Mexican Chocolate-Coconut Ice Cream

Preparing for the arrival of house guests today means cataloging the list of dietary restrictions in advance. One is low-carb, and that one can’t have dairy and shellfish, and the other can’t have gluten, etc. I actually relish this challenge in trying to create a luscious and delicious weekend menu despite it all. I created this menu to get around a dairy restriction when I was hell-bent on making this Mexican Chocolate Ice Cream that I had been obsessing about. I feel like this recipe was a raging success because a.) you couldn’t tell it was dairy-free and b.) it didn’t make it through the weekend. The key is use coconut milk but to create a classic custard with it, and this makes the ice cream super-creamy.

Mexican Chocolate-Coconut Ice Cream
1 14 oz can of light coconut milk (but full-fat would be even more rich)
2 eggs
3 tablespoons Kalua
1/4 cup agave nectar
3.5 ounces of 70% dark semi-sweet chocolate
1/8 cup cocoa nibs
Procedure:
1. Heat the coconut milk, chocolate bar (broken into pieces), Kalua, and agave in a double boiler. Remove from heat once little bubbles form around the edges. Do not let boil. Reduce the heat to low.
2. Whisk the eggs together in a separate bowl.
3. Stir the milk into the egg a half cup at a time, so the eggs don’t curdle.
4. Pour back into the double boiler and turn heat to simmer. Whip until mixture thickens.
5. Chill the bowl by setting it in a bowl of ice water and stir the custard to cool to room temperature
6. Put custard into the ice cream maker until chilled and put in freezer for a couple of hours until set.