My husband can eat ice cream any time of the year. Any time of the day. It can be -3F in the frozen tundra and he would be in the mood for ice cream.
So when it came time to pick something for this month's Secret Recipe Club, I knew I could treat the man with some ice cream. My secret food blogger was Nichole from Cookaholic Wife. She's got an awesome blog full of all sorts of recipes. We're also about the same age as me and discovered her cooking talents later on in life in her early 20's (same as myself, as well!). I could definitely relate to this girl!
I came across her recipe for Coconut Ice Cream and knew I had to try it! I've been wanting to experiment with coconut milk as part of a base for ice cream for quite some time. The only thing I added to the recipe was a little blackberry reduction to make it a little fruity and festive. The result was a creamy, delicious, coconut laden ice cream that was gone in a matter of hours! It seriously took longer to make and freeze than it did to completely devour.
1 & 1/2 cup heavy cream 1 cup milk 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes 14 oz. can of coconut milk 8 oz. blackberries 1 tablespoon sugar
In a small saucepan, heat your blackberries and sugar under medium heat. Cook until the blackberries soften and start to break down. Reduce by half. Strain mixture through a chinois or fine-mesh strainer. You should end up with about 1/4-1/2 cup. Let mixture cool to room temperature.
Shake the coconut milk before you open it to emulsify it. If you don't shake it, you'll end up with coconut water on the bottom and coconut cream on the top. In a medium bowl, combine the coconut milk, milk, coconut flakes, and blackberry reduction. Mix until smooth and a pale purplish color. Refrigerate for 4 hours.
Process in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. Freeze mixture for about 3-4 hours before serving.
The result ended up being one of the creamiest ice creams we've ever made. My husband, who claims to not like any fruit-laden desserts, ate every last drop. So it gets the Garbe approval!
I'll definitely be trying more of Nichole's recipes!
I always joke that this is my day... well, because my last name is "Labor". I know, I'm a dork.
I thought I'd celebrate the day by sharing a special treat with you guys!
This was the first time I had busted out my ice cream maker all season long. And I had to make it perfect if I was going to get Andy to like it - he's got this crazy belief that "dessert should not include fruit" - so if I was going to make this, and make him like it - it had to be incredible.
And you know what? He LOVED it! Albeit... he did mix it with a crumbled up brownie and drizzle it with chocolate syrup - but hey, I'll still take it as a win! Me? I enjoy the simple flavors of the peaches, and interesting addition of the cloves. I like to savor every bite of this one, because it truly is one of my favorites!
1-1/3 lbs ripe peaches (about 6), peeled, pitted and coarsely chopped 1/2 cup water 1 tablespoon Triple Sec 1 teaspoon ground cloves 3/4 cup sugar 1/2 cup Greek yogurt 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/2 cup milk 1/2 teaspoon vanilla juice from 1 lime Combine peaches, water, cloves, and Triple Sec in medium nonreactive saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until peaches are soft and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Mix in sugar, and set aside to cool to room temperature.
Add peach mixture to food processor with Greek yogurt, heavy cream, milk, vanilla, and lime juice. Process until smooth. Chill thoroughly in refrigerator, about 6-8 hours. Once chilled, transfer to ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions.
Happy Labor Day guys - I'll be spending the day relaxing and not thinking about having to return to work tomorrow!
So I ran a mile yesterday. At 12:30 in the afternoon. It was 85 F. Needless to say, it was pretty brutal. I managed to finish it in 9:39, so I guess that's not bad for starters, right? It's a tad bit cooler today so maybe I won't feel like death afterwards.
I feel like such a baby complaining about 1 measly mile! I know a lot of you run on a constant basis and are probably laughing at my pathetic complaints, so I'll try to keep them at a minimum =)
Anyway, this isn't the best picture ever, but frankly. I couldn't not share this with you. I should have been more patient and let the brownies firm up a bit more in the fridge (so that they would actually be photogenic - but nothing a scoop of vanilla ice cream can't fix), but instead, they were a big gloopy mess. The tastiest pile of gloop I've ever eaten. So yeah, make the brownies, let them set in the fridge (or not), and come and thank me.
