Have you ever had sachertorte in ice cream form? Me neither. Until the day I made this. And got blown away by it. Classic cake flavor in ice cream form on a hot day? Yes please!
I mean, there's a reason why sachertorte {or sacher torte} is a classic -- chocolate and apricots just go so unexpectedly well together. In the cake you combine a good chocolate cake base with a chocolate ganache + a sweet and slightly sour apricot jam for a filling. In this ice cream, I put in all the chocolatiness you can imagine and a hefty dose of dried apricots and the result was this creamy delicious creation.
No {clunky} ice cream maker. No dairy. No refined sugar. No bananas or nuts even {giving you a break ;) }. No hot oven. Just a handful of simple {and good-for-you} ingredients, a blender, and a freezer is all you need. Oh and some pretty toppings, if you like, because they're absolutely part of the fun of creating your own ice creams ♥
A quick note about the apricots: I used unsulphured dried apricots in this {dried apricots to the rescue yet again!}. They add a lot to the texture and sweetness here. Just make sure your apricots are soft. If they happen to be a little stale, just rehydrate them by soaking in hot water for 10-15 minutes, then strain, before blending {otherwise your blender might struggle}.
I also used a tiny touch of raw cacao butter to give this a richer, fuller, velvety chocolate flavor. If you don't have cacao butter around or can't find it, use non-dairy butter or some neutral-tasting coconut oil. But if you can find cacao butter, I highly recommend -- it takes this ice cream to another level! {Plus, if you get some, you can then make things like this, this, this, this, or this... :) }.
I also wanted to share a little hack I tried recently, though not with this recipe, of dividing the ice cream up into serving sizes prior to freezing. Check out my Instagram post here for more details if you're curious. In a nut shell, makes the whole process a lot less messy and it's convenient having the ice cream pre-portioned so you can just reach into the freezer and enjoy an instant serving :) Though of course, there's something special in that trusty good 'ol scoop ♥
No Churn Sachertorte Ice Cream {aka Chocolate Apricot!}
A creamy chocolatey vegan ice cream with sweet apricot chunks. Sachertorte cake in ice cream form. No dairy, no refined sugar, and so quick and easy to whip up!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: approx 6 small servings
- Category: Ice Cream
- Method: No Churn
- Cuisine: Dessert
Ingredients
- 1 can {400 ml} light coconut milk, room temp
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1 small handful kale or spinach {optional -- see notes}
- 1 cup dried apricots {make sure they're soft}
- ¾ cup agave {or maple, brown rice syrup, etc.}
- 6 tbsp cacao powder
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp cacao butter, melted {see notes on substitution}
- ½ tbsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate of your choice
- Optional -- toppings of your choice: I used chocolate chips, cacao nibs, chocolate coated puffed quinoa, and dried mulberries {the mulberries were surprisingly good in this!}.
Instructions
- Place all ingredients except chocolate chips and toppings in a blender and blend until mixture is smooth. {I used my Vitamix, but if you don't have a power blender, just stop occasionally and scrape down the sides and be patient :) }.
- Once mixture is smooth, throw in chocolate chips, give it a very quick whirl to incorporate.
- Pour this mixture into a freezable pan {I used a bread loaf pan that I lined with parchment paper so it doesn't get scratched during scooping, but any freezer-safe container will do}.
- Freeze overnight {or at least a good 5-6 hours}. Thaw out at room temp to a scoopable consistency and enjoy!
Notes
The kale in this recipe is optional. I threw it in because I love the opportunity of incorporating simple healthy nutrient-dense ingredients into recipes they work in. In this recipe you can't taste it at all, if you're worried about that. The flavors mask it completely. If you don't have a strong blender, then I suggest using a handful of spinach instead as it blends in more smoothly. However, you can feel free to leave it out too altogether if you prefer -- it's not essential.
I divided this into 6 small servings {roughly 1 scoop each} for guests. The recipe is more like 2-3 large sized servings for people who like a hefty portion though :)
Jennifer says
Hi! Can I make cacao powder from cacao nibs? Or can I sub cocoa powder for the cacao powder?
Thank so much!
Audrey says
Hi Jennifer, you can def use cocoa powder in place of cacao here. Enjoy!
