Pistachio Ice Cream

Are you ready for some ice cream?  I have been an ice cream making fool this summer!  Today’s flavor is Pistachio Ice Cream with Pistachio Praline, and it is crazy delicious!  This is the dessert portion of this month’s Cooking with Astrology “Leo”, and this ice cream is a traditional favorite in Greece.  I made a couple of changes, otherwise it remains true to the original…..

Why mess with perfection, right?  Part of the fun, is trying out new flavors and ingredients.  Today’s ice cream is made with coconut milk {you can substitute heavy cream}, and Greek yogurt.  I needed to do a bit of research before I named this dessert.  Is it ice cream, or is it frozen yogurt?  Am I the only person that did not know the answer?  Well, frozen yogurt is made almost entirely with yogurt.  So now I know. 😉

Did you notice what is on top?  That would be the Pistachio Praline topping…it is dangerously delicious!  Thankfully pistachios are heart healthy, because I had a bit too much fun snacking on the leftovers.

You may have noticed that I am not getting as detailed with each sign this year.  I am also not sticking to specific foods that are most beneficial to each sign {leos/heart}.  I explained all of that last year, so this year we are just going to have fun.   Speaking of fun, we need a reminder of this month’s imaginary date…..

Have Mercy!!

Let’s make some ice cream, shall we.  Start by beating together the coconut milk {or heavy cream}, Greek yogurt, milk, and honey…..

I added a couple of pinches of lime green coloring to turn it a light green…..

That is a powdered food coloring on the end of the knife.  I was looking for lime green coloring a few years ago to make margarita cakes, and this was the best color that I could find…..

Once it is all thoroughly mixed together, pour the mixture into the frozen bowl of your ice cream maker…..

Yes, I am still assuming that all of you are using the same Cuisinart ICE-20 Automatic 1-1/2-Quart Ice Cream Maker, White that I have. 😉  Whatever you are using, process your ice cream per the manufacturer’s instructions.

While the ice cream is churning away, place your shelled pistachios into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped…..

When the ice cream is just about finished, pour the chopped nuts in and let it run until they are thoroughly mixed in.  Pour ice cream into a freezer safe container and place in the freezer…..

Once the ice cream is in the freezer, start the Pistachio Praline.  Heat the water and sugar in a saucepan until it starts to bubble, stirring occasionally until the sugar has dissolved…..

Gently simmer for 10 minutes without stirring…..

Remove from heat, and stir in 2/3 cup of whole pistachios…..

Pour out onto a silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet.  Set aside and allow to cool and harden, about 1 hour…..

Place hardened praline in a zipper top bag and crush with a rolling pin…..

Set aside until ready to serve the ice cream…..

A couple of scoops of Pistachio Ice Cream topped with a couple scoops of Pistachio Praline, and your family will love you forever!!

If you can find shelled pistachios, buy them!  You will need to shell almost an entire 12.75 oz bag of dry roasted pistachios for this recipe…and your fingertips are going to hurt by the time you are done!

You an find all of the recipes for this month’s Cooking with Astrology Picnic below:

Greek Eggplant Dip {Melitzanosalata}

Creamy Feta Dressing

Greek “Summery” Meat Pie

Happy Birthday to all of my Leo {July 23 – August 22} friends: Deb, Sarah, Denise, and of course, John Stamos. 😉

Enjoy!!

Pistachio Ice Cream

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Serves	4
Prep time	30 minutes
Meal type	Dessert

What could be more Greek than pistachios? This Pistachio Ice Cream with Pistachio Praline highlight's Greek's favorite nut.

Ingredients

• For the Ice Cream
• 1 1/4 Cups full-fat coconut milk (can)
• 2/3 cups Greek yogurt (I used Fage)
• 2 Tablespoons milk
• 3 Tablespoons honey
• green food coloring (optional)
• 2/3 Cups shelled, unsalted pistachios
• For the Pistachio Praline
• 3/4 cups raw sugar
• 3 Tablespoons water
• 2/3 cups shelled, unsalted pistachios

Directions

Beat together coconut milk, yogurt, milk, and honey until thoroughly combined.

Add green food coloring if desired.

Pour mixture into the frozen bowl of an ice cream maker. Process according to manufacturer's instructions.

Place pistachios into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped.

When ice cream is ready, pour the chopped pistachios into the freezer bowl so they mix into the ice cream.

Pour ice cream into a freezer safe container and place in the freezer.

Ice cream will be soft serve style in about 2 hours, or freeze overnight for traditional ice cream.

Note

Recipe adapted from Food of the World Greece the food and the lifestyle.

This recipe will be partying at these link parties!