Chickpea ‘Snickers’ Style Ice Cream – Plant Based

This ice cream has a very unusual ingredient—canned chickpeas! Hear me out with this, as there is method to my madness. Chickpeas are very creamy (think hummus) and also contain protein, fibre, phytoestrogens and minerals so they make the perfect plant based ice cream base. Mixed with dates and peanut butter, the final result is a soft and creamy ice cream. The maca gives a malty taste. There is an ideal freezing time of around 8-12 hours after which time it can set a little hard. See end note!

Ingredients

1 tin chickpeas, rinsed and well drained.

1 tin full fat coconut milk (around 400g)

200g Medjool dates, stones removed

125g peanut butter

1 tablespoon boiling water

50g cacao nibs

50g salted peanuts

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 teaspoon Maca powder

Optional:

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Method

1. Add the Medjool dates, boiling water and peanut butter to a food processor and process until it becomes soft and gooey. Remove a 50g spoonful and set to one side. You will use this for your caramel chunks later.
2. Add the chickpeas, coconut milk, maca and maple syrup (if using) to the food processor with the Medjool date and peanut mixture and process on high speed for 60 seconds until creamy and very smooth. Pour into a glass dish with a lid.
3. Sprinkle over the cacao nibs, peanuts, and then add smaller teaspoons of the date and peanut gooey mixture. This will form the caramel chunks in the finished ice cream. Fold together carefully and freeze in a glass dish with lid. Leave for 8-12 hours to set.

If you miss the magic serving window, just take the ice cream out of the freezer and leave for 5-15 minutes to defrost slightly, away from heat or direct light. This will soften the ice cream enough to scoop into balls using an ice cream scoop.