The only thing I changed about it was that I didn't use pecans. Instead, I topped my brownies with rainbow sprinkles, crushed walnuts, and a mixture of white & dark chocolate chips. I was feeling a little gluttonous with the toppings.
But anyway, have a great Wednesday guys! And don't forget, tomorrow is the CSA round-up so if you feel like joining in, e-mail me at mtlabor85@yahoo.com! Thanks again for stopping by =)
One of my favorite parts of our wedding planning is the fact that we'll be having an ice cream bar. Yeah. Ice. Cream. Bar. Need I say more?
And the Comfy Cow here in town will be providing said ice cream bar. The Comfy Cow is known for it's unique flavors like Cookie Monster Dough (jam packed with cookies galore!), Cake Batter Up, Red Velvet (we both swear you can distinctly taste the cake AND icing separately, it's amazing), and Banana Nana Fofana.
But on a recent trip to the Cow, and after a recent blog search (and not to mention this was last week's poll winner), I was after one thing - Freshly Brewed Coffee. Ice Cream. This is definitely one of the best coffee flavored ice creams I've ever had, and I could totally eat the whole quart by myself... but I decided to share and put that sucker in an ice cream pie! So enjoy!
10 Oreos 10 Golden Oreos Pack of Chocolate Graham Crackers (about 10-12) 10 Grasshopper Cookies (they're the Keebler version of Thin Mints) 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Filling:
1 quart coffee-flavored ice cream
Chocolate Ganache Topping:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the oreos, golden oreos, graham crackers, and grasshopper cookies. Pulse until cookies are crumbled finely. Obviously, I was cleaning out all of the cookies from the pantry. Feel free to just stick with one cookie for the crust if you'd like, but I thought the crust was pretty awesome with all of the different types - or maybe I just had that Cookie Monster Dough ice cream on the brain and decided to implement it into the crust.
Add the melted butter to the cookies and pulse until the mixture resembles wet sand.
Pat the mixture into a 9 inch spring-form pan, going along the sides, as well.
Bake the crust for about 10 minutes or until slightly hard. Place on a cooling rack to cool completely. Then place in freezer for 30 minutes to harden up.
Meanwhile, remove ice cream from freezer and sit at room temperature to soften.
You can also make the ganache during this time, as well. Place heavy whipping cream in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and add chocolate chips. Let sit for about 5 minutes. Stir in tablespoon of butter until mixture is smooth. Let cool slightly.
Remove crust from freezer. Dump ice cream into a large bowl and stir until it becomes smooth and spreadable. Spread the ice cream on the chilled crust. Top with ganache and chill for at least 3 hours.
Andy and I both loved this pie! The jam-packed cookie crust went perfectly with the awesome coffee ice cream. And it's not just limited to coffee ice cream. The possibilities are endless with this one! As the days get hotter, this is the best way to end the day and cool off =)
Hope you guys have a great Wednesday and see you all tomorrow!
It's Friday! Woop. Woop! The only bummer about Fridays, for the next 11 weeks, is that Andy has a class until 10pm. Yup. Meaning that my Friday nights will pretty much consist of me hanging out with the dogs at home. I'm so exciting, aren't I?!
With the exception of this Friday night. My friend Kendra and I just had dinner at Varanese (you know, my fave restaurant in all of Louisville). Needless to say, I'm in a rather food-induced sort of coma. It was so friggin' good.
Yeah, I waited until the last minute to post the last poll winner, didn't I? I promise, I try to post them earlier, but life gets in the way. Busy busy, as can be. But you'll forgive me, I'm sure. After you see how awesome this ice cream is. =) Oh... and don't forget to vote for the new poll down below!
1/2 cup mixture of black and white sesame seeds 3 tablespoon honey
In a small saucepan, heat the honey until warm. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
In a large saucepan, heat the milk, sugar, and salt until warm and sugar is dissolved.
