Juneberry Gelato

City-Kid Review:

Yum. Can I have some more?

I love berry season.

Did you know, in New York City,  it is fairly easy go berrying?

Over the years, we have harvested mulberries, raspberries as well Service – or June – berries. I must say I am (still) very sad they cut down the old mulberry tree on Governor’s Island. That was a wonderful source of deliciously wild mulberries.

Guess what we made with our first crop of this year’s Juneberries?

Juneberry Gelato.
(I am beside myself, I really am)

Of course, you can make it just as easily with blueberries.

Just so you know, this recipe is vegan. It is adapted from the amazing book: Icy, Creamy, Healthy, Sweet: 75 Recipes for Dairy-Free Ice Cream, Fruit-Forward Ice Pops, Frozen Yogurt, Granitas, Slushies, Shakes, and More by Chrisitine Chitnis.

However, I made mine entirely in a vitamix so I skipped the heating step and it came out okay. If you use a blender or a food processor I would include the step in which they heat up the coconut milk with the arrowroot flour. I’ve included it at the bottom of the post.

Here goes:

For the gelato base:
2 cups of fresh Juneberries
1 Tbsl arrowroot flour
1 13.5oz tin of coconut
1 Tblsp Lemon juice
I Tsp Vanilla Extract
pinch salt
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup agave (adjust to taste)
Optl: 1-2 Tblsps of crushed cacao nibs or chocolate crumbs
Optl: Dash Rosewater
Optl: Dash flaxseed oil
For the Cashew Cream:
1 cup water
1 cup raw cashew pieces
pinch salt (maybe 1/4 tsp)

1.In your high-speed blender add the water, the cashews and the salt. Blend until smooth. Pour into bowl and set aside.

(I didn’t rinse out the machine as it will all be mixed together in the end)
2. Put all of the gelato ingredients (except chocolate or cacao nibs) together into the high-speed blender. Blend until it starts to warm up a bit.

3. Add the Cashew cream, and blend until smooth.

3. Refrigerate for a few hours – at least two.

4. Put all of the ingredients into an ice cream maker and churn for about 40 minutes or so, until it is thick and creamy. When it is nearly complete, add the chocolate or cacao.

5. Serve. Sprinkle on some extra chocolate or cacao nibs. And try hard not to smile.

2a- If you don’t have a high-speed blender, this is what you do:
Take a couple of spoonfuls of coconut milk and mix with the arrowroot flour until you get a smooth slurry. Combine this is a saucepan with the rest of the coconut milk, the vanilla, salt and sweeteners. Heat gently, over a low heat, until the honey is dissolved, about 3-4 minutes. Then add to the berries in the blender. Add the cashew creme, and blend until berries are broken up. You can decide how much you would like berry pieces of if you would like them to break up completely.

Need to Knows:

You can check out my post on serviceberries for the nutritional information about these fragrant berries.

Top-Tip

Serviceberries freeze well but they do lose some of their sweet fragrance.

Do you have a favorite berry recipe? Please post in the comments below.

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