Here are some pictures of mint ice cream I recently made. I used the non-egg base and steeped the milk in mint before adding it to the ice cream (let it cool completely). I usually like homemade ice cream best on Day 1, but this one was much better on Day 2 after the mint flavor had more of a chance to soak in.
Mint before steeping.
Mint added to the milk
Ice cream with a little mint garnish.
We’ve been experimenting with good backpacking food. We received a dehydrator for Christmas (thanks Mac & Molly) and Robert has enjoyed using it to make some interesting food for the back country.
Before the dehydrator, we did a mac and cheese and it was amazing. Now it’s just about all I want for dinner when we backpack, so Robert is having a hard time convincing me to test that dehydrator 🙂
We just bring the basic Kraft Shells and Cheese and whatever we want to add to it:
I LOVE s’mores! But I replace the graham crackers with nutter butters and the chocolate with white chocolate…so good! So after a recent camping trip we had some nutter butters leftover so I decided to make nutter butter ice cream. No pictures (sorry) but here’s how I did it:
Use this base recipe.
Add 1/3-1/2 c crunchy peanut butter. I use a homogenized PB (not the kind that separates). Add this slowly after all the other ingredients are mixed.
Add 8 crushed nutter butters at the end of the freezing cycle before placing into the freezer.
I’ve also made this ice cream without nutter butters and it’s a really good, creamy peanut butter ice cream.
Cheers,
K
The great thing about making ice cream so often is that it’s not such a daunting task. It’s really quite easy to make for a quick dessert after a weeknight meal with friends. When the weather is warm (we don’t have AC) it’s a little more difficult to do it quickly, but it’s still very yummy and adds that special homemade feel.
I usually make ice cream for our weekly croquet gathering, but this week I wanted to make ice cream for some friends who joined us for a weeknight dinner at home. I wanted something that was easy but a little different. I thought about adding berries or simply making vanilla. BUT, we forgot the berries at the store and I felt like plain, vanilla was not very exciting. So, I went with cinnamon and it turned out really well!
I used the “With Eggs” base recipe and added 1.5 t cinnamon with the vanilla. Be sure you whisk all the ingredients very thoroughly so that the cinnamon is evenly distributed. It would have been fabulous with a crunchy, little cookie. Anyone have cookie suggestions that might go with cinnamon ice cream? Yummy!
Cheers,
K
This week’s ice cream flavor is Orange Creamsicle. Last year I tried to make this and it’s the only one of my ice creams that I considered a failure. I tried to make it with orange juice, but in order to get enough orange flavor I had to add so much OJ that it wasn’t very creamy in the end. So here’s my second try.
I started with the “non-eggs” base recipe.
Ingredient adjustments:
Increase the vanilla to 1 1/2 tsp
Add: 3/4 to 1 tsp orange extract
Add: Orange zest from 3/4 of an orange
Instructions:
Whisk all ingredients, except the orange zest, together until the sugar is dissolved. This is easy and quick to do by hand. Add the orange zest and whisk until evenly distributed and there are no clumps. Place in ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions. Enjoy!
I forgot to take pictures, sorry!
NOTE: This makes a pretty small batch, so you may want to double or even triple the recipe.
Cheers,
K
This is the ice cream recipe that doesn’t need a disclaimer! The other one, you know, the one with eggs, is generally creamier though. Read that post for more specific info on ingredients and portion sizes. This recipe makes a particularly small batch, so adjust accordingly.
Ingredients:
1 cup milk
1 cup cream
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 t salt
1/2 t vanilla
Instructions:
Whisk ingredients together. Pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions to freeze. Enjoy!
Cheers,
K
For the last 5 years I’ve been commuting by bus or by foot. In reality, the first four years we lived in Seattle I didn’t commute downtown much because I was too busy traveling all over the states. Anyway, last summer I decided to try commuting by bike. I work in downtown Seattle, which is only about 1.5 miles from our home. Seems like an easy commute, right? Wrong! The trouble is the elevation change (about 500 feet). The ride TO work is all downhill and the absolute fastest way to get to work. It’s faster than driving, bussing, or walking. If you know me at all you know that I am NOT a morning person and always running late in the mornings. So, it keeps me riding the bike to work. The ride home was pretty rough when I first started, but it’s gotten much easier and quicker. I commuted on my old mountain bike for about 9 months, so Robert bought me a new bike for Christmas. Here’s what I bought…
The kit included black handle bars and black cable casing, but I wanted something a little more fun and went with green everything. Even the pedals!
The rack and basket are also add-on, as well as the flowers 🙂 There was a big debate about whether I should go with a basket or panniers, but panniers can’t get these beautiful flowers home from work.
I’m planning to take this bike for many adventures this summer so stay tuned.
Cheers,
K
PS: Dad, I bet your bike can’t do that!