Catching up after the weekend

With all the hubbub of the 4th I didn’t have time to blog. It was busy and a blast! But now it’s time to catch up—here goes.

On Friday I made Sweet Basil with Honeyed Pine Nut ice cream. I think it was my favorite so far. This ice cream actually tasted green, and no it didn’t have any LSD in it. The ice cream tasted creamy, fresh and bright and the honeyed pine nuts paired perfectly with the basil flavor. Everyone at school seemed to like it as well, and I think most were surprised by it.

Friday night Kelly and I picked up the left over bread at Panera and took it to the church to bag it up for people who need bread. I was surprised at the amount of bread! For the past few months it has been a measly amount. This weekend (probably due to the holiday) there were bags and boxes full. I was so thankful for Kelly’s help and for her husband’s once he made it through Red, White and Boom traffic.

We finished with the bread around 10:30 and I went home to churn some Salty Caramel ice cream. Since the last batch was burnt and bitter I decided to try it again, this time with the cream at the ready. And it was AMAZING! Wow, I could have eaten the whole tub. Thank goodness I had told my parents I would bring some to our Independence Day lunch on Monday!

Saturday I went to a birthday party for 1 year old twins, my good friend Jenn’s children. They were just adorable and not cranky at all! Someone’s prayer was answered. And we discovered that Jenn is the Martha Stewart of Veggie Tale cakes!

On Monday, after lunch at my parents, I met some friends for fireworks at the Park of Roses.

It honestly felt like Woodstock. The air was hazy (although it was due to homemade fireworks and sparklers instead of marijuana), the band was loud (loud, but not good) and hundreds of hippie-type people swarmed the field to watch the fireworks.

Inspired by our surroundings I made a clover crown (something super fun to make in the summer) and enjoyed the fireworks.

Today was time to go back to work. I wondered where my weekend went and then I sat down and remembered—gardening (so sore from pulling weeds)!Today we took the class to the soccer field to play. I taught the children how to make crowns with weeds (when I say taught I actually mean I made them) and for the first time in three weeks I enjoyed my class again. They need to go to Kindergarten because they are getting a little cheeky, but if they keep up today’s behavior we’ll make it.

Ice cream today was Lime Cardamom and Bangkok Peanut! Creamy, spicy peanut and tangy lime is a great match. Lora once told me that these flavors together are like Pad Thai, and she’s exactly right.

Over the weekend, I also made Ugandan Vanilla Bean and Tres Leches ice cream. I was able to find vanilla beans from Uganda, and when I sliced into one I was glad I had. The seeds smelled so sweet and I scraped out every single seed I could get to. It was so fragrant the whole kitchen filled with wonderful vanilla. And the ice cream is full of flavor.

Tres Leches was less of a success. I made homemade meringues and soaked the cake in sweet coconut syrup. Delicious right? Yes, decadent! But the ice cream didn’t freeze and instead of freezing around the cake it soaked into it. The result is very sweet cake with a bit of sweet ice cream holding it all together. I think next time I might use a basic ice cream recipe instead of the one with evaporated milk and then use less cake. It may not be true Tres Leches or Three Milk ice cream, but taste is what matters.