Cranberry-Mango-Orange Ice Cream and 100th post

With it looking like this outside:

...it seems untimely to be thinking of ice cream, but I had some odds and ends to use up in the frig, including a bit of coconut milk, so I thought, aw, what the heck.

First I started with my basic Vanilla recipe....soooo simple:

 --- a few frozen bananas
 --- a few Medjool dates, pitted
 --- tiny bit of vanilla powder (probably 1/8 teaspoon- I LOVE this brand:                   http://shop.hempspread.com/Pure-Vanilla-Powder_c44.htm )
 --- coconut milk (I use canned coconut milk, not the packaged coconut drink/milk)

I don't measure, but there is a feel for what the correct balance is between frozen fruit and milk after making it a few times....too much milk, and it is too slushy (although still yummy) and not enough and well, the Vitamix will scream at you.

Blend all ingredients well in the Vitamix.  I use the plunger continually and aggressively when I am doing this.    If you just want Vanilla, you can stop here and serve as is immediately, or put in a container in the freezer for later (it will have to sit out for a few minutes to soften before serving).

For the Cranberry blend, to the above I added:

 --- a good amount of fresh cranberries, approximately 1 cup
 --- one orange, peeled
 --- frozen mango, approx 1/2 cup.

Blend in Vitamix.  Serve or freeze.

This was very good and I left it a little bit 'chunky', leaving visible bits of cranberry.  I liked the citrus overtones (I may increase the amount of orange or garnish with a few gratings of orange zest) and the tart bits of the cranberry.

Cranberry-Mango-Orange Ice Cream

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100th post.  

I haven't been as active on this blog as I thought I might be this year and have many blog posts started but not finished, that cover topics I want to get on here; I hope to spend a bit more time on the blog in the coming months.

What started out as a tentative chronicle of my journey to attempt a path to a healthier me over 4 years ago, now feels like an important aspect of a true and committed way of living.  Of these changes, I am very proud.  I have many more improvements to make in myself, and of course, no journey of this type ever really ends, but it does feel like a bit of a milestone here in this moment, so I'll celebrate with a bit of ice cream, (followed by some hot tea as it is cold here!)

I hope you are firmly on your chosen paths and enjoying your journeys as well....

Sue, still on the (snow-covered!) path, in Ohio