Past Homemade Ice Cream Recipes

September 7, 2008 - Heath Bar Crunch Ice Cream and Rhubarb Sorbet

I forgot to tell you that I did, in fact, successfully make Heath Bar Crunch. It was simple and oh-so-good (it's basically vanilla ice cream with Heath Bar mixed in). I made it on a day when I was feeling ultra domestic - I even donned my flirty apron - and made dinner for Huz, freshly picked apple (from our CSA) cobbler, and the ice cream. Yum.

Then, what do you know, in swoops He-Man-Woman-Hater Huz and outdoes me with his first ice cream attempt a few days ago. What does he make? Oh, just an over the top, completely unforgettable, ridiculously good blueberry cheesecake ice cream with graham cracker crust swirls. Swirls, people. Swirls! Grr! It's not keeping up with the Joneses over here, it's simply trying to keep up with the Huz!

Anyway. I asked the CSA for some extra rhubarb because I like it and they have it, so now I've got several pounds to do something with. Instead of making more of the expected strawberry rhubarb combinations, I've decided to try my 5th ice cream with it. It's actually a sorbet and the recipe is here. I'll try it today and let you know how it turns out.

Ciao!

[The sorbet is very good. Nice and tart and really creamy in texture. I didn't make the topping and, really, it doesn't need it. Serve it with chocolate cake. Mmmm.]

August 16, 2008 - Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream



Oh my God. So, I made some chocolate peanut butter ice cream last night and before it was even ready (I'll scoop some out tonight for a proper tasting and photograph which I'll put on this post later) Huz and I were having mouth orgasms over it. It's so good that after one taste Huz pushed me up against the counter and dry humped me. No kidding. Sorry for the embarrassment babe, but that was such a testament to my awesomeness as an ice cream maker that I had to share.

I used the Ben & Jerry's recipe for light chocolate ice cream and added 1/2 cup of crunchy peanut butter to the batch. It called for creamy peanut butter, but we don't do that in this house. The chocolate is a nice, bittersweet background to the bold, crunchy peanut butter. It is so good.

Next will be Mocha Heath Bar Crunch. Who's coming over?

July 23, 2008 - Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream



As promised, here are photos from my most recent ice cream adventure. I got the recipe from David Lebovitz and am now smitten, smitten I say!, with him and his blog. This recipe was decidedly more complex than the easy sweet cream base recipe (that I added blackberries to) from Ben & Jerry's book, but that doesn't mean it was hard. It was only a bit more time consuming because it involved caramelizing sugar into praline (and then the fun part of breaking it into tiny pieces) and cooking an egg yolk custard for the ice cream base. The only thing I would modify next time is using fine, instead of course, sea salt because some of the praline bits are a tad too salty, but other than that this recipe is a winner.

Churning away:





After spending time in the freezer for a few hours it's ready to eat:






July 21, 2008 - New Ice Cream Maker

I'm enjoying our new ice cream maker. Yesterday I worked on my second creation and anticipate trying it out sometime tomorrow. Yes, this one takes a while because it involves cooking a custard and cooling for 8 hours (which was last night). I won't get home until this evening to put it in the machine to churn, and then it has to be frozen for several more hours until it's ready to eat. I think it will be worth it though. What kind is it? Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream. I can't wait to try it.

Now, if you're like most people I've talked to about this, you're probably going to scrunch up your face when I tell you what kind I want to try making next. Candied Bacon Ice Cream. Yes, that's right, I said bacon. Sounds crazy, I know, but there's something magical about salt and sweet to me, so we're gonna give it a shot - probably only a pint of it to be safe - but we'll at least try.

What kind of crazy ice cream concoctions can you come up with for me to try next? I'll take your ideas into culinary consideration.

July 9, 2008 - Blueberries and Cream Ice Cream

I guess if Claire is really allergic to dairy it just means more ice cream for me. Ha! Remember when I told you that we drove up to our farm a few weeks ago and picked blueberries and blackberries? We got a pretty good amount - around 2 pints of blueberries and a pint of blackberries.




