Sunday, August 17, 2014

Pina Colada Ice Cream

Pina Colada Ice  Cream 2

I don't wish to whine, but it's not been the best of times around here the last couple of weeks.  Long story short, and I'm sure I've mentioned this here before, our house got flooded in a big storm a couple of months ago.  I arrived home from work to find the dining room and kitchen floors resembling a lake and, as water is wont to work its way downwards, the water had filled up the ceilings and floor of the two bedrooms below.  Not a pretty sight.  Anyway, after several weeks of not much happening, the insurance company finally realised that the problem was way more serious than they had originally anticipated, launched themselves into "emergency action" as a result, and sent in a team of people to start ripping the house apart.  Walls and ceilings have been removed downstairs, and big machines brought in to try and dry the place out.  The kitchen and dining room ceiling will have to be removed, likewise the floor, and there is even talk of the possibility of the whole kitchen having to be pulled out.  Needless to say, there is plenty of chaos around here and not too much cooking going on, so please bear with me if I'm not posting as regularly here as I'd like to over the next couple of months.

Still, life isn't all grim ... the magnolias and daffodils are out, and the tui which always comes to our garden at the start of spring, and enchants us throughout the summer, has arrived.  A wonderful reminder that spring is officially only 14 days away.  For those of you who don't know, the tui is a native New Zealand bird, notable for its vibrant green plumage and the two white feathers at its throat.  As a child I was always delighted by this Maori legend as to how the kiwi became a flightless bird and the tui got its white feathers.

Tui Collage

The other great thing about this time of year is the abundance of citrus fruit in season.  I always have huge bowls of lemons, oranges and mandarins on my kitchen bench right now, and it's the time when I launch into production of preserved lemons and lemon curd.  Marmalade making is just around the corner.

The fact, therefore, that this week we are Zesting It Up with Nigel Slater at I Heart Cooking Clubs, really brightened my week, and with days warming up a little it definitely seemed like ice cream was the way to go.  Though, in truth, I eat ice cream all year round - no excuse of warmer days ahead needed.   Trawling around on the internet I came across Nigel's Lime Mascarpone Sorbet.  I really liked the sound of that, and in fact I had a couple of limes in the house.  I didn't, however, have any mascarpone, wasn't feeling inclined to head to the supermarket to buy some, and easy enough though it is to make time wasn't on my side.  Poking around in the pantry, I came across a tin of coconut milk and figured I could do something with that.  I also stumbled across a tin of pineapple chunks that had been sitting in the pantry for goodness knows how long, and for the life of me I can't imagine how I ever came to be in possession of a tin of pineapple in the first place.  Then I remembered half a tin of condensed milk that had been sitting in the fridge for probably at least as long as the pineapple had been around, and thus this ice cream was born.  It's a simple as blitzing up the coconut milk, pineapple chunks, condensed milk, and lime zest in a blender, and then churning in an ice cream maker.

The resulting ice cream is light and refreshing, and a beautiful combination of flavours.  This is definitely one I will be repeating a lot this summer.  Thanks for the inspiration, Nigel.

Pina Colada Ice Cream

Pina Colada Ice Cream Recipe
Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

1x 400ml (13.5 fl oz) can Trade Aid coconut milk
1x 450g (16 oz) can pineapple chunks in natural juice
1/2 can condensed milk
grated zest of 1x lime

Place all ingredients in blender, and blitz until the pineapple is completely crushed and everything is well combined.

Pour everything into an ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer's instructions.

Turn ice cream into freezer proof container, and place a piece of baking paper directly over the surface of the ice cream (helps to stop it turning icy).

Remove from freezer 10 to 15 minutes before serving to soften slightly.

If you would like to get to know Nigel Slater a little better, and to see what everyone else has cooked up this week, then do go and visit my friends at I Heart Cooking Clubs and check out the links ...


I will also be submitting this post to Sweet New Zealand.  Inspired by Alessandra Zecchini, and hosted this month by Michelle at Munch Cooking, Sweet New Zealand is an event for all Kiwi bloggers (whether living at home or abroad), or all foreign bloggers living in New Zealand, to link up their sweet treats.

Sweet New Zealand Badge A

I'll also be sharing this post this week at See Ya In the Gumbo hosted by the delightful Michelle at Ms. enPlace, at Weekend Cooking hosted by Beth Fish Reads, and at Foodie Fridays hosted by Designs by Gollum.

See Ya in The Gumbo Badge     Weekend Cooking Badge     Foodie Friday Badge

27 comments:

  1. Mmm, hungry as we speak. This looks amazing.. thank you for contributing to Sweet NZ August. We really appreciate it. I am going to have to make this icecream soon. Yummy!

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    1. Thanks, Michelle, and thanks for hosting Sweet NZ this month. If you get a chance to make this I hope you enjoy it.

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  2. That sounds lovely! Hope your house dries out and chaos subsides with the minimum of extra stress.

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    1. Thanks, Alicia. I think we probably have a couple of months of chaos ahead of us, but at least it seems to be drying out well.

