Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream

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 strawberries-and-cream

In general I don’t care for commercially made strawberry ice cream- but the homemade stuff- that’s another thing altogether.  I bought a pound of organic strawberries and found a recipe for no-cook strawberry ice cream in Gourmet August 2009 -which I just slightly adjusted. Here is the original at Epicurious for Perfect No-Cook Strawberry Ice Cream if you want it. Mmmmm. Good…

strawberries-in-colander

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We don’t eat conventional strawberries anymore since they are one of the crops most heavily sprayed with pesticides and they are way too delicate to scrub or peel. I think the organic ones taste better too- just my preference. So go organic if you can when you go for this frozen treat.

cut-up-strawberries

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Frozen Strawberries and Cream

  • 16 ounce container of organic strawberries, washed, topped and cut up
  • 2/3 cup Vanilla Sugar*
  • large pinch of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups organic  heavy cream

Mash the strawberries and sugar with a potato masher in a medium sized bowl.  Add the lemon juice, salt and vanilla extract. Let sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes to macerate. Place 1/2 of the strawberry mixture into a blender with the cream. Blend until smooth. You’ll need to decide if you want larger bits of strawberry in your ice cream which freeze harder and can make a textural difference. Or if you want it all creamy process all of the strawberries in two batches using half of the cream in each batch.

blended-strawberries

 Cover and chill for about 4 hours or overnight. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions. I use an inexpensive Rival churn type machine that you add ice and rock salt to. I have a Cuisinart too that utilizes a pre-frozen tub but I never have freezer space to donate to the cylinders and also I think they take longer and don’t freeze as well since the cylinder starts warming as soon as you remove it from the freezer where with the old fashioned type you are making it colder as you go.

dasher-pre-frozen

churning-ice-cream

soft-frozen-ice-cream

Either way once it is at a softly frozen stage remove it to a carton and freeze to firm if you haven’t devoured it all before you can get it there.  🙂 I buy quart and pint sized ice cream cartons with lids at my local restaurant supply store. This recipe makes a little more than a quart.

carton

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* For Vanilla sugar- we always have a container of this on the counter for coffee etc.  No need to use a pristine bean for this. Just quickly rinse and wipe your beans clean after using  them for infusing cream or whatever in another recipe and place them in an airtight jar. Cover with granulated sugar and let sit. Even a couple of hours makes the sugar infused with vanilla goodness. Just add whatever beans you have as you use them and top off with sugar to replace any you take out. You will have a perpetual supply of the good stuff. I use it whenever I want that little extra burst of vanilla flavour.

Enjoy!

Climb every mountain- and when you get there have a picnic!

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mtn-flowers

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The wildflowers are in glorious bloom right now  in the Albion Basin at the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon in the Wasatch mountains past  Alta Ski Resort. Rick and I always try to have our anniversary picnic as near to our actual  June anniversary as the snow pack will allow. So we went this past week. If you decide to go be prepared to hike a bit and prepared for the temperature changes at about 9,000ft elevation. It’s definitely a bonus- although a bit more crowded when the wildflowers are in bloom. We didn’t want to brave the crowd in order to get anywhere near the actual Albion Basin Campground  or the Cecret Lake trailhead this time.

picnic

We  hiked nearby but in the other direction and packed in a picnic of wine, Manchego cheese, bread, Picholine and Sahli olives, fruit, nuts and the darkest chocolate we can find -short of cacao nibs. We perch on a huge granite boulder and celebrate our love of  our life for yet another year.  Cherries and olives are requisite because we’ve developed a contest of blowing the pits as far as we can. (Rick always wins.) We do this only because they’re biodegradible and are unsuitable for the climate so we don’t feel we’re littering. Although if one day there is a little cherry grove in a small dell surrounded by granite boulders and pines and near a certain ski lift- you’ll know they came from us- the johnny cherryseeds- Rick and Gabi. Our favourite anniversary picnic wine is a Katherine’s Vineyard Chardonnay from Cambria. – Which of course Rick always opens with his trusty Swiss Army Pocket knife.

cambria

We saw our Mr. Moose again this year he was a nice glossy chocolate brown with a huge set of antlers. I didn’t get a picture because there was a crowd ogling him and I didn’t want to add to the throng.

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Wishing you all a year of love and laughter and serendipity do.

Oh and here’s a good reminder to….

Bloom where you’re planted!

bloom-where-youre-planted

Carnitas Nachos and Margaritas- My Way

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carnitas-nachos
For a very satisfying dinner on the patio, by the pool or just lounging about the table let me recommend one of our favorite quick dinners- Carnitas Nachos.
Made at home- nachos resemble nothing similar to the day-glo cheese version of your favorite fast food joint. When you make them yourself you can control the layering and ingredients and make them just as you like. I, personally, love to layer fresh salted corn chips with onion, black beans, Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese or a bit of Cotijo, some lovely home made carnitas (and some chilies when I’m feeling in the mood.) I bake my nachos for a few minutes in a 350F oven before finishing with the broiler. It makes everything in the inner layers melt evenly without burning the top.

Here is a link to my Carnitas Recipe if you want it- you can also usually pick some up at a Latin market if you don’t have time to make them.

pork-pull

I try to make sure to layer them evenly and top off with a last layer of cheese. I don’t put salsa directly on top before broiling because that makes them a bit sog-bog. So what I like to do is put half of a luscious ripe avocado on a side plate and fill it with sour cream or Crema and pool a bit of roasted salsa around it. It looks pretty with the colors of the Mexican flag and it allows each of us to control our condiments. A little minced cilantro and green onion is nice on top as well- if you have it. 🙂

avocado-guac-deconst

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As for the Margaritas- I put a can of frozen lemonade concentrate in a blender and add half of a can of limeade frozen concentrate. (You could make your own lemon and lime syrup instead but the frozen concentrate is easy and makes nice frosty drinks in a hurry.) I fill half of the empty lemonade can with good quality Tequila and add that to the concentrates in the blender, then fill  a 1/4 of the can with Triple Sec with just a splash of Gran Marnier or Cointreau and add that.  Squeeze in two fresh limes and fill the rest of the blender container with ice. Blend until smooth and frosty! Run a lime around the rim of your glasses and put a little medium coarse salt on a plate and dip the rim into the salt then fill the glasses and serve. Ole!

carnitas-nachos-and-marguerita

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