wouldn't like that?

This is a great, refreshing green tea ice cream with bits of shredded toasted coconut and a hint of coconut milk. For those of you who are not fans of green tea because of it earthy flavor, the coconut milk in this recipe tones down the earthy flavor and sweetens the ice cream up a notch. The little pieces of toasted coconut will give your mouth something to chew on once the ice cream has melted on your tongue.

I also made some green tea mochi. You can serve this on the side or right on top of the ice cream. It adds a little sweetness from the sticky rice and just a bit of green for color...in celebration of St. Patrick's Day.

Green Tea and Toasted Coconut Ice Cream Recipe:

1 ½ cups of heavy cream
½ cup of coconut milk
½ cup of whole milk
6 tsp of matcha (sweet green tea)
½ cup of sugar
Pinch of salt
3 egg yolks

Mochi Recipe:

Adapted from Asian Dumplings Tips by Andrea Nguyen

2 1/4 cups of Blue Star brand Mochiko Sweet Rice flour (made by Koda Farms)
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 cups water
Tapioca or potato starch
2 tsp of matcha (sweet green tea)

Mix the sweet rice flour, sugar, water and matcha together. Pour 1/3 of the mochi mix into a microwave-safe bowl, cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 1 minute. Stir and then microwave for 1 more minute.

Place hot mochi on a cutting board with plenty of tapioca starch on the bottom and top. Roll flat and cut into small pieces.


I've heard Green Tea Ice Cream goes well with a Guinness too!

I hope you enjoy your St Patty's Day!

Cheers!

Bao