Don't you love the way rhubarb ripple sounds? Vegan ice cream is a tricky beast. A lot of them rely on coconut milk and oil, which makes every flavor taste, well, like coconut. Except, there is a Van Leeuwen ice cream near my apartment and their vegan flavors never taste too coconutty – unless they are meant to. So I did a little (very little) sleuthing to figure out their secret. Turns out they have a cookbook and their secret is a combination of cashews for chew and cocoa butter and coconut for richness. The combination is not entirely neutral in flavor, you can still taste the individual componenets if you think about it, but the texture is amazingly smooth and rich. I decided to play up the cocoa butter (white chocolate!) flavor in this recipe which pairs beautifully with rhubarb and makes a delightfully springy plant based treat.

There are a couple of spots left in my Fall Paris Workshop with Olaiya Land! We and I had such a long waitlist for our Paris workshop this Spring (thank you!) that we added another workshop this September 20-24. The format will be pretty much the same as the Spring version - think lots of pastry, delicious wine and cheese, market visits, prop shopping, and some solid photo, styling, and editing lessons in the city of light. This trip is for anyone looking to build their photography and styling skills (all levels welcome) and enjoy lots of beautiful food in one of the most amazing cities in the world. I am so excited to explore Paris in the fall, I am dreaming of the markets already!

Details this way!

White Chocolate Rhubarb Ripple Ice Cream (Vegan)

makes about 1 quart

ice cream base adapted from Van Leeuwen Ice Cream

The key to the texture of this ice cream is to make sure the mixture is completely smooth and emulsified at every step so don't skip on the blending steps. Also, the ice cream base is wonderful on its own or with a bit of chopped chocolate folded in.

Roasted Rhubarb Compote

1/2 (225g) pound thin rhubarb stalks

1/2 cup (50g) granulated sugar

juice of 1/2 lemon

Vegan White Chocolate Ice Cream

1/2 cup (75g) raw, unsalted cashews

1 cup (200g) granulated sugar

1/2 cup (100g) cocoa butter

3 tablespoons coconut oil

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/4 cups full fat coconut milk

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped

For the compote

Heat oven to 375ºF.

Slice the rhubarb into 2-3 inch lengths. Toss it in a baking dish with the sugar, and lemon juice. Roast until soft and juicy. Blend until smooth. Cool completely before using in the ice cream. It should be thick and jammy, if it seems liquidy cook it on the stovetop for a few minutes over medium heat to reduce.

For the ice cream

Cover the cashews with water and let soak overnight. Drain and rinse the cashews then add them to a blender with 1/2 cup water. Puree until completely smooth.

Combine the sugar with 1/4 cup water and cook over medium-high heat until the sugar is dissolved. Remove the pan from the heat then whisk in the cocoa butter, coconut oil, and salt until melted and smooth.

Add the sugar mixture, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean seeds into the blender and puree until smooth. Refrigerate until cooled completely then churn in an ice cream machine according to manufacturers instructions. Spoon 1/3 of the ice cream mixture into a freezer safe container, dollop 2 tablespoons of the rhubarb compote over the top and swirl with a knife, repeat with more ice cream and rhubarb until you have used all of the ice cream. You will have some rhubarb compote left over. Cover and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.

I dusted off the ol film camera a few weeks ago and got to shooting film again. It's a nice change of pace for me, to take the time to shoot analog, to have take my film to the lab and wait to see what comes out. My camera is old and fussy, I've finally come to terms with the fact that the light meter is broken, but I am stubborn so I haven't taken it in to be repaired...I like the break from the immediacy of social media. I like that I can't (or just don't) take 20 frames of the same thing. My lab is also right next to Superiority Burger so it's a pretty good excuse to swing through for a veggie burger and Arnold Palmer.

Sure, there is some dust on the scans and the photos aren't perfect, but I love them anyway so I am posting them here along with a recipe for a super simple olive oil loaf cake that is the sort of cake that gets better with age. We enjoyed it over the course of about a week, thin slice by thin slice, and I think it really peaked in flavor on about day three. Feel free to sub lemon or lime for the grapefruit - Meyer lemon would, of course, be delicious and if you are feeling lazy, you don't really have to make the glaze. Although, I'm a sucker for citrus glaze so I'd never skip it. The candied grapefruit peel is very optional though.

Some announcements!

There are only TWO spots left for my food and photography workshop in PARIS with Olaiya Land - who inspired this cake - We are going to have so much fun, eat so much delicious food, and learn so much about photography and editing. You will walk away from the workshop with a full heart and belly, and the skills to take your blog, social media accounts, or casual photography to the NEXT LEVEL. Please join us!

World class food stylist and author Susan Spungen and I are teaming up for another workshop in the Hamptons this JUNE all about STRAWBERRIES! It will be open for registration next week. Make sure you are signed up for my newsletter (over in the sidebar) to get early access to registration.

Grapefruit Olive Oil Cake

Makes one 9x5x3 or 10x4x3-inch loaf

Cake

1 cup (200g) sugar

1 3/4 cups (225g) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup (175ml) fruity olive oil

1/4 cup (55g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon finely grated grapefruit zest

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup (240ml) whole-milk kefir or buttermilk, at room temperature

Glaze

2 cups confectioners sugar

2-3 tablespoons grapefruit juice

candied grapefruit peel to garnish

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 350ºF butter and flour a 9x5x3 or 10x4x3 inch baking pan.

Combine the sugar, and zest and rub the zest into the sugar until well combined and fragrant. Add the olive oil, eggs, and melted butter and whisk. Add the buttermilk or kefir. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine. You want it to be well mixed, don't go crazy, a few small lumps of flour are ok.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, tap it gently on the counter to release any air bubbles, and bake until the cake is puffed and golden and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 20 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan to cool completely.

When the cake is cool, make the glaze. Whisk the confectioners sugar with grapefruit juice, adding a bit at a time until the glaze is thick but pourable. Pour the glaze over the top and garnish with candied grapefruit peel if desired. Let the glaze set for a few minutes before slicing.