TL says
I just made this icecream using the lemon juice and raw cacao. I had kale and spinach in my fridge but couldn't get myself to put in in icecream( the lemon juice itself was tough to add). I have to say this very strange hodgeepodge of ingredients( dried aapricot, avocado....) turned out to be a delicious treat. I am blown away at your creativity.
Thank you so much for what you do
Audrey says
I'm so glad you ended up enjoying this, despite the initial reservations :D Thanks so much for the feedback!
Rebecca says
I love your site, and was excited to find no-churn ice cream! Just here to provide feedback on recipe alterations for other people who, like me, have no idea what they're doing when it comes to sweets.
- SWEETNESS: I combined honey & maple syrup, and the honey is way too prominent. Would highly recommend against using honey.
- APRICOTS: I used a heaping cup, and it was... a lot. Unless you love apricots, I would err towards slightly less than a cup.
- RICHNESS: After the honey-apricot saturation, I diluted the recipe with 1c CASHEW CREAM (unsweetened/just water & cashews). It worked wonderfully and the final product is the perfect consistency.
Audrey says
Hi Rebecca, thanks so much for sharing your swaps and their results. I'm sure others will find it super helpful! :) I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe!
@TheArtfulFoodie says
Audrey omg this is insane. Wow... I think I'm in love. I really love the toppings here too, amazing xxx
Audrey says
Thanks so much, Emma :)
Kathi says
Seriously? I mean SERIOUSLY?! This is not your f****** serious. Since I was in Vienna the first time I immediately fell for Sachertorte. I think it's the most rich and flavorful and decadent cake ever. And whenever I'm there again I just need to have my piece of Sachertorte and enjoy Vienna and I'm always thinking "why is this piece so small?!". The most recreations of Sachertorte I ate were all horrible, to dry and less of flavour or had way nothing to do with Sachertorte. I mean okay you can't expect German people to make Sachertorte when it's origin is in Austria, I think I have quite high expectations. :D But then they can't sell it as Sachertorte.
Anyways your idea of Sachertorte made into ice-cream is so stunning, I love it. Beautiful pictures and the ingredients sound exceptionally. In most ice-cream recipes without an icecream-maker people suggest to whisk everything around every 30 minutes or so during the process of freezing but you didn't so I'm wondering if the texture is more like frozen water or is it still creamy? Have a wonderful weekend,
xx Kathi
Audrey says
Kathi, you made me laugh with your comment! Now I want some Sachertorte from Vienna :P
You don't need to stir this ice cream like you do with the other ones. The recipe just naturally works without that. I don't think I could be bothered to go stir something every 30 mins -- I'm more of a "lazy" chef, so the simpler, the better ;)
Have a lovely weekend as well!
Kathi says
Haha sounds great, your answer made me smile. :D I'm such a lazy one too and always giving those recipes requiring either an ice-cream maker or yourself stirring 24 hours a wide berth, so your recipe is right on the point! Going to make it tomorrow, can't wait. :D Thank you <3
Kristen @ The Endless Meal says
I love that you've added kale to this! Crazy and so seriously awesome!
Audrey says
Thanks so much, Kristen! Just trying to stash in some more nutrition -- why not, right? ;)
Tina says
Audrey, I didn't have any cacao butter or your nice toppings on hand but I could not wait any longer to make this!! I have just eaten some for dessert and it was fantastic. Love the hidden vegetables, I had spinach in the fridge. A little while ago I accidentally bought a few low fat coconut milk cans, now I know what I'll use them for!! Thanks also for a no churn ice cream, would love other flavors :).
The strangest ice cream flavor that I have made was avocado and lemon. I made a birthday ice cream cake and had to make a green colored ice cream to resemble grass (without coloring), but as avocado was quite mild I kept adding more lemon and it enhanced the flavor. Over 35 years ago, my dad use to add a crumbled Marie biscuit and lemon juice to vanilla ice cream and mix. This is still one of my favorite combination.
Thanks again Audrey.
Audrey says
Tina, you're the sweetest. Thanks for the feedback as always! I'm so happy you enjoyed the ice cream and glad to know it was good without the cacao butter too.
I love your dad's taste in ice cream too -- that sounds delicious :). Avocado and lemon cake is actually a nice concept. I've made a key lime pie with avocado before and it was delicious. 1/2 a teaspoon of spirulina would make a nice green color by the way -- I know it's too late for the grassy ice cream, but that's something I use sometimes for similar baking projects.
