I don’t pamper myself often (with the exception of spending a little more money on really good food and treats like this strawberry semifreddo ice cream, but of course). I actually have a difficult time believing that I deserve a couple of hours to take care of myself (I’m working on it, trust me!) If we ever went shopping together you would notice that I put a ton of stuff into my cart as we browse around the store but by the time we get to the cash register, I will have put 99% of it back because I always convince myself that I don’t “need” it. This week however has gone against my natural tendency… Actually, let me be specific about my natural tendency: Unwashed hair in a ponytail, zero makeup, yoga pants rolled up past my knees, and a tank top.
You see, I have a special wedding coming up this weekend–a wedding where I have to be a fancy-pantsy kind of gal and to know me is to know that I’m anything but fancy-pantsy. I own nothing “nice,” in fact my sandals with a silver buckle is as nice as it gets (and those things are pretty worn down). If I cannot bake, cook, paint, or sweat in it then I have no practical use for it. Thankfully there are people in my life who see pampering differently than I do and made it possible for me to pull away from work and actually take some time for myself and get my butt in gear for this weekend (you know who you are–I’m especially talking to you, My Biggest Fan) . I’m speechless by your generosity.
I’m not even lying when I tell you that setting these appointments stressed the crumbs out of me to the point where I almost just didn’t go. It’s been YEARS since I’ve gotten a manicure, not to mention asking for a personal stylist to help me with a black tie event? Never done that before. But with continual nudging I allowed myself to be taken care of (can you tell this is really difficult for me??) And because I allowed for someone else to pour their generosity into my life, my heart is now so full as I sit back and recount the beautiful souls I was able to be introduced to. It was such a good reminder for me to just keep showing up in my life. 
From my personal stylist at Nordstroms (hi Jessie!) who stood there with me for a good half hour at the jewelry counter as we poured our hearts out about relationships and life; to the girls at Aveda who not only pampered the crap out of me, talked meditation, food allergies, and babies with me but also got this rat’s nest to actually look like gorgeous hair (hi Bianca and Hika!); and to Iesha (hi!!) from Bliss who not only made my nails look like glory but who brought me in tears while she painted my toenails and opened up to me about her incredible journey back to happiness and joy. These women. (I’m shaking my head…sigh). These women with their beautiful stories. If this is what happens when you open yourself up and allow yourself to be pampered, I must say I can get used to it.
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Strawberry “Semifreddo” Ice Cream
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 mins
- Yield: 6 cones 1x
Description
Semifreddo means “half cold” so this ice cream will be much softer than the normal ice cream you are used to. It’s vegan, creamy, melt-in-your mouth good and best if devoured quickly.
Ingredients
- For the Fruit Puree:
- 1 1/2 c. frozen strawberries
Fruit filling:
- 1 medium banana, ripe
- 1–2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup (add more by the tablespoon, depending on the sweetness of the banana)
- 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
Cream Base:
- 1 can coconut cream, chilled in the fridge overnight
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
- Puree all the ingredients for the fruit filling together for the fruit puree in a high-speed blender until smooth.
- In a large bowl, scoop out the solid contents of the can of coconut cream and whip up with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and mix until well-blended.
- Fold in the fruit puree to the cream mix. You can do two things here: 1). Fold in the puree halfway so there is a nice swirl color to your semifreddo or 2). Mix it completely and blend in the colors.
- Pour into an 8 or 9″ loaf pan, cover with aluminum foil and chill for 2+ hours or until set.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 large scoop
- Calories: 52
- Sugar: 8g
- Sodium: 2mg
- Fat: 2g
- Saturated Fat: 0g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 10g
- Protein: 0.2g
Now it’s time for you to pamper yourself with this super soft and creamy vegan semifreddo ice cream. It will melt in your hands so you best eat quickly… 
Hi Cara,
I am glad you took some time out for your self. I was relieved to read about you cos it seemed like describing myself so it is good to know that I am not the only one.
Thanks for the lovely recipes. You are the only hope for me to bake/cook some yummy treats for my 2 year old who has to eat vegan,gluten free, nuts/soy free. It is crazy. I have a few questions. If you can answer these I will be on cloud nine as I have been struggling to get these answers for a while now.
