Originally posted by Dr. Davis on 2016-05-30
on the Wheat Belly Blog, sourced from and currently found at: Infinite Health Blog.
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Chocolate Walnut Ice Cream

Yes, ice cream can fit into your Wheat Belly lifestyle . . . but some adjustments will be necessary.

I have yet to find a commercially produced ice cream or custard that I thought was truly healthy. Even the “no sugar added” ice cream brands are usually sweetened with sorbitol and maltitol that can still cause rises in blood sugar (as well as small LDL particles that lead to heart disease), not to mention gas and diarrhea–-not the best choice after a romantic dinner!

Here’s a way to make your own thick, rich custard without sugar, sorbitol, maltitol, and without having to endure gas and diarrhea. If you have a dairy sensitivity in some form, or if you are among the people whose weight loss is stalled or prevented by dairy products (due to the insulin-provoking action of the whey fraction of protein in dairy products), replace the whipping cream with canned coconut milk. The use of the additional custard step ensures a creamy texture to even coconut milk.

You will need an ice cream maker. I’ve been using an inexpensive one I bought at Target for $23 and the results were great.

Creating the egg yolk custard is key. There are a number of methods to generate the egg yolk-rich custard. I am a fan of simplicity, so I chose the process of making the custard from egg yolks over the stove (that I picked up from Maria Emmerich), followed by blending in the sweetener and the other ingredients. This approach may require a couple of tries to get the temperature and time just right. Even if not perfect, however, the end-product should still be quite edible and delicious. One downside: this ice cream is best consumed right away, as it does not freeze well, becoming icy and hard. You can indeed store in the refrigerator, but will have to wait for it to partially defrost first. This is because we avoid use of emulsifying agents due to their potential to disrupt bowel flora.

The basic recipe can be altered in an unlimited number of ways, e.g., leave out the cocoa and replace with 1 cup mixed fresh or frozen berries, 1 cup wild blueberries, dark chocolate chunks with or without peppermint extract, bing cherries, pistachios, etc.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
4 egg yolks (large or jumbo eggs)
12 ounces (1½ cups) heavy whipping cream, preferably organic, or 1 can coconut milk (13.5 ounces)
Sweetener equivalent to ¾ cup sugar
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ cup chopped walnuts
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place eggs yolks in small saucepan and heat over low heat. With electric or hand mixer, beat for several minutes until creamy while heating, around 3-4 minutes. Keep heat low enough that yolks do not scramble or coagulate but are warm to touch.

Blend in cream or coconut milk, sweetener, cocoa powder, walnuts, salt, vanilla extract and blend until well-mixed.

Pour entire mixture into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s directions. (My device required 25 minutes to convert to thick custard texture.)