And another thing…

I made two batches of frozen custard over the weekend - one with maybe a 1/4 cup of the coffee syrup (mentioned in a post here) added to the custard base and one plain vanilla.

We really enjoy the frozen custard much more than the Philadelphia style.

The recipe I like best is from ‘The Ultimate Ice Cream Book’ by Bruce Weinstein.

Just remember to keep the heat low-ish and keep stirring to keep the eggs from curdling.

Vanilla Ice Cream - Custard style

1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups half and half
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, beat sugar and salt into the egg yolks until thick and pale yellow.

Bring the half and half to a simmer in a medium sauce pan. Slowly beat the hot half and half into the eggs and sugar. Pour the mixture back into the sauce pan or a double boiler and place over very low heat. Stir with a whisk or wooden spoon until the custard thickens slightly. Remove from heat and pour through a strainer into a large bowl (I use a stainless steel ‘third pan’ - I think it cools more quickly). Allow the custard to cool slightly (10-15 minutes) and stir in cream and vanilla. Cover** and refrigerate until cold or overnight.

Stir the chilled custard, then freeze in your ice cream machine. Ice cream with be soft and ready to eat, or transfer to a freezer container and freeze for firm ice cream.

** I do not cover the custard while it is still warm. Partially cover, leaving one end uncovered until cool!

Technorati Tags: Frozen custard, ice cream, recipe

I need a recipe.  Desperately.

Did I mention that a few weeks ago we bought a Cuisinart SupremeCuisinart Supreme Ice Cream Maker?  Well, we did.

Cuisinart Supreme

We had an ice cream maker.  We also had two that were powered by our KitchenAid stand mixers.  They all worked great, but having to put the bowl in the freezer cut down on the spontaneity of the thing.  We were always taking the bowl out to shove in a roast or an extra loaf of bread or, you know a couple of Thanksgiving turkeys.  We never remembered to put the thing back in.

Did we need this?  No.  Did that deter me?  Ha!  Obviously not.  It’s ice cream, for goodness sake!

I remember the ice cream makers my folks had when I was a kid.  First the hand crank type that took about 4 pounds of rock salt, 20 pounds of ice and seemed to take forever.  Then the electric type.  Still the 4 pounds of salt and gobs of ice cubes.  Not too much faster, but at least your arm didn’t get tired.

This baby has a compressor built in — it’s always ready!  Like an ice cream maker on Cialis or something.  And it’s quick.  Making a frozen custard is about 30 minutes.

It’s not inexpensive.  Dennis gulped - hard - when he saw the price, but he decided after the 2nd batch that he loves it.  I sometimes see him petting it and whispering sweet nothings into it’s vents.  But that’s another story. It’s definitely worth the money, I have had always been pleased with other Cuisinart products, and well, you know, it’s kinda cool.

Anyhoo…. I made frozen yogurt a few weeks ago and I just threw it out today.  I don’t think either of us ate more than a couple of bites.

Maybe it was the yogurt I used, I don’t know, but it was just too tangy.

Does anyone have a good Columbo style frozen yogurt recipe?  Or maybe advice of the best yogurt to use when make this frozen desert?

Thanks!

Technorati Tags: Cuisinart Supreme Ice Cream Machine, Frozen custard, frozen yogurt, ice cream, ice cream maker

I recently posted a frosted coffee recipe. Just made it, here’s my review:

Yummy!

I used four tablespoons of coffee syrup instead of two and added a couple of tablespoons of chocolate syrup to make it mocha.

Zowie!

I posted earlier that we had planted a veg garden this year.  The plants are doing great despite the hot weather, but we have also had quite a nice initial show from our flowering plants this month.

I love the first blooms of the year.

This is the iris that got smashed when the pear and  pine tree fell on it a couple of years ago.  See that story here.

Bearded Iris

Peony

Peony

Wisteria

The wisteria we planted the first year we moved in bloomed a good year before it was supposed to.

We’re blessed with good soil - not green thumbs.  And boy, do we appreciate it.

Technorati Tags: blooms, flowers, garden, peony, rose, roses, wisteria

Pretty warm weather here for the past several days. It’s the heat AND the humidity.

The remedy? Iced coffee.

Here’s a recipe from the 1931 General Electric “The “Silent Hostess” Treasure Book”.

Frosted coffee

2 tablespoons coffee syrup
1 cup milk
Vanilla ice cream

Put syrup, milk and a heaping tablespoon of ice cream into shaker, or tightly covered jar, and shake well. Pour into tall glass and serve more ice cream on top, if desired. (Use one tablespoon syrup if a less sweet drink is preferred.)

