Saturday, January 19, 2008

Cashew-Chocolate Crumb Chocolate Ice Cream Pie for 14th Anniversary

That's 14 yrs hubby and I have been married, not 14 yrs that I've been blogging. Goodness, if I reach a 14 yr blogging anniversary, someone intervene, please! Makes me wonder though where will we'll be online in years to come...

I'm digressing already and I've just started typing! Let's get to the food. So, as I said last week hubby and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary. Wow, that's a long time, and I have been blessed every day to be with him. xo honny.
The boy loves his chocolate. Yes he does. So, I made my Cashew-Chocolate Crumb Ice Cream Pie from Vive. I do love ice cream pies. You can make them a few days in advance... plus, they're easy to 'hide'! He had no idea I made it.

Normally I use chocolate ice cream in the centre, but I opted for vanilla this time round. Both are great, really just personal preference. I think I do prefer the chocolate ice cream myself... for a triple chocolate threat hit!

So, we start with the chocolate cookie base. Get yourself some chocolate cookies (ex: as Nature's Path Deep Chocolate Cookies or Newman's Own). Whiz up in your food processor until very fine/crumbly. Mix with the crust ingredients, which include cashew butter. Bake for a wee bit, then remove and cool.
Once cool, soften ice cream, and then scoop into the crust. Distribute as even as you can, but it doesn't have to be smooth. Now, pop this into the freezer to get the ice cream good and frozen again.
Make the chocolate-cashew topping, combining the choc chips, cashew butter, non-dairy milk, etc, and let cool a bit. Yum, this is so thick and rich!

Once that ice cream is frozen again, pour the topping over and tip back and forth to cover - again it doesn't have to perfectly cover - looks pretty a little uneven. Back to the freezer it goes until you're ready to serve.

Then, when you want to serve, get this pie out for 5 mins or so to soften enough to cut - 'cause it's a bugger to cut very frozen! (and believe me, I know. Usually too impatient to wait, I find myself trying to hack into it.)

Then, sit back and ahhhhhhh enjoy! You know what this pie reminds me of?... especially with the vanilla ice cream option...? those Dairy Queen ice cream cakes... with the choc layer, vanilla layer, and then those choc crumbs in the centre. I never realized it when I tested the pie for Vive, but after making it with the vanilla ice cream this week, it brought back memories of those DQ cakes....

with that,
I might just have to change my mind. Think I like the vanilla version best of all.

24 comments:

aimee said...

Oh, Yum. Really Yummy! I can't believe I've never made this (and it'll have to wait a little longer because, unlike some people-hint, hint-I just can't eat ice cream when it's 4 degrees F outside!). I really can't wait for Spring! Thanks for the reminder, Dreena!

MeloMeals said...

Wow. this looks too good to be true!

Anonymous said...

Oh my heavens above. Just got the girls together to run to the store to pick a few dinner items and now I need to add a few. I might have to eat by the fire to feel like it is summer time. IT LOOKS SO GOOD!!!! thank you

Michelle.S said...

very inspiring! I see an ice cream pie in my very-near future!

Carrie™ said...

OMG!! Why have I never made this?? It might have been the cashew that didn't appeal to me. Remember - the girl who likes all nuts except cashews? Well, guess what? We got Chinese take-out one night and my veggie dish had cashews on top. I ate them and liked them!! Woo-Hoo!! Jim would totally go for this. Chocolate? Ice cream? As The Cure says "Just Like Heaven".

Anonymous said...

Happy anniversary, Dreena! Congratulations on 14 years (which, in the 21st century, is like a silver anniversary for our parents!).

Thanks for reminding me about this fabulous recipe in Vive. I'm pulling my book off the shelf next week and going to give it a go. YUM.

The Little Mama said...

Mmmm. That looks so good, I may have to make it in the very near future. Mmmm...

Anonymous said...

Ok, I made this last night and it was just sooooo good! It does remind me of dairy queen in a much kinder way.
Happy Anniversary!!!

urban vegan said...

Happy Anniversary--here's to true love. That pie also looks like the embodiment of true love. Here's to many more happy, healthy years together.

XO

Anonymous said...

Happy Anniversary!

The Veggie Vixen

Michelle said...

kaeden & i were having a conversation today about how some people think that it's hard to be vegan.... and he says "pfff.. it's not hard to be vegan.. you just have to eat vegan food!" duh! everything is so simple when you are 6, huh. wish more people would clue in.

happy anniversary, yummy lookin pie!

funwithyourfood said...

aww congrats on 14 years! that is amazing... but honestly with how you cook, i can see why hehe

jk

Teddy

Melissa said...

just when I finally get my wedding diet together, you post this. Hahaha.

Happy Anniversary!

Ashasarala said...

Congratulations! It's so wonderful that you're so happy after 14 years of marriage. Most people would be like, 'God help me, I've been married 14 years!' Haha

Anyway, that looks incredibly yummy. Actually, it looks like the perfect dessert on a hot summer's day. :)

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

14 years??? that's WONDERFUL!!! I wish you and your husband at LEAST 14 more years together; or better yet, a lifetime together!! :0)

that Cashew-Chocolate Crumb Ice Cream Pie? perfect for the occasion. delish!

xxx said...

