Showing posts with label ice cream. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ice cream. Show all posts

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Root Beer Float Bundt #BundtBakers

Frosty root beer with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream – that is to say, root beer cake with vanilla ice cream glaze or a root beer float – in Bundt cake form!

You know that feeling your teeth get after drinking Coke, kinda gritty like they are rough as you rub them together? I hated that as a child so I wouldn’t drink Coke. My favorite beverage was root beer, and if it wasn’t on the menu, I’d order Sprite or 7Up. Remember the uncola? My parents divorced when I was nine so every summer my sisters and I would travel to spend time with our father. In the early years he lived in South America – known to some as The Land of No Root Beer. Okay, I’m the only one who called it that. It is a fact though that until just a few years ago, most of the world was The Land of No Root Beer. I guess it’s a typically American thing. Anyway, when we went to visit Daddy, my mom always packed a small bottle or two of root beer extract so that I could make my own libation. Non-bubbly root beer wasn’t quite the same as the bottled stuff but it was way better than a summer without root beer. Truth.

When our host Laura, of Baking in Pyjamas, chose Beverages for this month’s Bundt Baker theme, I thought I was being original in wanting to make a root beer flavored cake, but as often happens when theoretical brilliance strikes, the internet revealed that many people had beat me to it. I also found many recipes for frosting using ice cream, but this may be the first Bundt cake to combine the two, root beer float style. Or not. At some point a person just has to stop searching the web for reassurance and get on with baking.

Ingredients
For the root beer cake batter:
2 cups or 475ml root beer (Do not use diet root beer! You are baking CAKE, after all.)
1 cup or 100g unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup or 115g unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups or 250g granulated sugar
1/2 cup, firmly packed, or 100g dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon root beer flavoring or 1 teaspoon root beer extract
2 cups or 250g all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs

For the ice cream glaze:
2/3 cup or 156ml melted rich vanilla bean ice cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups or 220g powdered sugar

Method
Preheat your oven to 325°F or 163°C and prepare your 10-inch Bundt pan by spraying it liberally with nonstick cooking spray; alternatively, butter it then dust lightly with cocoa powder and knock out the excess.

Cut your butter into small chunks. In a medium sized pot, heat the root beer, cocoa powder, and butter over medium heat until the butter is melted and you have a nice homogeneous chocolatey sauce.


Add the sugars and whisk until dissolved. Add the root beer flavoring and whisk again. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.



In a mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. If your whisking arm is tired, take a short break. We've got more whisking coming up and the chocolate mixture needs a little more cooling time anyway. Probably.

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs until just beaten, then whisk them into the cooled cocoa mixture until combined.



Gently fold the flour mixture into the cocoa mixture. A few small lumps may be visible but that’s okay.

Just keep folding. 


Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Test for doneness with a wooden skewer. When it comes out clean, your cake is done.


Transfer the pan to a wire rack and leave to cool for about 10 minutes. Gently loosen the sides of the cake from the pan and turn it out onto the rack. Leave to cool completely while you get on with making the glaze.


In a mixing bowl, add the salt to the melted vanilla ice cream along with one cup or 125g of icing sugar. Whisk well to combine. Keep adding the remainder of the sugar a little at a time, stirring well with each addition, until you reach your desired consistency of glaze. I like a thick glaze so I added all of the sugar.



Once the cake is completely cooled, drizzle on the glaze or pour it completely over the Bundt.

Since I had baked in the Nordic Ware Heritage pan and wanted to emphasize its wonderful swirls, I didn’t use all the glaze this recipe makes. Store any leftover glaze in the refrigerator. You can spoon more on when serving the cake, if desired.



Enjoy!



Has your favorite beverage been transformed into a Bundt this month? Check out our link list of 30 drink inspired recipes to see!

BundtBakers

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving Bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all of our lovely Bundts by following our Pinterest Board. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme or ingredient.

Updated links for all of our past events and more information about BundtBakers can be found on our homepage.



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Sunday, September 6, 2015

Creamy Coconut Popsicles

Two ingredients are all you need to make these creamy coconut popsicles: Sweetened condensed milk and coconut cream. Well, and freezing time! So easy and delicious!
 


This week my Sunday Supper group is anticipating Labor Day in the United States by sharing no-labor recipes, with plenty of make-ahead or simple-to-prepare dishes and drinks that will leave you plenty of time to relax and enjoy the holiday tomorrow! I had no idea what to share for this event until I remembered some coconut popsicles I made a couple of months back as an experiment that had turned out with gratifying success. So I made them again for real. 