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  3. Sue, So sorry to hear that your house got flooded that bad...I would whine like hell if that had happened to us..well, that could, because we live very near the Rhine river.
    Hope this beautiful light ice cream has brought you some comfort!

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    1. Thanks, Angie. On the plus side, at least it was all nice clean rain water that came in off the roof, not dirty muddy water that came in off the land - we were very lucky in that respect.

      Ice cream, like chocolate, fixes nearly everything :-)

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  4. Hi Sue,
    So sorry to hear about your house! Hope everything will be sorted out soon!
    Your ice cream looks yummy! A bowl of this yummy ice cream would surely help you forget about the mess, even if it is only for a couple of minutes! :)

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    1. Actually, Joyce, this ice cream is probably good enough to provide a good 30 minutes of distraction :-)

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  5. Sue- I am so impressed with your positive attitude while you are dealing with such overwhelming damage. You are one tough and impressive lady!

    Ice cream is definitely a year round thing for me as well. You managed to clean out your pantry and create a wonderful tropical ice cream at the same time;-) I bet it was delicious and comforting. Love the lime zest on top!

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    1. Oh, Kim, thank you so much for your kindness. I love when a good pantry clean-out turns out so well.

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  6. I have read a bit of your recent troubles on Facebook, so sorry to hear this part. I know your kitchen is important to you. Floods are horrible, water will find a way to go almost everywhere. Happy to see you posting and we are sending good cheer your way, and your ice cream looks so delicious. Take care.

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    1. You're so right, Melynda - water sure finds a way to get into the most obscure places - I can't believe where it all ended up. Thanks for your kind thoughts.

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  7. Yikes! Sorry to hear about your house! Glad to see you posting though! That ice cream sounds amazing. I've never had coconut milk ice cream before.

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    1. Thanks so much. Actually, coconut milk makes deliciously refreshing ice cream. It's a lovely, light alternative to a custard based ice cream, has beautiful flavour, and of course is great if you plan to serve it to people who are dairy intolerant.

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  8. I am surprised that you are remaining sane at all with everything you are dealing with. I hope it all gets sorted out and like back to normal soon. This yummy-looking bowl of ice cream seems like a perfect way to comfort yourself. I love lime and pineapple together and coconut milk adds such creaminess. Great adaptation/inspiration. ;-)

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    1. Must admit, Deb, that at times it does feel as though I'm only just hanging onto my sanity by a thread, but at least it feels as though some progress is being made now.

      The lime, pineapple and coconut was a great combo. I think some candied lime segments would be quite nice for an accompaniment too.

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  9. Trying times for you - I do hope it doesn't take too long to return your home to normal. I think I will adopt your all season ice cream eating! Just so happens I have 1/2 tin of condensed milk left over from the weekend so might try something similar. Does sound like an amazing ice cream.

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    1. Think we still have a way to go, Lesley, before things are back to normal. But we do seem to have a bit of a lull in the chaos at the moment, which is kind of bearable. I've just posted another Mocha Date & Meringue Ice Cream too, which also uses condensed milk, so no need to ever be lost for a use for half a can.

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  10. So sorry to hear about your house. I agree that ice cream doesn't have a season and should be eaten year-round. This one sounds lovely.

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    1. Thanks, Zosia. Ice cream is definitely my "go to" dessert any time of year :-)

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  11. The ice cream season ends in Northern Germany and it is getting autumn, I had to turn the heat on!

    Sorry to hear about your house, I hope you will come to normal soon.

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    1. I suppose in Northern Germany it probably really does get too cold to eat ice cream in winter.

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  12. Sue, I'm sorry about all the chaos you've had to endure. I hope the renovations pass quickly!
    Pina colada ice cream sounds perfect right now--we are in the beginnings of a major heat wave.

    I sort of fell of the map cooking with Nigel Slater. My job has me working 10-12 hour days and it's been difficult to plan meals and sort through recipes. Sigh. Maybe one day, right?!

    Thank you for sharing and take care!

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    1. Crikey, Michelle, compared to working 10-12 hour days I feel like I have nothing to complain about :-) It is difficult when you're working full on to cook and eat well, isn't it? Since I started working full-time I've definitely found that having a menu plan for the week (and trying to plan something for a blog post) into that plan, helps me to both eat well and stay on top of things. But sometimes I drop the ball and don't get a chance to make a plan, and then everything literally goes to the pack for a week!!

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  13. I have fallen off the face of the Earth as far as blogging goes, but I'm surely glad I came upon your post for ice cream! It's wickedly hot here this week and I need a cool treat. I have all the ingredients and space in the freezer! As for your poor flood-damaged home .... I'm so sorry that you are going through such a messy fix! Hope repairs and re-settling goes more smoothly very soon!

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    1. Hi Susan - thanks for dropping by. I think we all get a bit like that sometimes with blogging - sometimes there is just too much life getting in the way. Hope this cool treat gives you a little respite from that heat. I'm looking forward to some heat myself in the weeks ahead :-)

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  14. What a tempting flavour combination for ice cream! I love it!

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