Dessert First: Unframed Ice Cream

Dessert First: Unframed Ice Cream

You can’t buy happiness but you can buy ice cream and that’s the same thing. One of my FAVOURITE sayings of all time. After ‘Forget Love, I’d rather fall in chocolate’, which makes it my second favourite saying of all time but let’s not get technical here. Can you remember a time when you went out for ice cream and were sad about it?! NEVER. Ice cream = happiness. And although I love making my own happiness, nothing quite beats going out for a scoop of ice cream in a sugary waffle cone on a warm summer’s Sunday with the sun beating on your face.

My ice cream moments are pretty sacred – I have one or two spots where I get my favourite scoop and I am loyal to them because there is nothing worse than trying a new spot and getting disappointed. I’ve dubbed it: calorie regret. When you want to call the manager over and demand that someone give you back the calories you just wasted on that sub-par chocolate brownie! And so I stick to the places I can trust. Except a few Wednesdays ago when I threw caution to the wind and allowed someone new to scoop my ice cream (that sounds a lot dirtier than I intended!).

Which is how I met Yann Rey at Unframed Ice Cream in Kloof Street. Yann is one of those effortlessly cool people who you immediately want to be friends with (I promise it wasn’t because he owns an ice cream shop although that briefly crossed my mind to be a convenient factor). In typical Capetonian style, he greeted me wearing slip slops and his cap on backwards like he’d just come from a surf – he’s a laid-back kinda guy. But when he starts talking about ice cream, he gets as excited as I do about baking. Waxing lyrical about ice crystal structure, flavour balance and his fancy gelato machine from Italy; I could’ve stood listening to him talk about ice cream for days (provided my ice cream cone was topped up sporadically, of course).

I would cross my heart and hope to die that this is THE best ice cream in Cape Town, if not South Africa. Forget the normal flavours everyone else is doing, Unframed is all about pushing boundaries (hence the name) so expect to have to choose between flavours like Grapefruit and Black Pepper, NuttiKrust, Dirty Sea Salt Caramel, Matcha Green, Burnt White Chocolate and my personal favourite, Jasmine and Lemongrass. Yann’s ice cream recipes were developed by his partner, ice cream master Stephane Auge, who’s won the Meilleur Ouvrier De France for ice cream (basically, like a Michelin star) so expect delicately-flavoured, uber creamy ice cream with the perfect balance.

Vegans and vegetarians, you’re also welcome here! None of the ice creams are made from heavy egg-based custard – coconut milk and nut milks are used in many of the flavours, meaning everyone gets a scoop of happiness. And by scoop I mean tasting platter – don’t even try and choose a single flavour on your first visit. Just go ahead and order the tasting platter for R75 and have all 5. That’s what I did when I visited Unframed twice in one week. Jip, it was so good, that I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

The toppings! I almost forgot about the toppings! No sprinkles here people, this is serious ice cream business. Choose from toppings like dried white mulberries, mini coconut macaroons, biscotti, raw date caramel, dirty sea salt caramel (which I assume got the name from the dirty thoughts it gives you) and caramelised nuts. What are you still hanging around for? Go get your scoop on!

TIP Unframed is open in Kloof street from 11am to 11pm, every day. Prices: R32 for one scoop, R54 for two, R65 for three, or R75 for a tasting flight (recommended!). They also sell 1L tubs (yay for eating ice cream in bed) – find out where you can get your hands on it here.

Chocolate Chestnut Macarons (Egg-free)

Chocolate Chestnut Macarons (Egg-free)

Egg-free, vegan macarons? Is this even possible? This must be some kind of dessert voodoo! Although baking is magic, this takes it to a whole other level. When I recently saw an article about chickpea meringue it stopped me in my tracks. That gross gloopy stinky water from a tin of chickpeas that I pour down the drain couldn’t possibly make a meringue that’s billowy, pristine and light as a feather – surely?

But, just when I think I know all there is to know about baking BAM, chickpea water surprises me. This is a revelation (well, to me anyway – it has been around for ages but there was an internet conspiracy hiding it from me) and I am now obsessed with finding  gajillions of ways to incorporate this sweet sorcery.

Until now, one of the most difficult things about vegan baking has been getting sponge cakes that are float-off-your-fork light; Angel food cake, for example, is impossible to make without eggs (not counting egg substitutes). But now… that’s all possible! “It’s a whooole neeewww wooooorld!” Is it a bit odd that I’m getting THIS excited about chickpea water? Yes. Do I care? No.

You should know me well enough by now to know that I’ll use any excuse to make macarons, so when I whipped up that first batch of pea meringue, my first thought was – I wonder if this would make amazing macarons. YES! The answer is a thousand times yes. It makes brilliant macarons. In fact, I think chick-water is far more reliable. It doesn’t have different water contents and freshness like eggs but that’s all a bit sciencey and I’m starting to drift off to sleep… Anyway, all you need to know is you HAVE to try this to believe it.

 

If your’e still going to therapy for your macaron-a-phobia (totally a real thing), then at least make egg-free meringues, people. Whip 180g chickpea water to soft peaks then beat in 1 cup (250ml) castor sugar and a drop of vanilla. Dry out in a 120C oven.
FYI 1 egg = 3 tbsp chickpea water

Egg white’s are out. Chickpea water is IN!
Now I just need to figure out what the heck to do with 5 tins-worth of chickpeas… Hummus, anyone?

Egg-free Chocolate Chestnut Macarons

Makes 20

 

Macarons:

180g water from a can of chickpeas

125g ground almonds

65g icing sugar

100g caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

 

Filling:

100ml cream (for a vegan version, use diary-free cream)

150g good-quality dark chocolate, finely chopped

100g sweetened chestnut puree

Place the drained chickpea water in a saucepan and simmer gently until the liquid is reduced to 60g. This will make a nice strong meringue. Allow to cool. Pulse the ground almonds and icing sugar in a food processor until fine and then sift well – discard any leftover large pieces of almonds. Place in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on high speed for about 15 minutes or until light, airy and soft peaks form. It will look exactly like meringue. Gradually add the castor sugar until a stiff glossy meringue forms, then whisk in the vanilla. Sift in the almond and icing sugar mixture in 3 batches, using gentle folding movements to incorporate it into the meringue. Keep folding until the mixture reaches a lava consistency – it should hold it’s shape but ooze off the spatula when you lift it up. Place the mixture into a piping bag and pipe small rounds onto a silicone baking tray. Lift the tray up to chest height and then drop it onto the counter a few times to spread the macarons. Now allow to dry at room temperature for about 2 hours or until they form a skin – you should be able to touch them without your finger sticking. While they rest, place an oven rack in the lower 3rd of your oven and preheat to 150C. Bake the cookies for 16-20 minutes. (I always make a small tray with one or two on so I can do a test batch first). Allow to cool.

For the ganache, bring the cream to the boil and pour it over the chopped chocolate. Allow to stand for 5 minutes then stir until melted. Allow to set until spreadable. Place the ganache in a piping bag. To assemble, pipe a circle of ganache onto one macaron shell then fill the middle with the sweetened chestnut filling before topping with another shell. Continue with all the shells. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for a few hours then bring back to room temperature before serving.

 

TIP Macarons freeze really well so keep them on hand and when someone pops over for tea or you need a fix, defrost them in the fridge, then allow to stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before devouring them!