I wanted to add actual fresh coconut to them but was discouraged by my younger daughter who prefers her ice cream without “bits” in it. So that coconut you see is just for show. With only two ingredients, both from cans, these creamy popsicles practically make themselves! Feel free to add fresh coconut to yours, if you can be bothered. They are absolutely coconutty, just sweet enough and perfect as is. And even the dog agrees.


Ingredients

1 can (13.5 oz or 400ml) unsweetened coconut cream – not milk!
1/2 can sweetened condensed milk  - 260g or 6 3/4 oz

Equipment needed:
Popsicle molds (or paper cups, popsicle sticks and cling film)
Deep freezer

Method
Pour or scoop the coconut cream into a large mixing bowl, preferably one with a spout. Whisk it until the cream is smooth and homogeneous.

Add in the condensed milk and whisk again.



Pour the liquid into your popsicle molds (or paper cups, then cover with cling film and insert a stick in the middle) and freeze until solid – this will take at least a couple of hours but overnight is even better.



When ready to serve, run the popsicle mold (or paper cup) under some warm water to release the popsicle.


Enjoy!



Whether you are celebrating Labor Day this weekend or just love the idea of no-labor recipes, this is the list for you!

Savory Snacks and Sides
Labor Free Main Dishes
Sweet Treats and Drinks


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Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Tuile Cookie Cups #CreativeCookieExchange

These crispy cookie cups are made with a rich batter, thinly spread and quickly baked, then shaped over the back of a standard muffin pan. They are perfect for serving a generous scoop of ice cream. 

I’m on kind of a French kick right now, starting with the chaussons aux pommes I posted Sunday, and now these cookies. Because I am on holiday with my mom IN FRANCE, staying with my friend Jamie of Life's a Feast at the gorgeous Hotel Diderot. Later I'll be driving south to Bordeaux and I'll be adding trip photos on Instagram if you want to follow along.

 Tuile is the French word for tile and these cookies get their name because they are often draped over something cylindrical while warm - for instance a rolling pin or wine bottle - and end up looking like the roof tiles so often used in classic French homes. Since our theme for Creative Cookie Exchange this month is Cookies and Ice Cream, I decided it would be fun to make little cookie bowls out of them instead.

The recipe below, adapted from this one on Food Network for tuile cookie cones, will easily make about one and a half dozen one scoop sized bowls.

Ingredients
1/2 cup or 65g all-purpose flour
1/2 cup or 65g powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Method
Sift the flour, powdered sugar and salt together into bowl.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites, along with the vanilla, just to loosen them up.

Add in the melted, cooled butter and whisk again to combine.



Now sift the flour/sugar mixture a second time, right into the egg white bowl.



Whisk vigorously to make a smooth liquid, without any lumps.

Cover the bowl with cling film and leave to rest at room temperature for about 45 minutes.

Now to make nice circles with the batter, you can wing it or you can create a pattern for yourself to follow. I like to draw my circles on a piece of parchment paper then slip it under my silicone mat. If I go over the pencil circles with permanent marker, they are just dark enough to see through the mat.

You can also draw the circles on your parchment then turn it over and use the non-marked side to spread your batter. If you are using straight parchment, make yourself a few because as they get wet from the batter, they are no longer flat. You’ll want a fresh piece for each batch. Keep them though because you can reuse them for other baked goods that don't need a completely flat piece of parchment.

When the resting time for the batter is almost up, preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and grease the bottom of a muffin pan.

Drop rounded tablespoons of the batter onto your prepared baking sheet. Spread the batter with the back of a spoon into 5 in or 12.7cm rounds. Or follow the circle guidelines you have drawn to make your life easier.

Six tuile cookies at a time is ideal. More and they harden up before you can shape them when they come out of the oven.



Bake in the middle of the oven until golden and very lightly brown around the edges, about 4 to 6 minutes. Watch them like a hawk! My first batch was too brown, therefore too crunchy, and then they wouldn’t mold to the shape of my muffin pan.



To shape, gently loosen a cookie from the baking sheet with a spatula, then turn it over so the smooth side is facing up. Lay the cookie on the greased bottom of your muffin pan and gently, shape it to fit. Do the others in rapid succession while they are still warm.



Make and shape more cookies with the remaining batter. After I had made a dozen, I decided to try to make one big bowl. I ended up making hole in the side while loosening it from the baking sheet but the bowl still came out great.



Make sure the tuile cookie bowls are completely dried and crispy before storing them in an airtight container, otherwise they can go a bit soft again.



Add a scoop of ice cream to each and enjoy!


Many thanks to Laura from The Spiced Life for hosting and for this great theme! If you are a fan of ice cream and cookies – and how is not?! – have a look at the other great recipes we have for you this month.




If you are a blogger and want to join in the fun, contact Laura at thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com and she will get you added to our Facebook group, where we discuss our cookies and share links.