Tina says
Thank you Audrey, I've heard of spirulina but have never used it!! It's great to know, thank you.
Sarah | Well and Full says
WOW this looks AMAZING. I first had sachertorte at an Austrian restaurant in NYC but since I went vegan I've been missing out on a lot of desserts. But this recipe looks perfect, I love how it's no-churn too! :)
Audrey says
Thanks Sarah! ♥ I love sachertorte and make my own once in a while, but I thought it'd be fun to turn it into an ice cream and I loved it :) I've never tried an Austrian sachertorte -- that would have been a real treat, I imagine!
Melissa @ vegan does it says
Beautiful as always! I love the idea of sneaking greens in there too.
Audrey says
Thanks Melissa ♥
Kat from curlsnchard.com says
I love Sachertorte (well, it's probably THE Austrian cake, so I guess I kind of have to :D), especially fresh out of the oven, when the chocolate hasn't fully set yet...but now in summer, who wants to bake? This ice-cream sounds so amazing, Audrey! I got really curious when you said you used neither nuts nor bananas and I would definitely NOT have expected to find avocado in this ice cream. Such an amazing combination!
Audrey says
Thanks Kat! I love Sachertorte. I've never had a true Austraian one though. My first introduction to it was from an Italian pastry chef friend years ago and I fell in love at the first bite. Fresh out of the oven and gooey is definitely amazing! In ice cream form it's a completely different experience, but sooo good too :)
Mandy says
Never in a million years would I have guessed apricot!! Wow! This looks incredibly rich and creamy. I love that you use kale in here...so I'd feel a little less guilty about eating this for breakfast ;) Love all of the toppings, too!! Beautiful!
Audrey says
Haha. I didn't think that was an easy one to guess, Mandy :) It's quite a surprise, but it tastes amazing ♥
The Vegan 8 says
This is such a beautiful ice cream Audrey! I love that you used apricots in this instead of dates, since that is what most people do! That was my exact thinking of why I used apricots for my buttercream icing instead of dates...something different and a totally different flavor. I love, love the gorgeous patterned design of your toppings! So pretty! I love that you snuck kale in there...hey we all do that with smoothies, why not ice cream. There's enough sugar in there to mask it, so easy peasy!
Audrey says
Brandi, your apricot buttercream looks delish. And yeah, I felt like doing something different and I think I definitely did get something quite different and delicious with this combination :)
And yeah, that was my thinking on the greens in there too -- if they go well in smoothies, why not in ice cream too? It works.
michelle @ Boards&Knives says
What a beautiful and innovative ice cream! I love the idea of throwing in a handful of spinach or kale - why not, right?
Audrey says
Thanks Michelle! And glad you agree on the greens -- sneaking in some extra nutrients can never hurt :)
Trinity Bourne says
Wow! This looks totally and utterly out-of-this-world delicious.
I would have never in a million years thought about putting kale in there. Inspiring genius!
Audrey says
If I can sneak it in, why not? ;) It's all about balance... :) Thanks very much, Trinity ♥
Sarah C. says
THIS. Is amazing! When I am not on my dad's computer I will pin! :)
Audrey says
Thanks Sarah :) ♥
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit says
To the unsuspecting eye, this just looks like chocolate, but there are so many amazing things going on in there! Between the sneaky spinach, the Sachertorte inspired apricots, and cacao butter: the worlds instant indulgent-ifier! And the way you arranged the toppings is so beautiful! Reminds me of smoothie bowl decorating, but with decadence level turned way up ;) This looks so good <3
Audrey says
Thanks! I love sprinkling my ice creams with different toppings -- it's totally part of the experience for me :) This time I went from a sprinkle to a sprinkle party on there haha. It all tastes yummy once it folds into the scoop, which is of course my favorite part {most especially those mulberries ;)}.
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
Now this is the best vegan ice cream yet! So inventive! Never would have though to use apricots!
(And adding in some greens should never be optional.... ;) hahaha!)
xoxo
Audrey says
Thanks Rebecca. I hear ya on the greens, though I always get asked about them so I thought I'd explain my "dessert veggie and green-sneaking" habits this time around :)
Jana says
Holy moly! Audrey! This looks amazingly stunning! Great idea to use apricots! :)
Audrey says
Thank you Jana! It was a spontaneous decision that led to a whole new ice cream experience for me :) They work really well in a recipe like this and of course taste delicious with the chocolate.