This vegan hazelnut stracciatella ice cream has a smooth, creamy texture and a rich, nutty roasted hazelnut flavour. Flecked with dark chocolate stracciatella to complement the hazelnut flavour, this egg and dairy-free ice cream is good all year round!
Ingredient Details:
Hazelnuts: You can either roast and skin the hazelnuts yourself, or to save yourself a bit of effort you can buy them ready roasted and skinned. Rather than blending the nuts into the ice cream base, the milk and cream are instead infused with the chopped hazelnuts which are then strained out before churning the ice cream. This ensures that the ice cream has a lovely smooth texture as it can be difficult to blend hazelnuts finely enough that you don't end up with a grainy texture.
This does mean that you end up with leftover nuts however; so if you prefer you can skip straining them out if you don't mind your ice cream having crunchy bits. Otherwise you can do as I do and keep them in the fridge for up to 4 days and add them to things like muesli or overnight oats.
Non-dairy double cream: You need to use a cream that is designed for whipping, ideally with a fat percentage of at least 30%. I recommend Elmlea plant double, Flora double, or Oatly whippable. You could try using Nature's Charm coconut whipping cream though the texture of the ice cream would likely be different.
Plant milk: Unsweetened soy milk is the best option here as it has a neutral flavour and creamy texture. (I like Alpro Unsweetened Soya milk the best).
You can use any kind of plant milk you like but bear in mind that the flavour of the milk will affect the flavour of the ice cream. I use more milk than cream as I prefer a less rich ice cream, but for a creamier textured ice cream you can swap 250ml of the milk for more cream.
Cornflour (cornstarch): This is used to thicken the custard. You could probably swap it for arrowroot but cornstarch is best.
Caster sugar: I use white caster sugar (granulated is fine too) as it has a neutral flavour, I want the hazelnut to be the star here! Don't reduce the amount of sugar or the ice cream won't be as creamy and it won't taste as good.
Golden syrup: Adding a sugar syrup to ice cream can help to provide a smooth and creamy texture. I use golden syrup but you could also use corn syrup or maple syrup.
Vegan cream cheese: Vegan cream cheese contains stabilisers (gums) which help to emulsify the ice cream, it also adds flavour. I use Philadelphia vegan cream cheese or Violife. Do not use a low fat variety! You can swap it for more vegan double/whipping cream if you prefer.
Dark chocolate: To make the stracciatella, melted chocolate is slowly drizzled into the ice cream as it churns, once it has formed a soft serve consistency. You can absolutely skip the chocolate if you want a plain vegan hazelnut ice cream, or for an easier option you can just finely chop it by hand and add it to the ice cream maker at the end of churning.
How To Make Hazelnut Stracciatella Ice Cream:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
- Step 1: If you are not using pre-roasted hazelnuts, spread them out on a baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes until golden and toasty.
- Step 2: Tip the hot hazelnuts into a clean tea towel and rub them together to remove the skins. It doesn't matter if you don't quite get all of it off.
- Step 3: Roughly chop the hazelnuts and place them in a pan with the rest of the ingredients, heat until thickened. Allow to cool then refrigerate overnight.
- Step 4: Scrape the chilled ice cream base through a fine mesh sieve to remove the hazelnuts.
- Step 5: Give the sieved custard a brief whisk until it is smooth.
- Step 6: Churn in an ice cream maker until it reaches soft-serve consistency then slowly drizzle in melted chocolate while churning.
Top Tips:
As with all of my recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
This ice cream is quite solid straight out of the freezer so make sure that you take it out at least 15 minutes before serving to allow it to soften up a little.
I recommend making the ice cream base the day before you churn it so that it has time to properly chill first. It needs to be cold when it goes into the ice cream maker.
I have a 2 litre ice cream maker (this one by Cuisinart).
I recommend placing the container that you are going to put the ice cream in in the freezer to chill while the ice cream is churning. This will help stop the ice cream from getting too melty while you transfer it to the container.
