Kulfi! Cashew Almond Oats Ice cream! Vegan

Yay for Kulfi! This Indian ice cream can be frozen as is and not necessarily whipped, it doesnt get rock solid hard. You could use an ice cream maker, which would make it fluffier. I fluffed it a little for the first 2 hours. I added a chocolatey layer the next day on the remaining icecream, which is totally optional.

• Soak cashews and almonds overnight (I used 1/3 cup each). Nuke them in the microwave for a minute with a little water. You can also soak them for an hour and then nuke them in the microwave for 2-3 minutes. or blanch/cook in hot water for 2 minutes.
• Puree the cashews and almonds with about 1/3 – 1/2 cup warm-(more towards hot) water to make a creamy puree. I did not peel the almonds, you can peel them if your blender doesnt puree the mix smooth enough with the peel.
• Add some quick cooking oats( 1/4 cup), 5-6 tablespoons raw sugar or jaggery(depending on the sweetness wanted) and a Tablespoon of softened vegan butter or high fat oil, 1/2 teaspoon saffron, 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder and blend again. Add a little water if needed to get a thick puree consistency.
• This puree now can be frozen as is, in popsicles or any container, or put in the icecream maker.
• Cooking Step: I heated the puree in a teaspoon vegan butter over low heat, stirring almost continuously, till it just about bubbled. This will thicken the puree even more. You can add a teaspoon of arrowroot/cornstarch powder mixed in a little water, to thicken it further.( the cooking adds a bit of a sticky oat texture. If you dont like stickyness, skip this step) Use icecream maker, or freeze in covered container or as popsicles.
• I added some cocoa powder to some of this mix the next day and made a thin chocolatey layer on top, just for fun. It is totally optional. 🙂 The saffron cardamom by itself taste much better!
• made some Popsicles twice without the cooking step. A bigger container as in the first picture, with the cooking step. Both came out creamy and thick!