Let’s make some ice cream!

What’s more fun than making ice cream every day? Making two flavors with a friend!

Lora came over Tuesday night and brought her ice cream maker so we could crank out not one, but two ice creams! It was so fun that I completely forgot to take pictures until the very end. We also chose two pretty complicated ice cream flavors to make, thus the small amount of concentration that was not used in ice cream-crafting was used to catch up.

Lora suffered the same fate of all who visit me, getting lost. My apartment seems to be hidden by an invisible force field that leads people in the wrong direction away from my house. After a few wrong turns, Lora made it to my apartment and we started our ice cream making.

First, we made Scarlet and Earl Grey. This mixes Earl Grey (a black tea) ice cream with sugar-plumped cherries. I made a simple syrup that was poured over the cherries and left to cool to room temperature before Lora arrived.

We measured, mixed, boiled, and stirred the ingredients together and then let the strong tea steep in the cream while we made butterscotch sauce. The sauce for our second ice cream, Gooey Butter Cake, had simple ingredients but complicated instructions. This was the most tense part of the evening while we waited for the mixture to froth, form “glassine” bubbles (not even joking!), turn dark, burn a little bit but not burn too much before we could add the cream which I almost forgot to have ready and had to run to the fridge to measure out in order to add it at the exact, right moment. But we made it and it was beautiful and delicious.

This mixture was poured over pieces of cake that I had made over the weekend while dog sitting. The cake soaked up all the gooey butterscotch while we strained the earl grey ice cream and cooked the base for our second ice cream. Then we left the custard’s in an ice bath and sat outside in my garden (which is on the verge of becoming a jungle) under strings of glass bulb lights. We chatted while the breeze kept us cool and the air conditioner drowned out our conversation.

We spun the ice cream, talked some more, and were rewarded with…

plumped, sweet cherries that we layered into the creamy Earl Grey ice cream,

smooth butter ice cream that we mixed syrupy cake into,

and ice cream-lined freezer bowls that we scraped clean and ate.

Lora gave me permission to report that the ice creams were so good that she inadvertently drooled into the ice cream bowl while scraping out the last spoonful. It was so good we didn’t want to waste a drop.

Coming up on Friday…Sweet Basil and Honeyed Pine Nuts.

Day 11—Watermelon Lemonade Sorbet

Refreshing summertime flavor is how I would describe this treat. This is the first sorbet I have made and it was so simple to put together. Cut some fruit, make some simple syrup, and chill it. Super easy until I had to spin it in the ice cream maker. The instruction was to spin it until it looked like soft whip cream. If spun too long it would be crumbly. Mine was crumbly. I spun it too long, but it never quite matched the description in the book.
So, the sorbet was crumbly but it was good.
After they tried the sorbet, I tasked my co-teachers to complete the statement I wish I were eating this…
I wish I was eating this on a black sand beach in Hawaii.
I wish I was eating this after a hot day cutting the grass and doing yard work.
I wish I was eating this on the beach in Santa Cruz or Monterey, CA.
I wish I was eating this on my two-year anniversary vacation with my husband in Old Salem, NC under the Carolina blue sky.
I wish I was eating this on the beach sitting under an umbrella wiggling my toes in the sand.
I wish I was eating this by the pool with a book in my hand, a floppy hat on my head and the smell of a grill in the background.
Well, even if we can’t get away, I think a spoonful of this sorbet gave us a taste of vacation.

Almost the Darkest Chocolate Ice Cream Ever!

 

It’s day 10 in my journey toward making 30 flavors of Jeni’s ice cream. I don’t think I’ve ever been on a more delicious journey! And today’s flavor is one that I’ve been extremely excited to make—Dark Chocolate.

In Jeni Britton-Bauer’s book this flavor is named The Darkest Chocolate Ice Cream in the World. The flavor I made is almost the darkest chocolate ice cream in the world. It’s only almost because I did not seek out top quality cocoa. Instead I used a common grocery store brand which lackes the depth of flavor a top-notch brand would have given.

But did that stop us from loving every bite? No it did not. This flavor has become Greta’s favorite, above Savannah Buttermint, and Miss Tee, who only got two bites, complained it was not enough. My co-workers pictures below tell the rest of the story.

What’s up next? Watermelon Lemonade Sorbet

Time to get away!

Vacation!

Okay, two days is not exactly long enough to be called a vacation. Let’s call it a much-needed mini-break . A mini-break followed by a weekend of dog sitting. The dog sitting will cover my vacation. It should go towards my credit card, but it won’t.

And what amazing locale have I chosen? I went to Sidney.

Australia?

I wish, but since you know I only had two days you have probably also guessed that I am not typing this from my penthouse hotel room with a view of the Sydney Opera House. The Sidney I speak of is much closer to home and significantly less exotic.