What can I use to substitute milk which is nut free, dairy free and soy free? Will rice milk or hemp milk work? Especially in the case of your gluten free bread recipe.
Where and if I can get nut free ( coconut free), dairy and soy free Ice cream? Do you have a recipe to make ice cream from scratch for the allergies mentioned above?
Thanks much for this website and your innovative delicious recipes.
★★★★★
In case you weren’t aware, since allergies can be so confusing and concerning: I don’t know if your little daughter is specifically allergic to coconuts, but they are not technically tree nuts, and though the FDA made it confusing for people by starting to label them as such a while back, folks who are allergic to tree nuts do not need to avoid coconuts unless they have the very specific and rare allergy to coconuts themselves, as opposed to just a tree-nut allergy. Typically folks who are allergic to one kind of tree-nut are encouraged not to eat any tree-nuts because of the cross-contamination that happens in the machinery/factories that prepare the nuts for sale, as well as the fact that tree-nuts share certain proteins with each other, despite being different nuts. Tree-nut allergies are so difficult, we have them here at our house.
That’s lovely Cara. It sounds like you have some amazing women in your life, can I borrow them sometime? 😉
Do you chill the ice cream in the fridge or the freezer? I’m guessing freezer but this ice cream is supposed to be a little softer and coconut cream gets pretty solid even if just refrigerated. Thank you!
Olivia, you are MORE than welcome to borrow any of these women! About your question, place in the freezer. Sorry for not clarifying :/ Hope this helps. Thank you so much for the comment, xo!
I hear ya on pampering yourself. Self care is something that’s totally fallen to the wayside for me since having my baby. There just never feels like there’s time and money to do something for me, when I should be playing with or treating my little guy. Your experience makes me want to get my nails did! If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy. Right?
I hope those nails are painted!! xo
This makes me sooo happy. 🙂 YOU DESERVE PAMPERING and to feel taken care of… you always do such a great job of taking care of all of the people in your life. What goes around comes around! xoxox
Girl, thank you so much for being part of the reason for the pampering! xo
Cara Ive decided to continually make sure my feet our took care, my face is plucked to the max, my hair is platinum bleached and I have not had my hair cut since February so for my face I just wash it and then use a chamomile tea bag to “tone” it then let that dry and after that I use Primer/foundation ,eyeshadow only white around my whole eyelids top and bottom and mascara, I eat healthy as fuck and I do all this because Im very sick and it just makes me feel better about myself, I don’t want to be ill and ugly so Im officially just ill but hot! ive ditched the dirty shorts and tank top and I wear close that just make me feel good.(I put stuff back all the time from my cart and my husband says just buy it)
I love your ice cream and you! Feel great about yourself and keep posting where every you are…
You know what, this experience has really changed my mind as well. As I look at my awesomely painted nails I am thinking, “Why don’t I do this more often??” More time for self nurturing… Thank you for saying that. xo!
I’m so glad you took the time for yourself-practicing self-care is one of the hardest things we can do for ourselves sometimes. Awesome post and awesome recipe, I hope you have a great weekend!
Thank you so much Carol! It really is a hard thing to do but so worth it once it happens 🙂 ha. Thank you a ton for the comment–the weekend was wonderful! Much love, xo.
I am so proud of you and happy that you allowed yourself to be pampered!! You deserve it friend. This semifreddo sounds amazing too!!!
YOU are amazing.
Oh yum, this looks amazing. Definitely pinning this for hot summer days!
Special vegan foodie treats are usually how I splurge on myself too, and I totes do the shopping thing as well.. I’m so glad you took the time & effort to pamper and enjoy yourself this week! You deserve it, girl!! 😀
Thank you friend, I really appreciate it. Can’t wait to finally see you this summer and pamper you with vegan semifreddo 🙂
I really like the idea of the coconut cream for a creamy base. I’ll be giving it a whirl.
You know, I’m not even a big coconut fan (unless it is in Pina Colada form) and I reallllllly loved it as the base in this recipe! You cannot really even tell it’s coconut after everything is mixed in. Thank you for stopping by Heidi! xo
Did you do a photo session? do one 🙂 the days i actually spend some time doing my hair and makeup and then hubbs forget to take pictures 😛
that ice cream looks creamy dreamy!