Pour the heavy cream into a large bowl and place a metal strainer over top. Pour the honey into the cream and stir until combined.
In a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks until combined. Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the egg yolk bowl, whisking constantly. Then transfer egg yolk mixture back to sauce pan over medium heat. Stir constantly with a heatproof spatula until mixture thickens and coats spatula.
Pour the custard into the strainer over the heavy cream and stir until mixed together. Place bowl in an ice bath to cool. Once at room temperature, cover mixture with plastic wrap and allow to sit in refrigerator overnight.
The next day, melt the caramel candies with 1 tablespoon of heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl. (30 second intervals until caramel is smooth should do it). Let cool to room temperature.
Take custard mixture out of the fridge and prepare in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions, about 30 minutes or so. About a minute or two before it is done, drizzle cooled caramel into machine to create a "swirl".
To prepare sesame brittle, heat 3 tablespoons of honey in a sauce pan until warm. Add sesame seeds and fold in until coated with honey.
Preheat oven to 350 F and line a rimmed baking sheet with foil.
Spread honey-sesame mixture over foil in an even layer. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until golden. Watch it carefully because it can burn rather quickly. Let cool until hardened. Then break up into pieces.
In a medium skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Slice banana into 1/2 inch slices. Add bananas to skillet and fry until warmed and slightly browned/carmelized. Remove from skillet and allow to cool slightly.
To assemble sundaes, place 3 scoops of ice cream in a bowl. Top with semi-warm bananas (in my opinion, there is nothing better than warm bananas and ice cream!) and sesame seed brittle. Drizzle chocolate sauce on top, if desired. Try not to eat the whole thing. I dare you.
This was awesome. Damn awesome, if I do say so myself. I loved the ice cream. The honey and caramel were two different dimensions of sweetness that paired so well together. Try it out. I know you'll love it!
Remember when I said there were 3 winners for the last poll? And I said I would post them all? Yeah, I got a little busy with slurries of Making A Blog Video, Celebrating Andy's new job, and just life in general. So you guys get a double feature today with the other 2 winners (the 1st one was the Samoas!).
Now some might argue that Donuts and Chocolate Milkshakes don't go together, but I beg to differ. Most people drink milk with donuts, right? I know we do, at least. So why not amp up the milk and add some ice cream and have yourself a milkshake? Sounds pretty darn compatible to me! Hehe. Either way, both of these recipes are winners, whether you keep them separate or share them together!
Hope you guys have a really awesome weekend! I know we will... starting with tonight's dinner at The Village Anchor! And don't forget to vote in the new poll... I'm in an ice cream mood!
Donuts:
Ingredients: Adapted from My Kitchen Snippet's Recipe
1 & 1/2 cups flour 1 tablespoon sugar pinch of salt 1 teaspoon active dry yeast 1/2 cup milk 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened 2 cups vegetable oil, for frying powdered sugar, optional
In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Combine well.
Slowly pour in the milk and mix until a sticky dough is formed. Then incorporate softened butter into the dough.
Knead dough on a lightly floured surface for a couple of minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Place in a clean, greased bowl and cover with a warm kitchen towel until slightly risen, about 1 hour. My dough didn't rise that much, or well... I was a little antsy and didn't want to wait that long for it to double. You can let it rise longer if you want, but my finished product turned out pretty delicious, so if you're impatient like me, then this is fine.
Pull off small pieces of dough and form small 1 inch round balls. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with warm kitchen towel and allow to slightly rise for 1 more hour.
In a large cast iron skillet, heat 2 cups of vegetable oil under medium high heat. You'll know when the oil is ready when you can add a small piece of dough and it sizzles.
Add dough balls in batches (I did about 5 per batch) and fry for about 1-2 minutes per side, or until donuts are golden brown on both sides.
Transfer cooked donuts to paper-towel lined bowl to cool slightly.
