It’s no secret that I like to try to keep things simple when it comes to cooking and food photography. This five ingredient dairy free pumpkin ice cream is a perfect example of that and I’m sharing some behind the scenes insight for how I shot it.

Dairy Free Pumpkin Ice Cream

First, this recipe is only five ingredients and doesn’t require any churning. I was surprised how good it turned out… it tastes just like pumpkin pie in ice cream form. No ice cream maker needed.

Dairy and I don’t get along, so I used full fat coconut milk. This ensured that the ice cream had that delicious, creamy texture that we all love about ice cream. The remaining ingredients you’ll need are pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, maple syrup and vanilla extract. I also highly recommend a sprinkle of crushed graham cracker crumbs on top, but that’s totally up to you and your taste preference.

Place all five ingredients into a good blender to get it nice and smooth (I used my Vitamix) and store it in a freezer-safe container overnight. Easy, right? I used this loaf pan with saran wrap and it worked great.

THE PHOTO SHOOT

A lot of people ask how I captured that ice cream scoop with the drip. The answer may surprise you.

First, I shot this recipe by myself. No assistant, no team. You don’t always need a team to capture beautiful food photography images. I had to practice the scoop to get it just right. I used an antique ice cream scoop to tie in with the dark and moody look, but this scoop works really well if you want to practice getting that perfect scoop.

CAPTURING THE DRIP

The drip is pretty cool, isn’t it? Like I mentioned earlier, I shot this by myself. So, how did I capture the drip shot without someone else there to help?

One of my favorite tools I have on hand in my home studio is this remote shutter release. You can also get a wireless remote shutter as well. It allows me to shoot without having to stand behind my camera. I held the ice cream in front of the camera and used the remote shutter to capture several shots as it started to melt. And, yes, it required a bit of patience as I waited for the ice cream to start melting. It also takes several not-so-great shots to capture a perfect drip shot. Practice, practice, practice. 😉

Happy Cooking!

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All images ©Regan Baroni 2017.