secret recipe club: peanut butter ice cream pie with homemade hot fudge

for this month's secret recipe club pick from cindy at hun...what's for dinner?, i started my search looking for two things: a great weeknight dinner and a new cookie. as a result, these bbq cola beef sandwiches almost made in into our rotation last week (i love using my slow cooker in the summer, and these sandwiches look perfect), along with these peanut butter, chocolate chip & pretzel bars until i just so happened to stumble upon these frozen peanut butter cups and the sandwiches and bars flew out the window! my initial thought was that the only thing these were missing was chocolate ice cream. i remedied that and made one of my favorite combos. 

celebrate national ice cream for breakfast day!

tomorrow is national ice cream for breakfast day! even though it's the dead of winter, i rarely need more than a suggestion to convince me to have a bowl. and while some of my favorites aren't exactly ice cream, i'm calling sorbet and gelato close enough to celebrate! here are a few of my favs -

secret recipe club: cherry sorbet

for this month's secret recipe club, i was on a mission for one thing: ice cream. luckily nichole at cookaholic wife has plenty to choose from. there's caramel smores ice cream, rocky road ice cream - which as nichole mentioned, is actually really hard to find here too, salty caramel ice cream (i have a version of this sitting in my freezer right now!), classic vanilla bean, trendy cake batter, sweet corn ice cream (i just can't quite get over the fact that it's corn to make it), coconut ice cream, apple pie ice cream (bookmarked for fall!), and cherry and brownie bite ice cream (this is on my short list, since i actually have homemade brownies sitting in my freezer). as you can see, nichole pretty much has ice cream tackled. i was this close to making her chocolate tacos, and while all of these choices sound delicious, they were all just a little too much. i wanted something not quite as heavy. something fruity. sorbet! after a quick search, this cherry sorbet was it! the only change i made: doubling the recipe to use up a pound of cherries i had sitting in my fridge. and am i glad i did.

caramelized peach ice cream

i absolutely adore peaches. they're up at the top, hanging out with fresh picked strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, as my favorite fruit. heck, i love them so much i dedicated a week to them last year and two years ago i picked and canned twenty-something quarts of them and enjoyed peaches with yogurt for breakfast all through the dead of winter. i've shared other peach specific memories with you, but where there's one, there's always more.

blueberry greek frozen yogurt

while i was pregnant - as most women do - i followed along with the growth charts that tell you what size fruit your growing baby is each week. each week my mom and i got a kick out of the fruits, waiting for the baby to grow from something small like a grape to something more tangible, like a melon. 

one particular week - i don't remember which, exactly - he was the size of a blueberry. since then, my mother in law affectionately referred to my growing bump as "blueberry." for whatever reason, that was the fruit that stuck in her mind.

secret recipe club: minted lemon ice

for this month's secret recipe club, i chose something incredibly simple - in ingredients, time, and method - and refreshing, since our thermostat has been wavering between hot & humid and obnoxiously hot and humid, from no reason needed. it's no surprise that frozen lemonade and lemon italian ice are two of jason's favorite hot weather treats, since he loves the tartness of lemons. this time - as i did last summer with this minted pineapple lime agua fresca - i added some fresh mint to kick up the freshness. i loved it. with the tartness of the lemon, freshness of the mint, and sweetness from simple syrup, it's a perfect mid afternoon treat to beat the heat.

strawberry greek frozen yogurt

a couple months ago i got the bright idea of making frozen greek yogurt. coincidentally, this was the same time ben & jerry got this same bright idea. the first time i made it, i literally froze a container of vanilla greek yogurt in my ice cream machine. yes, it worked, but because greek yogurt is so thick, the frozen version was almost too much for me. too thick and creamy. so i assumed cutting the richness with fruit would be the perfect fix.

tin roof ice cream

as a kid, i almost always had black raspberry ice cream when we went out for cones in the summer. i loved the smoothness of it - i despised chunks as a kid and all those weird kid flavors, like bubble gum and cotton candy - and it was exotic enough at the time that the only place to get it (or so i thought) was when we went out for ice cream. in other words, it wasn't a usual treat.