When all donuts are complete, take a paper bag (or you can place them in a large bowl to toss) and add donuts to bag. Pour desired amount of powdered sugar in bag and close. Shake until you coat the donuts all over.
I loved how the powdered sugar sort of melted on the still-warm donuts. It was perfect. They were very reminiscent of a funnel cake in donut form. And we all know how much I love funnel cakes. Next time I may try filling these babies with jelly or chocolate cream or something delicious!
Chocolate Malt Milkshakes: Adapted from Smells Like Home's Recipe
Chocolate Malt Sauce:
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream 3 tablespoons light corn syrup 2 tablespoons chocolate malt Ovaltine 2 tbsp dark brown sugar pinch of salt 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 1 tablespoon unsalted butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For milkshakes (makes 2 - perfect for when your fiance refuses to share):
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon clear vanilla
For the chocolate malt sauce, add cream, corn syrup, Ovaltine, brown sugar, salt, and 3/4 cup of chocolate chips to a small saucepan under medium heat. Bring to a boil and stir until chocolate has melted. Turn heat down to low and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, vanilla, and remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chips. Let the sauce cool for about 10 minutes.
To store extra sauce, cool the sauce completely and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat in a microwave or over low heat on the stovetop.
For each milkshake, I added 1/2 the ice cream, desired amount of chocolate sauce, and milk to a cocktail shaker and used my immersion blender to blend it up until smooth.
Drizzle some chocolate sauce on the inside portion of some chilled glasses (we got a little messy with this) if you want and pour blended shakes into each glass.
Quickly whip up some fresh whipped cream (or use some pre-made - I won't judge!) by whisking heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla together in a bowl until soft peaks form. Top each shake with the cream and get ready to fully indulge in a glass of happiness.
I could see Andy's permanent smile just glow on his face as he ate this. He loved every bite and even tried to sneak a bit of mine after he finished with his!
So yeah, lots of good treats that can prep you guys for some good times this weekend! And I just realized a genius idea for the remaining chocolate sauce (because yes, you will have leftover chocolate sauce unless you just load your milkshakes with it!) - it would be perfect drizzled over those donuts or inside as a gluttonous filling! See... I told you milkshakes and donuts go well together! Don't forget to vote in the poll!
I want ice cream. And ice cream sundae, to be exact. So help me decide what flavor ice cream to use and I'll surprise you with a delicious sundae!! Have a great weekend guys!
It's 31 degrees outside and what am I posting about? Yup. Ice Cream.
And ice cream is something I need right now.
Today was a Monday at work. A typical Monday. A typical stressful Monday. Of course, we can't have a week where everyone who is scheduled actually comes to work, so no surprise that we had someone call in today. And of course, there's the far too common person that decided that they can make their own schedule and come and go as they please.... but I digress.
Today was also the first day of the spring semester... and boy am I in for it. My 2nd level Spanish class is ENTIRELY in Spanish. Yeah, I practically flew through the first level, but no English? No me gusta!
And I don't even want to think about my 400 level Biochemistry class that starts tomorrow.
So seriously. You'll understand why I need some ice cream. Especially this ice cream.
Pear-Caramel won out the poll on the Friday before last's poll and I wasn't that surprised. It was kind of the most normal of the choices and it was somewhat what I was wanting to do anyway!
And speaking of the poll... do you guys like that? Should it be up longer? Should it be put in a different place? Do you not care at all? Some feedback would be great!
Anyway, let's get even colder with some ice cream!
Ingredients: From David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop
3 ripe pears (I used Bosc), peeled, cored, and cut into cubes 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar 2 cups heavy whipping cream pinch of salt one quick squeeze of half of a lemon
In a large non-reactive saucepan, spread the sugar in an even layer. Watch carefully and cook under medium high heat. When the sugar begins to liquefy and darken, gently stir sugar with a heatproof spatula, helping the rest of the sugar melt.
As soon as the sugar is a deep amber color, stir in the pear cubes. Some of the caramel will harden, but as the pears cook and they release moisture, stir the caramel and melt the hard pieces in the pear juice. Cook the pears for about 10 minutes, or until they are cooked through.
