

Did everyone have a great holiday weekend? Ours was totally relaxed and just right. Lots of vegetables and watermelon in the mix, and just a little bit of outside work. We generally have to stay home on “fireworks holiday” nights because our dog is terrified of them, so this comic rings especially true. I know that this is an issue for a lot of families, and seeing “Lost Dog” signs in my neighbourhood after a holiday weekend always makes me so sad. I know for sure that my girl just isn’t herself when she hears those booms, so we do everything we can to make her comfortable.

Aside from the regular snuggles, treats, toys, antlers, playtime, and walks (our girl is spoiled–I think a few of you can relate haha), I like to give her something with peanut butter when she’s been really good or when I know she’s about to have a tough day. As soon as I slide the lid off of a jar of PB (which is often), she comes prancing into the kitchen, making her silly little grunt noises.

When I was flipping through my copy of N’ICE CREAM: 80+ Recipes for Healthy Homemade Vegan Ice Creams, my eye went right to this sundae for two reasons: 1) PEANUT BUTTER CARAMEL! and 2) No ice cream maker required. I have a lot of childhood nostalgia surrounding sundaes and the thought of this minimal ingredient, super quick treat got me to work so fast.

I also had to go all the way and make some cake crumble from the toppings section of the book. But the best part is that I could give my little furry pal a few mouthfuls on the side (minus the cacao nibs you can see in a couple photos)–anything to make her happy ;)

I really love this book by Tuulia and Virpi though (amazing Instagram page with great quotes about ice cream if you’re interested in seeing more). As if a book of all vegan and healthy ice cream wasn’t enough temptation for me, the photos are so enticing. They’re all dreamy light, just-right ice cream drips, and perfect styling to a tee. Some other recipes from the book that I’ve been eyeing up: the choco-vanilla bomb, the $5 milkshake (anything with a Pulp Fiction reference is thumbs up), strawberry basil creamsicles, white chocolate sauce, raw chocolate-covered cashew ice cream, and the dreamy blackberry ice cream cake.

All of their treats are made with beautiful whole foods like bananas, avocados, coconut cream, whole nuts, vanilla, dates, maple syrup, spices, and herbs. I think my favourite aspect is just how simple the recipes really are. I have a tendency to over-complicate things, especially with dessert. So the beautiful simplicity here is really striking. And! There’s instructions for those of us without an ice cream maker throughout. Sweet summer bliss!



PEANUT BUTTER CARAMEL SUNDAE W/ RAW VANILLA CAKE CRUMBLES RECIPE

Reprinted by arrangement with Avery Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, A Penguin Random House Company. Copyright © Virpi Mikkonen and Tuulia Talvio, 2016

Print the recipe here!

SERVES: 2

NOTES: I added a tiny squeeze of fresh lemon juice to both the ice cream and the caramel sauce. Just personal preference really. In the book, the recommendation for the cake crumble is ground cardamom, but I went full-on vanilla with ground vanilla beans AND extract. Also note that you will have to refrigerate a can of coconut milk overnight for this recipe.

VANILLA CAKE CRUMBLE (makes extra):

1 cup raw nuts of your choice

2-3 Medjool dates, pitted

1/2 teaspoon ground vanilla

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of sea salt

1 tablespoon coconut or maple syrup (optional)

PEANUT BUTTER CARAMEL:

1 tablespoon natural peanut butter

1 tablespoon maple syrup

2 tablespoons plant-based milk

sea salt (optional)

tiny squeeze of lemon juice (optional)

ICE CREAM:

1 14-ounce can full fat coconut milk, refrigerated overnight

2 frozen bananas

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon maple syrup (optional)

tiny pinch sea salt

tiny squeeze of lemon juice (optional)

Make the crumble: Combine the nuts, dates, ground vanilla, vanilla extract, sea salt, and maple syrup in a blender. Blend on high until you have a moist, crumbly mixture. Set aside.

Make the caramel: In a small bowl, vigorously whisk together the peanut butter, maple syrup, plant-based milk, sea salt, and lemon juice. Once you have a smooth sauce, set aside.

Make the ice cream: Rinse out the blender pitcher. Open the can of coconut milk and scoop the top layer of cream, being careful to avoid the water at the bottom of the can. Transfer the coconut cream to the blender. Add the frozen bananas, vanilla, maple syrup, sea salt, and lemon juice to the blender as well. Blend the mixture on high, using a tamper to push the mixture down into the blades. Once you have a smooth mixture, stop the motor.

At this point, I had to freeze my ice cream for a good 45 minutes, stirring it up every 15 minutes. Once you have that slightly firm/soft-serve like texture, serve the ice cream with the peanut butter caramel and vanilla cake crumble.