Juliette's Vanilla Velvet
Ja, everyone says vanilla is "just vanilla" — nonsense, vanilla is the flavor that shows every mistake you make, like a white tablecloth at a mosselen dinner. So blend those cashews until your blender begs for mercy, freeze the pint FLAT — not leaning against your frozen erwtensoep like a drunk bicycle — and when it comes out crumbly, don't panic like an amateur: one spoon of soy milk, re-spin, klaar. Do it properly and this beats anything from the supermarket vriezer, and I don't say that lightly.
Named for Juliette, who insists vanilla is never boring — and she is right.
Vanilla is the most naked flavor there is, so texture is everything: the cashew fat plus coconut cream gives you the ~10-12% fat a proper ice cream needs, the agave/corn syrup lowers the freezing point so it scoops instead of shatters, and the 1/4 tsp xanthan keeps ice crystals microscopic. A crumbly first spin is not failure — it is the machine asking for 1 tbsp of soy milk and a RE-SPIN. Blend the bean seeds thoroughly so they suspend instead of sinking to the bottom of the pint (whole-bean seeds sink less than paste). And respect the sugar window: under 65 g it goes icy and dull, over 75 g it stays slushy.
Ingrédients
Préparation
- 1
Soak: cover 100 g raw cashews with just-boiled water and soak 20-30 minutes; drain and rinse. This softens them for a silk-smooth blend and neutralizes the raw nut flavor.
- 2
Blend: put the cashews, soy milk, coconut cream, sugar, agave, vanilla bean seeds, vanilla extract, xanthan gum and salt in a high-speed blender. Blend a full 2-3 minutes until completely silky — rub a drop between your fingers; if you feel ANY grit, keep blending. Vanilla has nowhere to hide.
- 3
Freeze: pour into the Ninja Creami pint only up to the MAX FILL line (discard or drink any excess). Freeze with the lid OFF, dead FLAT on a level freezer shelf, for a full 24 hours — a level, hump-free surface protects the blade and spins evenly. Lid on once solid if storing longer.
- 4
Spin: remove the pint (if your freezer runs very cold, let it sit 5-10 minutes on the counter first), install in the Creami and run the LITE ICE CREAM program.
- 5
Assess and re-spin: after the first spin it will likely look crumbly or powdery — normal for vegan bases. Add 1 tbsp soy milk, press RE-SPIN, and repeat once more if needed until it turns dense, glossy and creamy.
- 6
Optional mix-ins: dig a hole to the bottom of the center with a spoon, drop in 2-3 tbsp of mix-ins (vegan cookie crumbs, chocolate chunks, candied pecans) and run the MIX-IN cycle.
- 7
Serve immediately for soft-serve texture, or refreeze 30-60 minutes for firmer scoops. For leftovers: smooth the surface flat, lid on, refreeze — next time re-spin with a splash of soy milk.