as i've gotten older, while i still love a good black raspberry every once in a while, my ice cream cravings are dominated by "stuff." chocolate fudge swirls. peanut butter chunks. chocolate covered peanuts. the more stuff mixed into ice cream, the better.

mocha gelato

gelato is another food that brings me to a distinct place and time.

a mere ten years ago, although it seems like yesterday, my parents, sister, and i set out on one of our best vacations ever: italy. we saw it all - the colosseum and vatican in rome. what remains of pompeii with mt vesuvius in the background. the amalfi coast. the cinque terre. st francis of assisi's church. more churches and relics than i can count. the ponte vecchio and statue of david in florence. the towers of san gimignano. my mother trying to pronouce moltepulciano the first ten times. the bridge of sighs and kicking our feet in the water when st mark's floods in venice at night. and gelato every single day, sometimes more than once.

so it's no surprise that any time i eat - or even think - of gelato, it brings me back to that trip. it's always a different memory, but always a great one.

strawberry sour cream ice cream

when i visited my parents a few weekends ago to make jam with my mom, she wanted to be sure we tried her strawberry ice cream - made from the same homegrown berries - before we left. not only was it the perfect shade of pink, but it was completely solid. when i was finally able to scoop it, the ice cream had an odd texture, almost brittle. rather than being smooth and creamy, it was harsh and brittle. sure, the flavor was great, but the texture was all wrong.

which brings me to this. sour cream ice cream. yea, it also sounds odd. but let me tell you, i've seen this recipe everywhere. and once you get the first taste, it's understandable why.

strawberry sorbet

i bought my ice cream machine soon after we moved into our house in late may 2009. the very first thing i made was a basic vanilla ice cream made with milk and heavy cream (it took me a while to work up to custard based ice cream) and topped with fresh strawberries. soon after, i made this strawberry sorbet.

sorbet is the easiest frozen dessert you could ever make. juice some fruit, add some sugar and a splash of vodka, and freeze in your ice cream machine. super easy. and the flavor is incredible. i made mine from a quart of super ripe berries i got at the public market for a steal. apparently most people think ripe, super red strawberries are past their prime, rather than in it.

blackberry swirl ice cream

i know, i know. i really should have saved this one for this year's blackberry week, but i just couldn't wait that long. last week, i just happened to have some blackberry juice leftover from making this cake for my sister's bridal shower - which i filled with blackberry curd (more on that later). and since the weather has finally decided that it's summer, skipping right past the 70s and 80s and hitting record-breaking 90s, i already had ice cream on the brain.

blackberry ice cream

you really didn't think i would let this week pass without some ice cream, did you?

jason says this is the best ice cream he's ever had. period. a little ecstatic for me (my favorite definitely involves chocolate), but i agree it's probably the best fruit ice cream i've ever made. the berries keep just enough of their tartiness so the ice cream isn't too sweet. the perfect balance.

this ice cream is pretty simple if you remember two things -

1. please please please crush the berries and strain them. someone i know - i won't name names - took a shortcut and decided to keep the berries whole. needless to say, the ice cream itself has little to no flavor and since the berries are whole, when you find one, it's like a block of ice in your ice cream. really, it's not so good. take the time to strain it. it's well worth it. (i mashed & strained mine a couple days before i made my ice cream. i kept the juice in the fridge and it was fine. shake it up good before using it.)

2. be careful when making the custard. don't let it cook too long. the first time i made this batch, i let the egg and half & half mixture cook too long. instead of "coating the back of a spoon" i had a pan full of scrambled eggs. it was awful. luckily i had enough half & half and eggs to redo. but don't make the same mistake. once you put the egg mixture on the stove to thicken, don't stop mixing. and as soon as the mixture coats the back of the spoon - run your finger through it, does it hold the path? or does it run? when it holds the path, it's done - remove it from the heat and strain into the heavy cream. and make sure you strain so if there are any small bits of cooked egg, they don't end up in your ice cream. if frozen berries are bad, i can't imagine what biting into a piece of cooked egg would be like. either way, it's not good.

blackberry ice cream
adapted from david lebovitz's raspberry ice cream in the perfect scoop

4 cups blackberries
1 1/2 cups half & half
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 egg yolks
1 tablespoon lemon juice