I traveled a short hour and a half west and slightly north of Columbus to the small town of Sidney, Ohio. This Sidney does not have an Opera House, but it does have a drive-in movie theater, which is just another kind of cool.

Why did I choose this random town? Because of its courthouse. No, I’m not planning a career change, not one that involves law school and a bar exam, nor do I plan on committing a crime any time soon. I chose this town and this courthouse as the setting of a book I plan to write. Just check this courthouse out…

Can’t you just picture a John Grisham novel coming to life here?

The building was started in 1881 and covers one city block in the middle of Sidney. And no, I’m not going to write a Grisham-like novel. I mean, do you even KNOW me?

Directly across the street is this century-old diner (I think the pie I ate there may have been made a century ago as well, but I convinced myself that it’s all about the experience and choked it down). President Bush (the younger one) visited here during one of his campaigns, as the dozen or so framed pictures on the wall verify.

I decided to stay at a Bed and Breakfast. I hoped it would give me more of a townie feel than staying at a plain-old hotel.

The name of the B and B is the Great Stone Castle. Aren’t small towns great? If a house has a turret on top it can be a castle. Well, a castle it wasn’t (not that I expected it to be since I was still in Ohio and the US for that matter), but it was a nice, century-old house decorated in the Civil War/Victorian style. It did have moss covered steps that seemed to have been built in 1545 and would have been right at home in a castle. Steps which I walked down on my way to sight-see. There was probably a much easier, less heart-stopping way, but when staying in a castle you must always descend the moss-covered steps. Believe me, it’s a rule.

Inside the Great Stone Castle B&B it was really lovely, cozy and only slightly creepy. (Note the hallway full of dolls).

I don’t know why, since I never watched any movies about dolls brutally murdering people, but ever since I was a child old dolls have always freaked me out.

My room was lovely, large and had two beds! I just used one though. The Christmas tree did give me pause. I mean, it’s not even July!

After an almost uneventful night (it’s not like the dog attacked me, he just snarled and barked like he most likely was going to attack me, and to give them credit they did have a sign posted that there was a dog on the premises. I just didn’t know they meant Cujo!) and a semi-good night sleep which was only broken by me waking up in the middle of the night, terrified that someone was in my room (I may have screamed, but I hope I didn’t) I went down for breakfast.

Breakfast was the highlight of my stay. It was made and served by a friendly lady from China named Ji. She made me some amazing pancakes and perfectly crisp bacon and we talked about Asian markets in Columbus. It was delightful.

After breakfast I went downtown, met the spunky security guard at the courthouse and wandered through its lime-green painted halls. Then clicked some more pictures around town.

 

I discovered two things about Sidney as I walked around the town. #1…

they must have been really freaked about nuclear holocaust in the 50’s. I found two fallout shelters, one in the courthouse and the other at the elementary school.

#2…they value history. The town has built around it, protected it and added to it.  It’s a beautiful, old town.

And here’s a bonus #3…a town that has Lora Innis’ graphic novel The Dreamer in their library has to be pretty awesome.

Day 6-9—a whole lotta flavors

I know many of you are quite concerned that I have not been posting. Rest easy, I haven’t given up, gotten lazy or fallen off a cliff. Truly I’ve been hard at work making scrumptious ice cream. But I got tired of writing “so and so said this ice cream was the best thing she had ever experienced.” I wanted to shake things up and challenge myself. So, I decided to make a movie instead.

First, I want to say this week was full of some incredible flavors.

Strawberry Buttermilk was light and creamy. I made Backyard Mint with chocolate mint from my very own backyard. It was refreshing and even better after I threw in some melted chocolate! Buckeye State tasted just like a Buckeye, and I was glad I had taken it all to school because I could have eaten an entire container. For real!

And then there was Salty Caramel. I knew this one would be a challenge when the recipe began with a warning and detailed explanation of how to make the caramel. So, I took the utmost care with this ice cream, double-checked the recipe at just the wrong moment, and poof, ended up with Smoky Salty Caramel. I won’t say burnt, but maybe I should. My tasters either loved it or hated it and it was decided that this was a wonderful treat for those of us who enjoy a good burnt marshmallow.

Well three out of four ain’t bad, especially when some loved all four. Nonetheless, I will be repeating Salty Caramel in the near future (and serving it to my mom who has never tried it and has requested a tasting). What can I say? Ice cream making, just like everything else in life is a process.