I did a lot of selfies 🙂 haha. Now I wish I got a full-body shot for the dress and shoes–oh well. I guess I have another reason to get all dolled up! xo
Hello,
Sorry to ask about a change, but is it possible to make this without a banana?
Thanks,
Lisa
Lisa, no apologies! Ask away 🙂 Replace the banana with more strawberries (maybe 1/2 c. more) or another fruit. Give it a try and let me know how it works! xo
Yum, this looks fab! I haven’t got a haircut since before Christmas, never had a manicure and I have a feeling that until my Dissertation is done this summer I am going to live in my yoga leggins. No shame in that! But I like my weekly pampering session, aka bubble bath and a book. And maybe a glass of wine 🙂
HAHA! I had to explain the rats nest prior to the haircut 🙂 Sending you tons of self-love this summer as you work your yoga-pants booty off with school. Loving your bubble bath and wine idea though. Gonna steal it… 😉
Ooh, sounds so good. Y’know for my 25th wedding anniversary I actually got an ice cream maker with an honest to gosh compressor in it. You know how I make ice cream? I freeze coconut milk/cream in ice cube trays then dump some in my Vitamix or food processor with frozen berries or other fruit, maple syrup, vanilla or some other flavoring and eat immediately.
On another note, you so deserve to be pampered and I’m sure your Biggest Fan knows that better than anyone. I’m looking forward to the pictures and wondering how long it took Matt to get his eyes back in his head. lol xoxoxoxox
I KNEW you would have an awesome hack to making ice cream without a maker! I am going to take your method at some point and use it. I love that idea 🙂
My Biggest Fan says hi! xo
XOXOX, Miss Wings! I’ll take 2 scoops! Yummy 🙂
You SO deserve it! I’m giggling right now ’cause I was able to make that happen for you! Hopefully, you relaxed and enjoyed the experience. Now…go have some fun! Be perky (I’m batting my lashes at you-what’s that from?):-)
Can wait to see pictures!
I LOVE YOU LADY!! Can’t wait for our chat! xo
Cara! This looks so good! I love how simple it is.
I totally get you on the pampering thing. Once I turned in my manuscript, I made a crapload of appointments to get caught up on things I’d fallen behind on in the last 6 months- haircut, brow wax, pedicure, etc. And I just bought myself some new clothes because I never do but it occurred to me that I deserve to wear clothes that aren’t 3 or 4 years old and completely worn out/stained. It’s so important to remember to take care of ourselves! I’m so happy that you had a fun day of pampering- you’re going to look stunning this weekend!
Oh the manuscript! Forget ALL self-love and putting any effort into yourself. ha. I am so glad that you are done with it and are able to get back into the grind 🙂 We should go clothes shopping too because I am going to need it soon!
Yum! This sounds like heaven on a hot summer’s day!
It’s always a struggle for me to let someone take care of me, too- but it feels nice when it’s done!
It DOES feel nice so why don’t we accept it more often??? I just now need someone to offer it often… hehe
Treat yo self. 🙂 So glad for your pampering experiences and hope it is the best weekend of your life! Xo
Treat Yo Self 2014.
Ho-ly crap. This looks delicious and super easy to make (my favorite kind of recipe)! I can’t wait to try it! 🙂
Easy is best, ain’t it Meredith?! Hope you love this heaven-in-your-mouth treat 🙂
It sounds like we would really get along! I hate shopping because it usually ends up so fruitless — I end up with nothing, disappointed because I put back a lot of stuff I really would have enjoyed. How sweet of those people to make sure you took time to look and feel your best!
You made my day, btw, with this recipe for ice cream that doesn’t require an ice cream maker. I’ve sort of been putting off buying one (I don’t NEED it, after all, and it’s expensive), so this might stave that off even further 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Okay, now we MUST go shopping together!! Can you imagine it? A cart full of stuff initially and then abandoned at the end? haha. Thank you so much for your comment, Kate. I really was blessed to be taken care of like that. It truly touched me in an unexplainable way. Glad that you are excited to make this (it’s REALLY good!). xo