Coffee Syrup

1 cup sugar
1 cup strong coffee

Put sugar and coffee in a saucepan and stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a bil and boil without stirring for about 10 minutes. Cool. Pour into covered jar and keep in refrigerator, using as needed.

Technorati Tags: beverage, coffee syrup, frosted coffee, ice cream, iced coffee

We planted six different types of eggplant in the garden this year:

Dusky

Japanese Long

Italian Pink Bi-Color

Cloudy

Dark Beauty

Gourmet (mixed seeds)

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: eggplant, mushrooms, recipe

We decided to put in a vegetable garden this year (after a couple years hiatus).  We started some seeds and purchased some seedlings from several local greenhouses.  One of the things I knew I wanted to do was to plant a few varieties of heirloom tomatoes.  I figured I would have to order them from the Internet/mail order because, who would carry those quasi-obscure plants that I wanted?

Well, as it turns out, almost everybody!  Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: garden, gardening, heirloom, Parisienne, recipe, tomato, tomatoes, Tomatoes Parisienne

We have a couple of great places around here that makes the best apple fritters. If you time it just right, you can get them still warm, with that goopy, oozy glaze drippin’ all over your fingers. One day, I’ll make them from scratch, but it’s just so darned convenient to buy them…

From the Arm & Hammer 1933 Booklet:

2 cups sifted flour
3/4 teaspoon Arm & Hammer or Cow Brand Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 eggs, well beaten
1 1//3 cups sour milk
2 tablespoons shortening, melted
2 cups diced apples

Sift flour once, measure, add baking soda, salt, sugar and nutmeg. Sift again. Combine eggs, milk and shortening. Add to flour mixture. Beat until smooth. Add apples. Drop by spoonsful into deep hot fat (375 degrees F.) and cook to a rich brown, turning frequently. Serve hot with syrup. Serves 8.

As I have mentioned before, I worked in a grocery store deli/bakery after high school. One of the things we’d make with the day old bread that didn’t sell was bread pudding. I loved it then, and I love it now.

Dennis says “Hold the raisins, I don’t eat wrinkly fruit”. I say, they are going in, you can pick ‘em out.

I can’t find much on Cocomalt, except it was apparently a chocolate malt powder/granule you mixed with milk. It was one of the sponsors of the old Buck Rogers radio program. Plenty of old adverts on the web, but I can’t see anything that indicates it is still available. If anyone one knows more, please let me know.

This recipe is from The Household Searchlight Recipe Book - 1933

Bread Pudding

1 cup bread cubes
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups milk, scalded

Combine sugar, salt, flavoring, butter, cinnamon and egg. Add milk slowly; stirring constantly. Add bread cubes and raisins. mix thoroughly. Pour into well-buttered baing dish. Set in pan of warm water. Bake in moderate oven (350 degrees) about 1 hour, or until an inserted knife comes out clean. Cool. Serve with cream. If desired, the flavor may be varied by adding 1/2 cup Cocomalt, and substituting 3 tablespoons sugar for the 1/4 cup.

4 servings.

The Household Searchlight

Technorati Tags: bread, bread pudding, Cocomalt, pudding, Raisins, recipe, recipes

I love scones. I don’t make them too often because I just don’t think about doing it. They are really not much more work than muffins and way quicker than doughnuts. I think the trick to scones is like the trick to biscuits. Don’t overwork the dough.

Note to those who haven’t had a fresh scone: Do not be confused by those scones you find in the coffee shop (hello Starbucks!) or wrapped in plastic wrap at the bakery counter. Sconces should not be hard as a brick. They should not break a tooth when bitten into. They should be soft on the inside with just a bit of crunch on the outside. Like a nice loaf of fresh Italian or French bread, crunchy crust, tender crumb. Excellent fresh out of the oven - warm with butter or honey or a nice fruit curd. Out of this world with a glob of Devonshire Cream.

This recipe is from a 1933 booklet from Arm & Hammer. I don’t know when “Cow Brand Baking Soda” went out of business, but I would love to find an old package of it for my kitchen (no, not to use in cooking). Here’s a copy of the box from the Package Museum website:

From “Good Things to Eat” made with Arm & Hammer Baking Soda; 105th Edition booklet, copyright 1933.

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: Arm & Hammer, Baking Soda, Cow Brand Baking Soda, Food, Raisins, recipe, Scone, Scones, Sultana