1. crush the berries and strain them with a cheesecloth or fine metal strainer. you should have about 1 2/3 cup juice.
2. in a sauce pan, heat the half & half and sugar over medium low heat until the sugar dissolves.
3. while the half & half and sugar are heating, place the heavy cream in the bottom of a bowl. place a strainer above it. in a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks.
4. when the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat. pour a small amount (about 1/4 cup) of the mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly. when incorporated, whisk in the remaining sugar mixture.pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
5. heat the custard over medium low heat, whisking constantly, until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. be careful here - don't let it go too long or you'll have a pan of scrambled eggs.
6. remove from the heat and pour through the strainer into the heavy cream. stir to incorporate.
7. add the blackberry and lemon juices and mix thoroughly.
8. chill overnight (or a few hours) and churn according to your ice cream maker. david has great instructions for making ice cream if you don't have an ice cream maker.
   

mint ice cream

when we moved in to our house last spring i was really excited to see the huge patches of spearmint and peppermint in our yard. as the summer went on, the mint grew and grew and grew and i couldn't think of anything good to make with it - except mojitos. i'm not a fan of mint tea, so that was out. and a year ago, i was still in wedding mode, so spending a friday evening steeping mint leaves in hot milk wasn't high on my list of priorities.

so this spring, when the mint started taking over again, i couldn't wait for it to be hot enough to make one of my favorite ice creams: mint chip. and i knew i wanted to make it from scratch - no mint extract here.

i found a couple different recipes that all used the same technique - steep the leaves in hot milk & sugar for about an hour before adding the egg yolks, cooking, and eventually churning in the ice cream maker. the technique seemed simple enough. it was the chocolate and the mint i was afraid of.

see, i don't like big chunks of chocolate in my ice cream. chocolate chips - of any size - were out. i didn't want to spend the time to shave a bar of chocolate and the flecks would actually be too small for my liking. i'm really glad i stumbled on david lebovitz's chocolate method. it was genius: perfectly simple and the perfect amount of chocolate.

now on to the mint. which do i use? peppermint or spearmint or both? i found recipes of all types online - some recommended spearmint only, others recommended peppermint and to avoid spearmint, and a third set didn't say one way or the other. i decided this time to try spearmint with a plan to make a peppermint batch later in the summer for comparison sake.


before (L) and after (R) steeping the mint for an hour

now that i had my mint picked out and chocolate technique down, i needed a recipe. i liked his chocolate technique so much and everyone in the blogosphere raves about his ice cream, so i gave david lebovitz's a spin. perfection.


my steeped milk was a natural light green

the big difference between homemade mint ice cream and store bought is obviously the flavor. store bought mint is so strong and sweet. homemade mint is definitely minty, but it's got a nice herbal flavor to it too. and not too sweet. surprisingly, i like it better than the stuff from the store.

mint chocolate ice cream
find the recipe from david lebovitz

pineapple sorbet

ice cream season is finally here!

my ice cream maker sits in the back corner of my cupboard for six months out of the year. sure, i can make ice cream in december, but that would be too weird. can you imagine - it's 15 degrees out and i'm making ice cream!? december is time for cookies and brownies and other oven required goodies. but now, now is the time for frozen fruit, dairy, and sugar. and what better way to kick it off than with pineapple!

my only complaint about this recipe - it doesn't have enough sugar in it or it needs some vodka or something. it freezes too hard making it almost impossible to scoop. it isn't impossible, just really hard.

jason loves soft serve ice cream, so we always have a bowl when it comes out of the ice cream maker...

...and freeze the rest for later



pineapple sorbet
from the ultimate ice cream book

1 pineapple, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (about 3 pounds)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
juice from one lime

1. add the sugar and water to a saucepan and heat over medium heat until the mixture is clear. remove from heat and cool to room temp.
2. blend the pineapple, cooled syrup, and lime juice until smooth.
3. chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
4. mix well before churning in your ice cream maker according to the directions. i had to process mine in two batches since it didn't fit in one. be careful - you don't want it to overflow.
5. eat immediately for soft serve or freeze for a couple hours and serve.