My Account
With Christmas just around the corner, you are probably stocking your cupboards with all sorts of treats. Sometimes there are so many Christmas cakes, chocolates and candy canes about that they last well into the New Year. You may get to the point when you can’t stomach the thought of eating another mince pie, but don’t throw them away. Use them instead to flavour ice cream. It’s super easy to do, and you can stash it away in the freezer until you fancy it.
You can make as much or as little as you want – just vary the amount of ice cream you use. We recommend using a plain flavoured ice cream, such as vanilla, as you will be adding lots of goodies to flavour it.
Christmas Ice Cream
Method • Select your add-ins. Look through your fridge and cupboards to see what items you have leftover that you can use to flavour your ice cream. Fillings can include crumbled Christmas cake, pudding, mince pies; crushed candy canes, biscuits or meringues; chocolate pieces; bruised berries or other leftover fruit or nuts. A good ratio is ½-1 cup of add-ins per 2 cups (500ml) of ice cream. You can also use liquids for flavouring such as berry or chocolate sauce, or leftover cream or custard. Use ¼ cup of liquid per 500ml ice cream.
• Soften the ice cream. The easiest way to do this is to leave it at room temperature for 10-15 minutes. If you’re short on time you can use the microwave, but be careful to do it gradually so you don’t end up with a milkshake • Mix it all together. Place your add-ins into the bowl and mix. You may want to mix through the solid items before adding any sauces or liquids. Make sure you combine everything well • Eat or refreeze. Depending on your preference and how soft your ice cream now is, you may want to eat it straight away. Otherwise, get your ice cream into the freezer to firm up. You can return the ice cream to the same tub, freeze it in a lined loaf tin for easy slicing for ice cream sandwiches, or pour it into moulds to make popsicles. Return to the freezer for a couple of hours.
If you wish, once frozen, dip the popsicles in melted chocolate and then return to the freezer to allow them to set before serving.
For more information on freezing Christmas leftovers, visit the Love Food Hate Waste website.
