Chocolate Candy Cane Ice Cream- Vegan Mofo Day 25

I got really excited the other day when I saw vegan candy canes at Coles. I love candy canes because they are edible decorations which I think is incredibly cool. I made candy cane cookies for a xmas potluck a few years ago and so was thinking I need to find something else to do with them.

I stood in the supermarket with my phone and searched for vegan candy cane ice cream recipes, vegan ice cream paradise blog popped up straight away.  If you haven't already checked out her incredible blog I strongly recommend it. She hasn't posted as regularly for a few years due to health reasons but has so many great looking vegan ice cream recipes which everyone can access for free. I've also made and enjoyed the blueberry 'cheesecake' ice cream from her blog before.

2 c. soy creamer (or any non-dairy milk- I used soy milk)
1 c. soy milk (or any non-dairy milk)
¾ c. sugar
1½ c. chocolate chips (i used good quality bitter dark chocolate chips)
2 T. arrowroot
1 t. vanilla extract (i forgot this)
2 t. peppermint extract (i only used 1 teaspoon)
1 c. chopped candy canes (I used about 12 candy canes which was a little under a cup)

Mix ¼ cup of soy milk with the 2 tablespoons of arrowroot and set aside.

Mix the soy creamer, soy milk, sugar, and chocolate chips together in a saucepan. Heat gently until the chocolate melts, then bring to a boil. When the mixture has just started to boil, take off the heat and immediately stir in the arrowroot slurry. This should immediately cause the liquid to thicken (not a lot, but a noticeable amount; it will be thicker when it cools).

Add the vanilla and peppermint extracts.

Set the ice cream mixture aside to cool. Freeze according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. Add the chopped candy canes in the last 5 minutes of freezing.

I wasn't sure what would happen to the texture of the candy canes when frozen, but they appeared to maintain their nice crunchy texture which is great because I prefer some crunchy bits in ice cream. I halved the amount of peppermint extract because last time I made peppermint choc chip ice cream, I thought 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract was enough but the chocolate flavour is incredibly rich and slightly bitter which overpowers the peppermint flavour in the ice cream base. I think it really works though because the candy canes have a strong peppermint flavour which provides a nice contrast of flavours and textures. This was super delicious so I will have to make it again closer to xmas time.