Wow. Sorry to be offline for so long, folks. Right before New Year's Eve my dear husband accidentally knocked over a rather large glass of water on my poor little ibook. As I watched in horror, too stunned to react in a sensible way, the screen changed from text and images to colored lines, and then went black. We tried to use the blowdryer, but it didn't do much good. I called apple support to figure out what to do, and they made an appointment for me with the Genius Bar people in the Apple Store in the Short Hills Mall, the closest location. Unfortunately, this being New Year's Eve, we had to wait until January 2nd to take the poor little waterlogged puter in for its examination. In the meantime, we experienced a near total blackout - Your Personal Chef got rid of television in 2002 and newspaper delivery in 1988. So for two days, our home was only connected to the larger world via the NPR news updates on our favorite radio station, 88.3 (it's a fantastic jazz station, the best in the country in my humble opinion). Since we are normally disconnected from all media every Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath, from sunset on Friday until nightfall on Saturday) it was not completely startling. Frustrating, but yet another reminder of how incredible the internet is. So, dear readers, the Blog has had to wait while the technical difficulties were resolved.
The diagnostic team at the Genius Bar had a sad pronouncement - my hardworking little road warrior was not coming back. (sniff) However, they were able to download the hard drive, so at least I can reload everything onto the next one. So, Your Personal Chef is shopping for a used ibook or powerbook, and welcomes your opinions on where to find one. I am now connected via my old PC notebook, a Toshiba Portege 3110CT. It's a great little machine, extremely small and light, but without the capacity to upgrade its 256K Ram, it's essentially terminally slow in today's environment.
I have not posted a recipe in some time, due to all this messy technology trouble, so here is a quick and easy raw vegan low carb icecream recipe - enjoy and let me know how it turns out for you!
Raw Low Carb Ice Cream Base Recipe
ICE CREAM BASE:
2 Cups raw cashews (no need to soak)
3 Cups unsweetened almond milk
1 Cup Splenda
1/2 tsp sea salt (+/-)
1 whole vanilla bean
2 Tbsp raw unsweetened coconut flakes
2 Cups raw cashews (no need to soak)
3 Cups unsweetened almond milk
1 Cup Splenda
1/2 tsp sea salt (+/-)
1 whole vanilla bean
2 Tbsp raw unsweetened coconut flakes
Blend in food processor or Vitamix (I use a cuisinart) until very, very smooth, at least 5 minutes.
At this point, add any of the following to the base...
1/2 Cup raisins (not low carb, so factor that into your carb consideration)
Carob (about 2 Tbsp)
Cocoa nibs (a small handful)
Raw cacao powder mixed with cocoa butter
Strawberries, blueberries, etc.
Nuts
The exact quantity of each of the above ingredients will vary based on taste and the quality/moisture content of your ingredients, but I usually add anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 cup total volume at this stage in the game.
Let it blend just long enough to get everything mixed well, but not to puree the chunky addins.
At this point, it is best to 'pre-chill' the mixture. If you simply dump the mixture into the ice cream maker now, it won't set up properly, and it will be less firm than even soft serve. Place it in the fridge for a few hours, or if you've got to have that ice cream ASAP put the mixture in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes. You want it to be cool, but not to the point where ice crystals are starting to form. (SPECIAL NOTE: do not use the ice cream maker 'bowl' to do the pre-cooling. The base will freeze to the bowl, and the batch will be ruined.)
When the mixture is sufficiently cool, pour it into the ice cream maker, and let it go! After about 20 minutes or so, it should be ready! For Rum Raisin, add 1 tbsp Rum/whisky/other booze near the end of the process (alcohol retards freezing) TRANSFER to airtight freezersafe container for storage. When ready to use, allow fully frozen icecream to defrost at room temperature for at least an hour before serving.
Keep in touch!
Best,
Rebecca
Cocoa nibs (a small handful)
Raw cacao powder mixed with cocoa butter
Strawberries, blueberries, etc.
Nuts
The exact quantity of each of the above ingredients will vary based on taste and the quality/moisture content of your ingredients, but I usually add anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 cup total volume at this stage in the game.
Let it blend just long enough to get everything mixed well, but not to puree the chunky addins.
At this point, it is best to 'pre-chill' the mixture. If you simply dump the mixture into the ice cream maker now, it won't set up properly, and it will be less firm than even soft serve. Place it in the fridge for a few hours, or if you've got to have that ice cream ASAP put the mixture in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes. You want it to be cool, but not to the point where ice crystals are starting to form. (SPECIAL NOTE: do not use the ice cream maker 'bowl' to do the pre-cooling. The base will freeze to the bowl, and the batch will be ruined.)
When the mixture is sufficiently cool, pour it into the ice cream maker, and let it go! After about 20 minutes or so, it should be ready! For Rum Raisin, add 1 tbsp Rum/whisky/other booze near the end of the process (alcohol retards freezing) TRANSFER to airtight freezersafe container for storage. When ready to use, allow fully frozen icecream to defrost at room temperature for at least an hour before serving.
Keep in touch!
Best,
Rebecca
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