I had read that some vegans were using sweet potato in ice cream, but never tried such a thing. I makes sense, in the way that using banana makes sense. Fleshy, starchy fruit. Given that I'm really digging sweet potato these days, I decided to finally give this a try. Guys, this was pretty darn nice. As in I ate both bowls I had churned that morning, one after the other. It is creamy, dense, and a touch chewy - attributes I happen to like in ice cream. As documented here, I wonder if this might not be too much starch for other people's tastes, so I might recommend that a first-time try start with less potato (2/3-3/4 of the amount I used) and also skip the rice protein. The result might have a more "normal" taste and texture. Those calories could be invested into the addition of some fat to round out the recipe a bit more. That's going to be 1.2 But frankly, I'd make this again as is. It would be nice if I could let this sit around in the freezer long enough to see how it hardens over time, so I'll probably have to.
Sweet Potato Base Prototype 1.1
Total batch weight: 1020 (3 servings)
Calories per serving: 280
Macros: 2.7g fat, 54g carb (16g fiber), 18.1g protein
Dry mix
60g erythritol
40g polydextrose
6g (1/4 c) granulated sucralose + dash stevia to taste
30g plain soy protein isolate
25g plain rice protein powder
1/2 t guar-xanthan gum blend (5:1 ratio) - I'd scale down to 1/4 t next time
1/8 t salt or more to taste
Spice blend: cinnamon, ginger, allspice, clove, cardamom, nutmeg, mace (+ hint grated tonka bean)
Wet mix
400g unsweetened plain cashew milk (+ a hint extra to mash potato)
4g liquid lecithin
21g maple syrup
15g vegetable glycerin
416g sweet potato flesh, baked and mashed without peel (yield from a 556g raw tuber)
1/2 T vanilla extract
2 t maple extract
1/2 t butter (vegan) extract
1/4 t rum extract
Bake and prepare the mashed potato using the method of your choice (I nuked it whole with my microwave's sensor cook and it was amazingly uniform). Scoop out the flesh and mash (unless you plan on using a blender later on).
Stir the dry mix together.
Whisking vigorously, combine the wet mix, except the potato and extracts, over medium-high heat. Whisk in the dry ingredients into the wet mix. Heat, whisking occasionally, until the mixture is warm (30-40C is good) to the touch. Remove from the heat, combine with mashed potato, and let cool to room temperature before adding the extracts.
Note:
- Following my observation of churning issues with too large a batch of the Roasted Peanut prototype, I weighted out 2 servings and churned those. (I don't know how well my ice cream maker does with a tiny batch, will report back when I try to churn a single serving) - I cranked up the protein because I can, but you can taste it. I'd suggest skipping the rice protein, which is coarser and more noticeable, and working up from there.
- Looking forward to combining this recipe with an upcoming higher-fat base prototype.