Huz used the blueberries to make a divine cornmeal double-crusted blueberry pie with lemon cream sauce (I know, right!? Who did I marry? Barney Crocker? Melvin Stewart?) and I froze the blackberries until the ice cream maker we bought came in the mail. We bought the Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream book so that we'd have some recipes for our new toy and, I have to tell you, making your own ice cream is so easy! Why didn't I do this a long time ago!? I made blackberries and cream ice cream which is so very tasty. My next ice cream is going to be mint oreo crunch. Y-U-M-M-Y.

Huz made homemade pizzas the other night: Mexcian pizza with chicken, corn, black beans, cilantro and onions served with sour cream and homemade guacamole and BBQ Pizza with chicken, red onions, and bbq pizza sauce.




And, if you'll believe it, I actually cooked something the other night too - Italian stuffed zucchini* and cod fillets. Very fresh and summery.

*Yes, I've posted the recipe before here.



Now if that doesn't make you hungry, I don't know what will.


June 30, 2008 - Buying an Ice Cream Maker

Huz and I decided to spend our fun money for the month on this. I can't wait to get it and to start trying out some fun ice cream recipes. I'm sure we'll come up with some fun ones, like: chocolate chili, jalapeno lime sorbet, Heath bar coffee crunch, etc. If it comes quickly enough we can make blackberries and cream ice cream with the luscious blackberries we picked at our CSA yesterday. It was so much fun making the trip up there. Claire did great on the hour and a half drive each way and had fun picking blueberries and blackberries strapped to my chest in a carrier. She tried to reeeaaaach out and pick some berries too - she did get one, but Huz intervened before it went into her mouth. It was lovely seeing the farm where our veggies are coming from each week and to have a relaxing afternoon in nature. Ahhh. I want to go back!

Cabbage

More photos of our latest produce to come, I promise.

After receiving a lovely head of cabbage yesterday, I have this slaw to look forward to tonight.

Green Onion Slaw
(via Smitten Kitchen)

1 cup green onions, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 serrano chiles
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup pure olive oil
1 head purple cabbage, finely shredded
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves

Blend green onions, vinegar, chiles, mayonnaise, salt, pepper and oil in a blender until emulsified. Place cabbage and red onions in a bowl, add the dressing and stir until combined. Fold in the cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Recipes from Week 2 CSA Basket

I haven't done much cooking this past week because of a particularly bad bout of headaches (I've seriously been plagued with a headache for 6 days now). What has been made follows:

rhubarb - grown up rhubarb soda (recipe shared previously)

parsley, garlic, greens (I used lettuce, chard, and beet greens) - Artichoke, Cherry Tomato, and Feta Salad with Artichoke-Pesto Crostini

Italian sausage stromboli with tomato, feta, and greens salad (Huz made this - I don't have the recipes to link or post, sorry)

I made an excellent ice cream and, even though it has nothing to do with the CSA ingredients, I have to share it with you.

I adapted the recipe from here, but added salt because what's better than a slightly salty, caramel ice cream studded with toasted pecans and chopped dark chocolate truffles? Nothing, I tell you. NOTHING is better.

Turtle Ice Cream

1/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup sugar
3 cups heavy cream
1 Tbs pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1.5 cups pecan halves
8 Lindt Lindor dark chocolate truffles, chopped (or use high-quality sweet chocolate)

Put water and the sugar in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, and cook over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Increase the heat to high and boil until the sugar turns a light brown caramel color, 3 to 5 minutes. Do not stir, but swirl the pan occasionally so the caramel cooks evenly.

Remove the caramel from the heat and carefully pour in the cream. The mixture WILL bubble up violently, then solidify. Simply return it to low heat and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the caramel dissolves, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the vanilla and salt. Pour into a container and chill.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toast the pecans on a baking sheet for 8 to 10 minutes until crisp and fragrant. Cool, chop, mix with the diced chocolate and store in the freezer until ready to use.

Freeze the caramel mixture in an ice cream freezer according to the manufacturer's directions. When somewhat frozen, add the cold chopped pecans and chocolate and mix in completely. Transfer to quart containers and store in the freezer until ready to serve.

ENJOY!

(Sorry, no pictures. I blame the headaches.)

CSA Week Two

In the basket:

leek
2 heads of lettuce
swiss chard
celery
spearmint
parsley
beets
beet greens
rhubarb
green onions
garlic
(alas, no eggs or bread this week)

For dinner (thanks to Huz):

Mixed Greens with Crispy Bacon, Goat Cheese and Fried Egg

He also made 2 lovely rounds of black walnut bread. Delicious.