Another process I began to learn about this week is home movie editing. This is my first foray into the world of YouTube and movie making in general. When I first had the thought to make a video I briefly wondered what music I would put to it. I could slow down the film and play At Last by Ella Jenkins, or I could go for an upbeat song by a band like Temper Trap. And then, being the lawyer’s daughter that I am, I realized copyright would be a problem. I began the incredibly long journey of trying to find a song that would pair well with an ice cream montage. Finally, I found the song Wind in Her Hair by Motorama  

Wind In Her Hair (Motorama) / CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 at the site www.freemusicarchive.org. There’s some good music there, some strange music too! And the best part is it’s quality music that’s free!

 

Ice Cream break with Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home!

Now, I’m taking a break from ice cream for a few days and going on vacation (pictures and comments tomorrow!)

Here’s a look at next weeks flavors! And don’t forget to vote for your favorite ice cream, today’s the last day.

Monday—Sweet Basil and Honeyed Pine Nut Ice Cream

Tuesday—The Darkest Chocolate in the World Ice Cream

Wednesday—Scarlet and Earl Grey Ice Cream (made with Lora!)

Thursday—Watermelon Lemon Sorbet

Friday—Gooey Butter Cake Ice Cream

Pause for a sigh…I know, I can’t wait!

Day 5—Chamomile Chardonnay

5 days down—25 to go! And so far it has been a lot of fun.

Today’s ice cream was too alcoholic to bring to work, so I invited Brooke and Jo Ann over to try it. The perfect way to end the week, amazing food, good friends, James McAvoy and ice cream laced with wine. (Just to clarify, James McAvoy was not at my house, we watched Penelope because Brooke had never seen it and I take every opportunity I can to watch movies with him as the star.)

So, I drove through traffic to get us dinner from Aladdin’s and this is why…

This food is so good, especially the hot sauce. It makes me want to forsake grocery shopping and just buy food from Aladdin’s.

So we ate dinner, took a brief (and I mean brief) tour of my condo…

Then ate some ice cream. But not too much. Because it was good. But not GOOOOOOD!

It was fruity with a hint of floral notes. Sweet and creamy with a tang of Chardonnay. Not one that I would make again anytime soon, but still tasty. Especially the next day when I topped a roasted peach with a scoop of it. Now that was gooood.

Moving on to next week, I am off on Thursday and Friday for some surprise R and R. But I don’t want to make ice cream every day for the rest of my life so I’m doubling up on Monday and we’ll only do four flavors.

So our flavors for this upcoming week are…

Monday – Strawberry Buttermilk and Backyard Mint

Tuesday – Salty Caramel

Wednesday – either Dark Chocolate or Buckeye State, we’ll see what I feel like making

Day 4—Peppermint Dark Chocolate Chip

I went off book for this one. Since I didn’t get my book (sigh) I decided to improvise. I just took the Savannah Buttermint recipe, left out the butter flavoring and added 3 ounces of melted, dark Godiva chocolate. And it turned out pretty well (as it must when Godiva is involved).

Today I left things simple since I needed to go home on my lunch and make ice cream for Friday night. So, no pictures and asked for two word descriptions (not that everyone did that or anyone for that matter, but it’s the thought that counts.)

Kelli Jo: loved the chocolate shavings, nice rounded out mint flavor

Tee: Peppermint patty, chilly and sweet

Dawn: Minty Delicious

Brooke: Minty goodness!

Unknown: Sweet and minty; fresh and breathtaking; vibrant and alive; subtle and ahhh

Unknown: yummy goodness!

Well, three people followed directions. A+ for them! And guess my flavor was a triumph. Hooray for branching out! And for an amazing ice cream base. Tomorrow—the very adult flavor of Chamomile Chardonnay (which will not make an appearance at school, it’s just not responsible! and you should always eat responsibly)

Tomorrow voting will begin for the flavor favorite. Can’t wait to see which flavor will win!

Day Three—Pistachio

After reading the sneak preview yesterday, my co-teachers were super excited to try today’s flavor. Here are the responses mingled with pictures of Brooke and Jo Ann’s first reactions to Pistachio.

Brooke:  Mmmm…this one deserved and got a Dixie cup (and I’d rather have made it a qt. sized container but I guess it’d be nice to share…I guess.

Carmen:  Delicioso! Arrebatador!

Candice:  I like! Good experience, I’ve never had it before.

Jo Ann:  Yummm! Wow, 4 scoops please.

Greta:  Sweet and nutty, delicious.

Christine: I love it! Flavor is super yummy, texture is wonderful on my tongue. Yum yum.

Latonia: I’ve never had pistachio, but this is mmm…mmm…good!

Kelli Jo:  Sweet, nutty flavor explodes in my mouth!!! Ok that sounds gross Kim, sorry. I love the almond extract addition.

Success! And a moment of Zen!

