Vegan chocolate ice cream: an experiment with Aquafaba

The other day, I was on a Recipe on the internet, which Aquafaba uses to make vegan chocolate ice cream and my curiosity was aroused. I do not live vegan, but I am always open for experiments. I don't know about you, but I hadn't heard or read about Aquafaba before. So I really wanted to try this ice cream recipe.

Aquafaba is a vegan alternative for beaten egg white and as such has been used in vegan cooking for several years. It is the cooking water of legumes. Hence the name: aqua (= water) and faba (= bean). This is my first test with aquafaba and I can confirm that the whipping and snowing process is not much different from the process with chicken egg white. I will come to the taste and consistency at the end of this article.

ingredients vegan chocolate ice cream

4 portions

• 120 g chickpea liquid = Aquafaba
  (Drained water from a glass of chickpeas of about 425g)
• 20 g icing sugar
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 80 g vegan chocolate (I used 70%ige)
• 1 pinch of salt

Preparation

• Melt the chocolate at medium heat over a bain-marie.
• Strain the chickpeas and collect the water in a mixing bowl (= Aquafaba). The bowl must be clean and free of grease.

• Add a pinch of salt.
• Using a hand mixer, beat the Aquafaba at the highest setting until it looks and feels as stiff as beaten egg whites (approx. 5-10 minutes). Here you don't have to be afraid, as the snow only gets stiffer with time and there is no critical point to pass.

• Remove the chocolate from the bain-marie and let it cool down a little during the next steps.
• Add the icing sugar to the whipped aquafaba and whip again with the mixer.
• Sieve the cocoa powder onto the snow and fold in. As with beaten egg whites, do not stir, but work in from bottom to top.

• Add the melted and cooled chocolate and fold in until everything is well mixed. The snow is now clearly falling together.

• In freezer compartment Let it freeze for about 8 hours. That's the option I chose this time.
• Alternative: the Ice cream machine prepare and pre-cool for a few minutes depending on the model. Switch on the stirrer and add the ice cream mass (duration approx. 30 minutes).

How do I judge my self made vegan chocolate ice cream?

You can't complain about its appearance and it is very easy to cut out balls from the frozen mass. I deliberately write "cut out", because the structure reminds more of frozen mousse au chocolat. That's why the consistency is also surprisingly loose and light.

The ice cream is also nice and chocolaty and melts quickly on the tongue. However, I miss the creaminess of a conventional chocolate ice cream, as the recipe naturally does without milk.

Unfortunately a slightly mealy taste remains after it has melted in the mouth. Probably because of the starch of the chickpeas. But this may be perceived differently from person to person.

For my taste this recipe is unfortunately not a real alternative to chocolate ice cream with milk. However, if you prefer a very loose, easily melting ice cream, this recipe is just right.

In any case, it is a great way to make good use of the draining water from legumes, which otherwise always ends up in the drain.

If you have also tried this recipe, I would be very happy to hear more opinions about this variation of vegan chocolate ice cream.