Don't skimp on the sugar! Sugar is important in ice cream not only for the flavour but also for the creamy texture. Things also taste less sweet when they are cold, so bear in mind that you want the unfrozen base to taste a bit sweeter than you want the finished ice cream to taste.
For an even richer, creamier ice cream, swap 250ml of the milk for more double cream.
FAQ's:
Obviously ice cream needs to be kept in the freezer; make sure that you use a freezer-proof container either with a lid or wrap it well with plastic wrap. Store the ice cream for up to 3 months, though the sooner it is eaten the better.
Homemade ice creams set a lot firmer than shop bought ones, so let it sit out on the counter for 15 minutes, or in the fridge for 30 before scooping to give it a chance to soften up slightly.
If you don’t have an ice cream maker you can still make this ice cream, it just takes a bit more work and the texture may be a bit more icy.
Once the base is chilled, pour it into a large freezerproof container and pop it in the freezer. Every 30 minutes or so, remove it from the freezer and give it a quick whisk with an electric mixer to break up any ice crystals then return it to the freezer.
Repeat this until it reaches soft-serve consistency then allow to freeze for a couple of hours before serving.
If you want to add the chocolate, I would recommend just chopping it up by hand and mixing it in once the ice cream is mostly frozen rather than drizzling in melted chocolate.
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Hazelnut Stracciatella Ice Cream (vegan)
Equipment
- ice cream maker
Ingredients
- 175 g (1 ¼ cups) hazelnuts (either pre-roasted and skinned or unroasted is fine)
- 550 g (2 ¼ cups) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy) divided
- 25 g (3 Tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 250 ml (1 cup) vegan double/whipping cream
- 125 g (½ cup + 2 Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 50 g (2 Tablespoons) golden syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 50 g (¼ cup) vegan cream cheese
- 60 g (2 oz) dark chocolate finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- IF your hazelnuts are NOT pre-roasted and skinned, heat the oven to 180℃/160℃ fan/350℉/gas mark 4. Spread the hazelnuts out in a roasting tin and roast for 10-15 minutes until they are fragrant and the skins are cracked.175 g (1 ¼ cups) hazelnuts (either pre-roasted and skinned or unroasted is fine)
- Tip the hot hazelnuts into a clean tea towel and rub them together to remove the skins. It doesn't matter if you don't quite get all of it off. Roughly chop the hazelnuts and discard the skins.
- Mix the cornflour with 50g of the milk and set aside.550 g (2 ¼ cups) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy), 25 g (3 Tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch)
- Pour the rest of the milk into a saucepan along with the chopped hazelnuts, the cream, sugar, golden syrup, vanilla and salt. Bring the mixture up to a simmer.250 ml (1 cup) vegan double/whipping cream, 125 g (½ cup + 2 Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar, 50 g (2 Tablespoons) golden syrup, 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the cornflour slurry. Return the pan to the heat and continue to cook while stirring constantly until it comes up to the boil and thickens.
- Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the cream cheese. Pour into a bowl, allow to cool slightly then cover and refrigerate overnight.50 g (¼ cup) vegan cream cheese
- Scrape the chilled custard through a fine mesh sieve into another bowl to remove the hazelnuts (or you can leave them in if you prefer). Give the strained custard a quick whisk.
- Churn the ice cream in your ice cream maker until it almost reaches soft-serve consistency. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in short bursts in the microwave then transfer it to a disposable piping bag.60 g (2 oz) dark chocolate
- Once the ice cream has reached soft serve consistency but is not yet done churning, snip the very tip off of the piping bag and drizzle a thin stream of chocolate into the ice cream as it churns. It will set and crack into shards as it meets the cold ice cream.
- Once the ice cream is done churning, transfer it to a freezer-proof container and freeze for at least 4 hours, until firm, before serving.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- I recommend placing the container that you are going to put the ice cream in in the freezer to chill while the ice cream is churning. This will help stop the ice cream from getting too melty while you transfer it to the container.
- For an even richer, creamier ice cream, swap 250ml of the milk for more double cream.
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