Lemon Ice Cream
09 Mar 2011 Leave a Comment
Ha ha! It’s funny that I haven’t written on this blog for months and now I am going to write about ice cream…that is what my last post was about! Apparently, I haven’t gotten my fill of it yet. 
Someone asked me the other day, since I am researching new (to me) ways of eating, which diet I am on now and which diet that I would think is the best for her? When I was younger, I was pretty black and white….”One Size Fits All” kind of mentality. Life experience has taught me that when it comes to health and nutrition there is also a gray area involved. Some rules of nutrition are across the board, such as “Twinkies are bad for everyone,” but even foods that are generally considered “healthy” are not necessarily healthy for everyone. For instance, most would say a strawberry is healthy, but if you are allergic to strawberries, this fruit is extremely unhealthy for you.
What I have learned through the years is to listen to my body. When we get a disease or fall ill, there are usually symptoms leading up to the illness that could have “clued us in” to what was about to happen. The trick is to learn how to listen to the symptoms that your body is giving you. Many people recognize that if they have a tickle in the back of their throat, a cold is coming on. Once we recognize a symptom, we can do things to reverse the outcome (more sleep, less sugar, etc.)
I used to lead a weight loss support group, and I would teach people how to eat to keep their blood sugar balanced. When I was asked “which diet are you on now?” I was wondering if the person felt that I was abandoning all that I had taught for so many years. Quite the contrary. I believe that life is a process, and we are continually changing and growing. Our bodies are continually changing. What worked for me nutritionally when I was 25, may not work nutritionally for me when I am 35. However, that doesn’t mean we have to abandon all that we have learned…we just build upon it.
Our family believes that God has made our bodies to repair themselves when given the proper nutrition. Sometimes this is a slower process than popping a pill, but in my opinion, a much better way. Many times medications just suppress symptoms but don’t get to the root of the problem. My family’s goal is to try to get to the root of our symptoms so that our bodies can repair themselves. (Did you know that because of cell regeneration you have a completely new body every 7 years?!) We believe in eating foods that will build up the immune system and make us stronger. Sometimes symptoms pop up and we need to “tweak” the process.
Just to share a bit where I’m coming from, I will tell you that I have struggled with adrenal fatigue for over 2 years. In the beginning I wasn’t even aware that I was, I just knew that something wasn’t right. (What, isn’t it normal to lay on the couch 8 hours of the day?!) With this came extreme fatigue, mood swings (sorry for anyone that I may have offended!), anxiety, weight gain, brain fog, general feeling of not caring about anything…you get the drift. Through prayer, lifestyle changes, diet changes and supplementation (vitamins) specific to my problems I have been able to overcome this ugly beast…except for the unexplained weight gain. Time to “tweak” the diet.
My husband is going “gluten free” for the time being. This means no wheat, barley or rye products. I am going “grain free” (5 weeks so far) which means on top of no wheat, barley or rye, also no other grains (rice, corn, oats, or other less known grains). One of our sons is “wheat free” at home but we haven’t put this into practice at school yet. The other two kids will await food sensitivity testing to find out what their fate is. Basically what this means, is that we’ve just cut down on the amount of bread and pasta products that we eat. The recipes that I will be sharing will fit into these categories. It is our plan to heal our gut (70% of our immune system is located in the gut) so we can enjoy these foods, in moderation, once again.
All this to say, the focus of this blog is to share things that our family is learning along the way, to hopefully help others that may be experiencing the same thing, or even different obstacles…just so you know that there is a way to feel better and that all of those aches and pains that we have aren’t necessarily a sign of “getting old.” (Who’s old?!)
What does this have to do with ice cream? Absolutely nothing! So, let’s move on to the recipe!
The technical name for this ice cream is “Anti-Bacterial, Anti-Fungal, Anti-Viral, Gluten Free, Probiotic Lemon Ice Cream” but I didn’t think most people could remember that so we’ll just call it:
Lemon Ice Cream
3 cans coconut milk (I use Thai brand)
2 cups milk kefir *
1 cup raw honey
2 tsp vanilla extract
Juice of 2 lemons
2-4 tsp lemon extract (to taste)
5 drops yellow food coloring **
Mix all ingredients together well and place in your ice cream maker according to instructions. Eat immediately or store in the freezer in an air tight container.
This is actually a double batch, but if I make a single batch then I have 1/2 can of coconut milk left over and then I usually forget it in the fridge and it spoils. If you are not as absent-minded as me, go ahead and cut the recipe in half. I also like to make a double batch because it goes so fast in our house.
For fun, sometimes I sprinkle poppy seeds on the top. Yum! I just got some chia seeds in the mail today, so maybe I’ll try them on top next time.
* If you have a dairy sensitivity or do not have milk kefir on hand, you may substitute another can of coconut milk for the kefir.
** I cringe every time I put food coloring in something, but it really is a mind game…if it looks yellow it tastes more like lemon. If you have a better way of making it yellow please share in the comments below!
