Blackberry Black Tea Coconut Ice Cream

I have been meaning to review this really yummy tea for quite a while now. I blame my boyfriend; he swiped my can of The Republic of Tea’s HiCAF Toasted Coconut Black Tea Bags and brought it to work with him!

The Republic of Tea is one of my favorite tea companies, their tea is so good! (One of my go-to’s is their Earl Greyer Tea) I also really like their packaging; the tins make it easy to transport and keep the tea bags more fresh than they would be in a box.

What makes this tea particularly noteworthy is that the caffeine content of this tea is enhanced with green tea extract and pure caffeine isolated from premium tea leaves, so it’s a great morning pick-me-up. This tea also has a natural coconut flavor and a touch of licorice flavor, making for quite the tasty tea! It’s really yummy with a splash of milk. To really enhance the coconut flavor, add a little turbinado sugar to your tea too. (You can now understand why my boyfriend stole this tea from me!) The HiCAF Toasted Coconut Black Tea is also gluten free, carb free, with no added sugars.

I love using tea and coffee in recipes and the flavors of this tea just begged to be used in a dessert! The inspiration for this recipe was a Sunset recipe for a Blackberry-Black Tea Sorbet. Because there is already a flavor of coconut in the tea, I wanted to further enhance that by turning this recipe for a sorbet into a vegan ice cream using coconut milk. 

Making ice cream is really easy but it takes quite a bit of preparation. First, you need an ice cream maker. (Luckily my mom had one!) The bowl of the ice cream maker has to be frozen for at least 24 hours before it’s ready to use. For this particular recipe, the tea bags need to be steeped in the coconut milk, cooled, and refrigerated before making the ice cream. Plus the whole ice cream mixture needs a few hours in the fridge to get cold. Whew!

So, if you’re making this, be sure to prepare ahead!

Ingredients:

• 5 containers rinsed blackberries (30 oz)
• 2 cups regular coconut milk (not light)
• 3 The Republic of Tea’s HiCAF Toasted Coconut Black Tea Bags
• 1 cup turbinado sugar

Be sure to have your ice cream bowl in the freezer for at least 24 hours prior to starting this recipe.

Add two cups coconut milk to a large saute pan over high heat. Bring to a boil and let boil for 1 minute.

Remove the pan from heat and add in 3 HiCAF Toasted Coconut Black Tea Bags.

Let cool to room temperature, occasionally mixing/pressing on the tea bags to release the coconut black tea flavor. (The coconut milk will turn a light caramel color).

When cooled, remove the tea bags, squeezing to release all coconut milk. Discard the tea bags. Pour the coconut milk into a resealable container and refrigerate for 1 hour.

When the hour is up, puree the blackberries in your blender until thoroughly blended. If blended really well, the seeds of the blackberries should break down for the most part. 

Whisk in the coconut milk and sugar until combined.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or up to 1 day.

Remove your ice cream bowl from the freezer and immediately add the blackberry mixture to the bowl.

Blend the mixture using the ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions for approximately 20 minutes, or until it resembles soft serve ice cream. You can eat it at this stage if you want.

To make a harder ice cream, transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and freeze until firm, about 3 hours.

I am so excited with how this turned out! This was my first time making ice cream and I’ve got to tell you, it’s a little dangerous that now I know it’s this simple!

This ice cream isn’t overly sweet but has the perfect blend of blackberry, coconut, and black tea flavors! The black tea adds a hint of spice to the ice cream that really enhances the overall taste.

Also, isn’t that color just amazing?! This made about 4 cups so I will happily be enjoying this for a little while!