Cool Homemade Summer Treat Sweetened With Stevia
Many of us like to beat summer’s heat by enjoying a couple scoops of ice cream, and if the ice cream is sweetened with stevia we don’t have to worry about ingesting a lot of added sugar.
Stevia is an herb that sweetens food or drink without giving us calories to burn, and it does not elevate blood glucose levels. It’s the perfect taste bud tweaker for people with diabetes, and those trying to lose weight.
An increasing number of food products are now being sweetened with stevia, but if you cannot find stevia sweetened ice cream at your grocers, it’s easy to whip up a batch at home.
Stevia Sweetened Ice Cream
This recipe is for those who do not own an ice cream maker. You just need the ingredients, a mixer (or spoon and elbow-grease), and your freezer.
If you have an ice cream maker, use the manufacturer’s instructions for mixing the ingredients.
You will need:
-
1-2 eggs
2 cups of cream (heavy or light, according to your preference)
1 cup milk (use skim, soy, or any other type of milk you prefer)
1/2 to 2/3 teaspoon stevia powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or other flavoring)
Preparation
- Put all the ingredients in a large plastic or metal bowl and mix thoroughly; let the mixture cool in the fridge for at least an hour - or until fully chilled. Then, put it in the freezer for 30 to 40 minutes. The outer surface will freeze, but the mixture will remain soft on the inside.
- Do the following "mix-freeze" cycle three times: beat the mixture manually or with a mixer until it becomes smooth again, then return it to the freezer for another 30 to 40 minutes. Before the third mix-freeze cycle, put in the vanilla extract (or other flavoring) plus any fruit or nuts you may wish to add. After the third mix-freeze cycle, the ice cream should be thick enough to keep the flavoring from settling at the bottom.
- Serve and enjoy, or store in your freezer (handmade ice cream generally freezes very hard; you may need to let stored servings thaw a while before digging in).
The fat, carbs, and calories per serving will depend on the type of milk and cream products you use.
Source: Steviapoint
Photi credit: Connie Ma