Hazelnut Stracciatella Ice Cream (vegan)
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!
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.