So, did you get your book today? I didn’t! After all that waiting it sold out. And the library copy never came in (probably because my mom retired and doesn’t work there anymore!) Eva, at work, got her copy on Monday after she ordered it on Amazon.com. Why didn’t I order it on Amazon.com? I order everything from that site! I even ordered my vacuum cleaner that was no longer sold in stores from there. I one time purchased 6 containers of coconut oil, so why didn’t I use it to order my book?

Definitely a lapse in judgement. Alas, tomorrow’s flavor will not be a Jeni’s flavor. It will be in the spirit of Jeni’s (using the process), but I am branching out into my own experiment since the book will not be mine until Monday (I ordered it today on Amazon along with Some Kind of Wonderful on DVD.) So, tomorrow’s flavor will be Peppermint Chocolate Chip. We’ll see, I have my doubts.

Day Two—Toasted Rice with a Whiff of Coconut and Black Tea

Honestly, I may not have made this quite right. I may have over-toasted the rice a bit and I may not have cooked the rice long enough. The recipe says to cook until al dente, but I may have stopped a tad too soon. Rice, when I don’t use my rice cooker, is always a bit fussy to me.

There was definitely less of a stampede into my room at nap time today. Whether that is because the flavor did not excite people or they forgot, who knows. But here are the comments of the faithful.

Smoky taste that leads into the smoky flavor. Very rich. Not my favorite, but not horrible. Buttermint still in the lead for this girl! ~Brooke

It is sweet and it could be one that I will really like, but it had a burned rice aftertaste that took from the coconut taste. ~Jo Ann

Flavor was good. A lot like rice pudding. Rice had a nutty texture. I think some toasted coconut would compliment the flavor nicely. ~Christine

Not too bad—texture . But I like the taste of the ice cream. ~Miss Tee

Not so much. ~Linda B.

Not my fave. ~Candice

The rice in the ice cream wasn’t my favorite. It was a strange combo, but fun to try something new! ~Erica

Well, it looks like this one might be a no for future ice cream batches. Whether my botch (never!) or just not people’s cup of tea, who knows. We’ll have to try it at Jeni’s when it’s in season to truly know.

Tomorrow is Pistachio! It should be super tasty. Wednesday is also the release of the highly anticipated cookbook! Which I will pick up after work (save me a copy!) On Friday I will have a poll on the blog for favorite weekly flavor. Vote whether you’ve tried Jeni’s or got to partake of it here with me at work. At the end of our ice cream extravaganza we’ll poll to see which flavor wins favorite ice cream.

Sneak Peak!

I took some Pistachio ice cream over to Lora and Mike’s before we went to see Lord of the Rings—in the theater (I know, it felt a little like five years ago, and then we realized it was actually 10 years ago! Whaaaaat?)

But freaking out about how time keeps ticking as you watch a three hour aside, here is Laura’s reaction to tomorrow’s ice cream flavor.

Day One—Savannah Buttermint

In one word? Lovely!


One tip for the home ice cream maker: if you want small flakes of white chocolate throughout use Green and Black white chocolate, but if you don’t mind large (and some gigantic) chunks of chocolate you can use Ghirardelli—it just doesn’t melt as well.

This is my fourth time making this flavor of ice cream. I made it for work, then my family for Memorial Day, Nathan Hale’s b-day celebration, and today for the first day celebrating yummy ice cream. The third time was by far the best I made, all because I used Green & Black chocolate.
Despite the fact that the white chocolate ended up as huge chunks of chocolate, every time it tasted divine.

Here’s what my co-worker’s had to say.


Love the explosion of flavors in my mouth and the mint taste at the end is refreshing. –Jo Ann


Tablespoon of pure deliciousness. Wow! *Insert sigh of contentment (the planned one scoop turned into two.) Perfect mixture of butter and mint with the surprisingly wonderful chunks of white chocolate. I’d say Day 1 was a success! –Brooke

Buttery, rich amazingness. My taste buds did a dance. Pregnant women craving ice cream…oh, this was just the mother-load of all craving satisfiers. I especially enjoy the white chocolate that comes through at the end. –Kelli Jo



Ice cream is smooth and creamy. It has just the right amount of mintiness. Was good and refreshing.  
 –Erica

Buttermints in ice cream form—delicious! –Christine


Can we say delicioso? Yum yum yum! –Kelly

Soothing and refreshing flavor. Reminds me of pillowmints I often ate as a child. Simply delightful. –Greta


This ice cream was delicious! Yummmmm x 1 million. I absolutely loved it and I will be back to try more everyday! –Dawn


This ice cream was yummy! Crisp and refreshing! –Macy

Well ladies, thanks for the comments! What a great Monday!
Tune in tomorrow for the exotic and interesting Toasted Rice with a whiff of coconut and black tea. Whew! What a mouthful.