For an after dinner beverage, I made myself a rhubarb soda spiked with tequila, which I derived from here. Unfortunately, the rhubarb we get here in Tennessee isn't red - it's green - hence the difference between my drink photo and the one on the other site.

3/4 cups rhubarb, chopped
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cups water
club soda
Ice

1. Place rhubarb, sugar, and 1½ cups of water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cook for about 15 minutes.
2. Turn off the heat and allow to cool. Strain syrup into a large jar*.
3. To make each soda, measure ¼ cup rhubarb syrup into a glass. Add enough sparkling water to fill the glass ⅔ full. Stir to mix, then add ice.**

*This is where I got smart. I used the leftover chunks of rhubarb (that were sweetened by the syrup-making process) and slightly smashed them into a lovely, warm compote. I'm going to serve it over butter pecan ice cream I just bought from a local ice creamery (I'm going to make ice cream this week but I can't wait to try this rhubarb compote!).

**This is also where I got smart and added a splash of tequila to the drink. Hiccup!

Recipes from Week One CSA Basket

Beet Greens - Beet Greens and Feta Pasta

Garlic Scapes and Leeks - Korean Beef Barbecue with Toasted Sesame Salt

Lettuce - Field Greens with Red Chili Dressing

Garlic Scapes, Garlic Chives, Stale Bread - Sausage, Fontina, and Bell Pepper Strata

CSA Week One

We're going into our second year with Barefoot Farmer, a biodynamic, crunchy-as-you-can-get farm in northern Tennessee. I truly enjoy the community experience as I pick up my share every Monday after work. Meeting others who love to eat fresh, local produce in my community is really uplifting, as is eating the food!

We missed the first week, due to our Colorado vacation, so this week was our first.









In the basket:

fresh eggs
a gorgeous loaf of bread
2 heads of lettuce
loose leaf lettuce
thyme
parsley
spearmint
leek
celery
beet greens
garlic chives
garlic scapes

I decided to do something with the beet greens and found this Beet Greens and Feta Pasta recipe which was delicious, especially accompanied by buttered bread.

Last night, Huz used the garlic scapes and leek in Bon Appetit's Korean Beef Barbecue with Toasted Sesame Salt and the lettuce in their Field Greens with Red Chili Dressing. Wonderful.

Nashville CSA Experience 2006 - 2008

(Originally posted here on 6/19/08.)

Huz and I joined another CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) this year and have been receiving freshly picked, organic, local produce for three weeks now. I love it. Every Monday after work I go to the pick-up spot and pull dirt-laden veggies out of baskets and put them into my own. It was off-putting at first, getting my hands so dirty, but I've come to really like the gritty feel of soil because it reminds me of where my food comes from. Forget the pristine, chlorine-sprayed grocery store produce neatly packaged in plastic wrap. It's not real to me that way; it feels like produced, plastic Barbie food. I prefer knowing that the vegetables my family eats are picked the day before by local farmers who care about the produce and the land that they tend. Further, the flavors of fresh produce are beyond compare. Who knew that lettuce actually has flavor? It tastes like spring and makes my mouth a happy place. This article I read this morning talks about garlic scapes which is a common CSA veggie in early harvest. If you have a chance to join a farm, I highly recommend it, even if only for a year. The experience is well worth it.

..............

(Originally posted here on 9/24/06.)

Dude. I'm up to 39 dead fruit flies now and I haven't even added more booze or soap to the dish. This is the best bug-killing method, EVER.

Don't you love it when you have a new couple over to your house and you end up laughing and sharing like you've known each other for years? I do. Huz made a kick ass meal, as usual, for our new friends last night which included roasted pork tenderloin in a mushroom gravy, butternut squash and red pepper casserole, and broccoli rabe from our CSA. It was magical. Good food set atop a nicely laid out table with freshly pressed linens and flickering candles in amber glass; laughter and good natured bantering between spouses; red wine warming our throats on its way down; sharing our his/herstory which reminds me of just how special my marriage really is; being affirmed that photography may just be something I'm good at...it was just lovely.

............

(Originally posted here on 6/28/06.)

I really enjoy belonging to a CSA. Check out the awesome organic veggies we got last weekend (Why so much? Cuz we got our friends' share while they're Down Under.)