This week, I wanted to re-create my favorite Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor, making it vegan (though B&J came out with their own non-dairy ice cream, which is so awesome) and nutritious with the addition of a few energizing superfoods. Another thing I know people can’t get enough of in B&J’s ice cream are their decadent cores, so I went ahead and gave these Superfood ‘Cherry Garcia’ Pops a chocolate core to really drive the point home. If you’re wondering why the pops are minty-colored, it’s due to the addition of spirulina, along with other nutritionally dense ingredients like hemp hearts and cacao nibs. A bonus – no ice-cream maker is needed for these.
Moving to the U.S. from small-town Russia in the 90s and going to a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream shop for the first time was completely mind-blowing because a) back home, we did not have dedicated ice cream shops, b) ice cream flavors I grew up with were very basic and I had never seen so many extensive flavor options c) they sold little tubs of ice cream to take home, which was unheard of in Russia at the time d) everything tasted incredibly decadent and delicious. So here’s my B&J tribute, as a thanks for opening my eyes to possibilities I didn’t know existed. Read on for some weekend links and have a peaceful Sunday.
Kids Taste-Test the New Ben & Jerry’s Vegan Ice Cream
Essentials – since we get many questions about our chosen kitchen and photography tools, we’ve made a page with links to all our favorite and most-used products – Kitchen Tools here, Photography here (also working on a round-up of favorite health-related books/cookbooks and natural beauty!)
The Sad, Sexist History of Salad – “Americans, in particular, strongly associate healthy or light foods, such as salad, chicken, and yogurt, with women, and unhealthy or heavy foods, such as beef, potatoes, and beer, with men, both men and women preferred unhealthy foods with masculine packaging and healthy foods with feminine packaging.” Fascinating.
The World’s Most Innovative Companies in 2016 – according to Fast Company
Julia Turshen on the One Part Podcast – loved this, especially her point on asking for credit/compensation – if you don’t ask, you will never know what the possibilities are. You may know Turshen from co-authoring Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook, along with many others. Cannot wait for her own cookbook to come out.
Meryl Streep: A League of Her Own, also, Taste of Streep!?
Obama After Dark – how one can average only 5 hours of sleep a night AND run the country is beyond me, also Obama Sets the Record Straight on His 7-Almond Habit :)
About Us – we’ve updated our about page a bit, with very important info like our zodiac signs ;)
Snapchat – follow @golubkakitchen for all behind-the-scenes
- 1 heaping cup cherries - pitted and halved
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1½ cup raw cashews - soaked for 2-4 hours
- 1 cup canned unsweetened full fat Thai coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup or more to taste
- ½-1 tablespoon spirulina powder
- ½ tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon xanathan gum or 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder (optional)
- 1 tablespoon shaved dark chocolate or raw chocolate
- 1-2 tablespoons cacao nibs
- ⅓ of the spirulina mix
- 2 tablespoons shaved dark chocolate or raw chocolate
- 3 tablespoons raw cacao powder
- 7-10 tea cups, small glasses or pop molds
- neutral coconut oil for oiling the cups
- spirulina mix (recipe above)
- chocolate core (recipe above)
- 7-10 wooden sticks - soaked for 2 hours or overnight
- hemp hearts
- cacao nibs
- Combine cherries with maple syrup and bring to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer for 2 minutes. Combine arrowroot powder with water in a small bowl and add to the saucepan, while stirring. The cherry compote should thicken slightly. Remove from heat and let cool.
- Make the spirulina mix. Drain and rinse cashews and put into an upright blender, preferably high-speed. Add coconut milk, maple syrup, spirulina, vanilla, and xanathan gum/arrowroot powder, if using and blend until smooth. If not using a high-speed blender, optionally strain mixture through a fine-mesh strainer for the most smooth and velvety texture.
- Spoon about ⅓ of the spirulina mix into a medium, heat-proof bowl and set aside.
- Add shaved chocolate and cacao nibs to the blender with the remaining ⅔ of the spirulina mix and pulse to combine briefly. Transfer the mixture into a separate bowl, then fold in the cherries.
- Make the chocolate core. Place the reserved ⅓ of the spirulina mix onto a double boiler, add chocolate and let it melt, stirring to incorporate. Remove from the heat, add in cacao powder, mix to combine and let cool.
- Make the pops. Oil your cups/molds generously with coconut oil and spoon the spirulina-cherry mix in, leaving a well in the center for the core.
- Spoon the chocolate core into the well. Even out the surface and insert the wooden stick. Repeat with the rest of the pops. Freeze until completely firm.
- Prepare a plate with cacao nibs and hemp hearts for coating, along with a parchment paper-covered surface for placing pops onto. Take cups with pops out of the freezer and place into a dish with hot water for a minute, for easier removal. Remove popsicles from cups, pulling them out by the sticks. Dip the top of each pop into the prepared hemp/cacao nib mixture and press gently to make the pieces stick. Place onto a parchment paper-covered surface and keep frozen until ready to eat. Take the popsicles out of the freezer 5-10 minutes prior to eating.
Chelsea says
These look incredible! The spirulina makes me want to add mint to it too. Still in the hospital after having my baby, but I can’t wait to try these. Wish someone would deliver them to me!
Anya says
Chelsea! Congratulations!!!!! I would so deliver these to you at the hospital if I could :)
Dawn says
Wow and it’s cherry season too here in Sweden.
Jessica says
Thanks so much for including Julia’s interview on the podcast! Also, the tea cup idea is THE BEST! Super cool.
Anya says
Jessica, thank you so much for the great interview. Big fan here :)
Jakob says
Wow.. I love how you recreate your favourite Ben & Jerry ice cream.
I will try to recreate my favourite Ben & Jerry tast as well using your recipe as a base!
Anya says
Thank you Jakob! Would love to know what flavor and how it turns out :)
Lasse Lundberg Andreasen says
I also went ahead and tried your idea. I love the fact that you can recreate branded favorites in your own kitchen. However, for me it is going to take some time to get it right. I can’t get the core to stay in the right place.
Anya says
Hi Lasse,
Agreed, the core can be tricky to get right! I hope you enjoyed the taste :)