Rich vegan ice cream recipe for classic tartufo Italian dessert. Notes of hazelnut and espresso blend perfectly in raw ice cream balls. Cashew-free option.
*To pre-soak nuts: place in a glass bowl, cover with water, and leave to soak for 4 hours (or overnight in the fridge). Then strain and discard the water.
For a quick pre-soak, cover with boiled water and soak for 15 mins, then strain and discard water. (Note: this technique doesn't preserve the nutrition of the recipe as well as the traditional soaking technique above).
Note: the purpose of soaking the nuts is to re-hydrate them and plump them up for blending into a smooth, cheesecake-like consistency. Proper soaking techniques also maximize nutrition and digestibility. If you're interested in learning more about nut soaking and other dessert prep tips and tricks, I delve into these subjects in detail in my book Unconventional Treats.
**note: I recommend going with alkalized cocoa powder over raw cacao powder for raw cakes, as sometimes raw cacao powder can react with other ingredients and spoil the cake.
***If you have cold items, they'll make the mixture firm up too quickly in the blender / if your items are extremely hot, like the cocoa butter, they'll cook the sugar in the blender and make the mixture clump up. Room temp or very slightly warm is idea.