Vegan Strawberry-Rhubarb Ice Cream #aquafaba
It’s officially spring, and I know that because rhubarb is in the farmer’s markets!
I love rhubarb. Not just for its tartness, but also because it tends to be one of the first things that’s harvested every year. Soon, it’ll be asparagus, then garlic scapes, then… everything else!
We grew rhubarb in our backyard when I was a kid growing up. I clearly remember my mom handing me a stalk of rhubarb and a bowl of sugar for dessert.
I’m not saying it wasn’t good that way, but my palate may have refined a little since then.
Rhubarb really has no better partner than strawberries. For may folks, it’s all about the pie or the crumble, and that’s cool. I won’t judge. But I wanted to do something different, so I thought I’d try to make an ice cream.
This is a technique I used last year with peaches, and it had such great results, I decided to try it again. It uses aquafaba to make it creamy, with excellent results.
Want more Aquafaba recipes? Check out my new cookbook: Aquafabulous!: 100+ Egg-Free Vegan Recipes Using Aquafaba (Bean Water)
Many vegan ice cream bases use coconut, which is delicious, but it doesn’t pair well with everything. This works really well, and the consistency is spot-on.
Vegan Strawberry-Rhubarb Ice Cream #Aquafaba
Ingredients:
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, washed and quartered
- 1 1/2 cups rhubarb, washed and chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon aquafaba (chickpea water)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Pinch of cream of tartar
Method:
- In a small heavy saucepan add the strawberries, rhubarb, 1 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water. Heat gently to a boil and allow to cook down until the rhubarb is soft, about 20 minutes. Mash the strawberries and rhubarb with a potato masher until they are all mostly incorporated, but sill leaving a few chunks. It should look like a thick syrup.
- Pour into a bowl and place in the fridge to chill.
- In your stand mixer, or using a hand mixer or food processor, place the aquafaba, along 1 tbsp sugar and the cream of tartar. Beat until it forms stiff peaks. Gently fold into the strawberry-rhubarb mixture.
- Freeze according to your ice cream maker’s manufacturer’s directions.
Odd question — been seeing a lot of aquafaba recipes, especially as a substitute for meringue. I was under the impression that bean water contains oligosaccharides, the sugars that are hard to break down and cause flatulence. Usually you rinse beans before cooking them. Isn’t aquafaba then just concentrated bean sugars that are hard on the gut? Seems weird to use so much of it
That’s a great question! I honestly don’t know the answer to it. All I can say is that I’ve used it a lot and I don’t really find that it gives me gas. You’re only using small amounts–in this case only a tablespoon or so.