Remove the saucepan from heat and stir in 1/2 cup of the cream, and then mix in the remaining cream. Add salt and quickly squeeze in a little juice from half of a lemon.
Let mixture cool to room temperature. Puree in a blender or food processor. Press mixture through a mesh strainer to get a smooth liquid.
Chill mixture thoroughly in refrigerator for at least 4-6 hours and then process in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions.
Seriously. This is a major pick-me-up on any type of day. Bad day. Sad day. Stressful day. Happy Day. Cold day. Hot day. No matter the day... this. ice. cream. is. good.
I love these little organic sandwich cookies that I get at the grocery and they were delicious when using them to dip the ice cream. Who needs tortilla chips and salsa when I have ice cream and sandwich cookies? Not this girl! Hope you guys try this one out. You won't be sorry! Enjoy guys!
Happy Friday guys! Definitely glad that the weekend is here! I've got to work tomorrow night, but I have Sunday and Monday off, so it won't be too bad! And no school work to think about, so hey, I'm in good spirits!
I was privileged enough to be a part of a Thanksgiving blogger compilation over at Guerrilla Gourmet. They did a "cornucopia project" on how people from all 50 states celebrate Thanksgiving and I was lucky enough to represent Kentucky. They didn't get posts from all 50 states, but they got 40 of them, so that's not half bad! So hope you guys check out the post and see how different parts of the country celebrate the common tradition!
And, as promised, here's the almond recipe that tied with last week's poll!
2 cups unsweetened coconut milk 1 cup whole milk 1 cup light brown sugar 1/8 teaspoon salt 1-3 teaspoons of almond extract (depending on how deep of a flavor you want!) 3 egg yolks 1 tablespoon coconut rum
Coconut Tortillas & Fruit Salsa
2 flour tortillas 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes 1/4 cup sugar, divided 1 egg white 1 mango, peeled and diced 5 large strawberries, diced
To make the ice cream, combine coconut milk, whole milk, brown sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan under medium heat. Stir in desired amount of almond extract (a little goes a long way!) and bring to a simmer. Stir until the brown sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cover saucepan with aluminum foil. Allow mixture to steep for about 30 minutes.
Whisk the egg yolks in a large bowl and slowly whisk in the coconut milk mixture. Return the mixture to the saucepan and heat under medium heat until it reaches a temperature of about 160 F. This took about 6-10 minutes for me. Cool the mixture at room temperature for 1 hour. It will resemble a custard. Chill in the fridge for an additional 2 hours.
Slowly stir in coconut rum into custard mixture. Process the custard in an ice cream machine for about 25-30 minutes. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for at least an hour.
In the meantime, you can start on the coconut chips and fruit salsa. Preheat your oven to 375 F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and cut each tortilla into 8 wedges. Assemble onto parchment paper.
In a small food processor, combine coconut flakes and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Pulse for about 30 seconds.
Beat the egg white in a small bowl until it is foamy. Brush the egg white onto the tortillas and sprinkle with desired amount of coconut/sugar mixture.
Bake in oven until tortillas are crisp and golden, about 10-15 minutes. Let cool until ready for use.
To make fruit salsa, combine mangoes and strawberries in medium bowl and sprinkle with a tablespoon or two of sugar. Mix well.
Scoop ice cream into a bowl or, in my case, a margarita glass, and top with fruit salsa. Place about 2 or 3 coconut tortilla chips in ice cream as well, and dig on in!
Although I didn't use actual almonds, the almond extract provided such a deep flavor to this ice cream, that it was definitely the star. There were many textures in this dessert, and you would think one would overpower the other, but the crunch of the tortillas, the creaminess of the ice cream, and the sweet bites of fruit all worked together as one, shining together. Who says you can't have ice cream in the winter time? In the words of Andy... "ice cream is any time food. breakfast, lunch, or dinner. ice cream is good any time.'