That's maybe an off topic comment (and you do not need to publish this) - but I just purchased your cookbook (EDBV) a few days ago through a big online book store (Europe, Germany, buch.de, they always delivered all books quickly and without difficulties until now) and they say it will take up to 6 weeks for it to be here? ...I know that some books from the USA may need up to 3 weeks to arrive in Europe (I order books from different countries sometimes, if they are out of print or not even available here), but 6 weeks sounds like they would actually send a guy in a boat to the USA and back, ok, earnestly, is the reprint of your book already sold out or delayed? If you do not know any reason for that, I will try to contact the bookstore again, maybe that's their mistake *sigh*

So far I will try the free sample recipes from your cooking page :)

Saulo Alencastre said...

Nice work. Does any of your book features onion and garlic and white sugar-free vegan recipes only?

thanks

Dreena said...

Aimee, you wouldn't be suggesting me, now would you? :) You've got it right, there truly is no off-season for me with ice cream... summer has no relation to my ice cream intake!

Yeah, Carrie! You know, I've heard it over and over (and experienced it myself) that our palates do change, and so maybe you have now come to appreciate cashews. Bonus for you! I swear, some of the best vegan foods include cashews or cashew butter!

Michelle, out of the mouth of babes, huh. Ohhh, were it that simple.

Teddy, he he, I'll remind him of that. Like that one!!

((congrats Melissa!!!! Yay!!!))

Ashasarala, thanks, that's funny... and believe me, we have our days just like any couple, but I really am a lucky gal to have met my man, I don't mind saying.

Reiskeks, ed&bv did sell out quicker than we expected, and so the reprint was ordered as quick as possible... but, it does take time and so there have been long delays showing on amazon and other online stores. After reading your comment, I e-mailed my publisher for an update about the timeline for the reprint. The shipment of the new print should arrive locally on Friday, and then the books will be quickly rerouted to the online stores such as amazon, etc. The delivery status will then change on amazon and other online sources, so hopefully the delivery estimate will improve on buch.de as well. Check back with buch.de for the delivery status sometime next week - let's hope the delay will be lessened by then. Thanks for being so patient, btw!

Saulo, all of my recipes use unrefined sugar (with the exception of one or two recipes where you can use an optional ingredient such as vegan white chocolate chips, which use white sugar). It has always been a priority for me to use unrefined sugars, including dry sweeteners as well as using things like maple syrup, agave nectar, and brown rice syrup. Most of my baked goods/desserts also don't include white flour. And, because I usually prefer the texture of spelt, oat, and barley flours to w/w pastry flour - you will often see these flours in my baked goods, though you can sub w/w flours with some modifications (usually using a slightly lesser amount of w/w pastry flour). As for onions and garlic, they are often key flavor building blocks, so I certainly use them most of the time. Do you have an allergy to these foods? If so, do you normally modify recipes to omit onion and garlic, and what items do you use to help replace the flavors?

(thanks for your anniversary wishes, everyone...)

Teresa said...

Happy Anniversary Dreena! 14 years is quite the accomplishment, and you sure knew how to celebrate correctly!

I have a quick question. I'm making the sun-dried tomato pesto from EDBV but I only have the actual dry ones (not packed in oil)- can I still use those? If I do what would the amount be the same? Thanks!

xxx said...

Thank you so much for the quick answer! Oh, hopefully it will be here much sooner, I'm so curious how it all looks like :D Hubby is not a vegan or even a vegetarian and sometimes a bit doubtful if I really eat well, so NOW I'll show him, ha-ha :D

mr.udders said...

If you're so afraid of blogging in 14 years time, why don't you quit now then?

Doofus.

Dreena said...

Thanks Teresa. For the pesto, I've always used the sd tomatoes that are packed in oil. It should still work fine, but you'll need to do a couple of things. 1st, reconstitute the tomatoes in hot water until they plump up to the 1 1/8 - 1 1/4 cup measure. 2nd, add extra olive oil to the pesto. Though I drain the oil-packed tomatoes, there is still oil left clinging and absorbed into each. So, when blending, I figure you could add another 1 1/2 tbsp of oil. Oh, actually, there's a 3rd thing. Since the oil-packed tomatoes have a saltiness, add a few more pinches of salt to the blend, but not too much - you can then add more to the pesto when tossing with the pasta, taste test and see if it needs that heightening of flavor with a touch more salt. Let me know if it works out well for you!

Mr. Udders, or is it doofus?... it was a joke, but if you want me to quit, why don't you blog surf elsewhere.

Teresa said...

Wow Dreena- thanks for getting back to me so quickly. The advice was great and the pesto was DEE-LISH! I can't believe I waited so long to make it, especially since I am a huge pesto fan. And I haven't had much pesto since going vegan- the cheese is so unnecessary. Thanks for the recipe, it sure is awesome!

Robin_upto_nogood said...

Happy Anniversary Dreena and Hubby~
I love being married and will celebrate my 10th this year! I have tried one of your ice cream pies recipes before and loved it so I will have to try this one as well~ Seems you are getting quite a large following. Congrats! Keep on experimenting so we can all look forward to another book sometime in the near future. All of your books sit on my counter so I can just open them up and search for a recipe to suit the day. Good to hear from you!!

Robin