You can also just use us as a great resource for cookie recipes--be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them at The Spiced Life). You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month!








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Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Crushed Pineapple Ice Cream #FoodieExtravaganza


Old-fashion ice cream made with a sweet egg custard and crushed pineapple is simplicity itself because sometimes one shouldn’t mess with a good thing.

Not too long back, we were cleaning out the storage space in my laundry room and came across a brand new ice cream maker that had been a gift from my older sister when we were living in Brazil. We never did use it because cream was so dang expensive there, so it got moved to Houston in 1999 and was never really unpacked. It was time to make ice cream! Suggestions were solicited and I expected Mom to ask for peach, her favorite fruit, but she surprised me with the request for pineapple ice cream.

When my mom was growing up in southern Louisiana, family picnics always included hand-cranked ice cream makers filled with the ingredients for pineapple ice cream in the middle, surrounded by rock salt and ice. She says sometimes as many as six were lined up under the shade of the old pecan trees. The menfolk chatted and cranked until the ice cream started freezing and the handles became harder and harder to turn. Then the ice cream machines would be covered with old burlap sacks until the ice cream was hard enough and ready to serve, several hours later. What a great finish to a family picnic!

This crushed pineapple ice cream brought back good childhood memories for her and I am delighted to share it today for our Foodie Extravaganza creative ice cream event, hosted by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

Recipe adapted from the pineapple ice cream in Quick Cooking May/June 2002 issue. (No longer published, more’s the pity.)

N.B.: You need a thermometer to accurately prepare this recipe, as written.

Ingredients
2 cups or 480ml milk
1 cup or 200g sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1-3/4 cups or 414ml heavy whipping cream
1 small can (8 oz or 227g) crushed pineapple in 100% juice - Do not drain!

Method
In a bowl large enough to hold the pot you plan to make your ice cream base or custard in, cover the bottom with ice cubes two layers deep. Set aside.

In a large pot, heat your milk to 175°F or 80°C. Add in the sugar and stir till it is dissolved.



Whisk a small amount of the hot mixture into the eggs.



Return all to the pot, whisking constantly.



Cook and stir over low heat until the mixture reaches at least 160°F or 72°C and coats the back of a metal spoon.

Remove from the heat. Add some water to the ice bowl and place the pot in the ice water to cool quickly. Stir constantly for two minutes.

Now stir in the whipping cream and the can of crushed pineapple.



Pour the mixture into a Ziploc bag and press the air completely out of it. Pop it in your freezer until chilled through, about one hour.



Pour into your ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions. Depending on your ice cream maker, you may have to transfer the ice cream into an airtight container to freeze completely before serving.

After about 30 minutes of churning in an electric ice cream freezer.

Enjoy!



Check out all the great frozen treats we have for you this month! Thanks for hosting, Camilla! 



Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays or cook and bake together with the same ingredient or theme each month. This month - Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla is hosting - she invited bloggers to come up with creative ice cream creations.

So during this first full month of summer, it's all about ice cream. But that can include gelato, semi-freddo, and even popsicles! We hope you all enjoy our delicious frozen creations this month and come back to see what we bring for you next month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out HERE.





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Sunday, March 8, 2015

Crème de Menthe Parfait



A simple retro cocktail recipe that can double as dessert, this delicious parfait is made with vanilla bean ice cream, crème de menthe liqueur, whipped cream and is topped with a cherry or two! 

When I saw the theme for today’s Sunday Supper – Retro Recipes – I was delighted. I’ve got quite a few cookbooks and magazines that date back to the Good Old Days of Jello mold salads and meatloaves baked in tube pans, many older than I am. It’s always amusing to see what my foremothers must have thought was the cutting edge of what was new and fun to bake and cook back then.

I can never resist buying a cookbook put together for a fundraiser either! Among my collection, I have books published  - with proceeds going to charities - by Jakarta International School, the Association of British Women in Malaysia, the American Society of Rio, Maadi Women’s Guild (Egypt), the American Women’s Association of Indonesia and the British Women’s Association of Singapore, just to name a few that I can lay my hands on. These are full of what I would call retro recipes, even that one that was published in the Nineties, because back before the days of the World Wide Web in far-flung places, we cooked what we knew and those were the old recipes.

Just a few of a vast collection!


My mother has a beautiful frosted glass decanter, rather like this one, which she kept filled with bright green crème de menthe liqueur when I was a child. To my young mind, it was the height of sophistication to sip something out of the tiny glasses that matched the decanter and I loved when my parents entertained and the crème de menthe was served. How could I resist making a crème de menthe cocktail for Retro Recipes! Many thanks to our host, Heather from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks for organizing this great event.

One thing that I’ve noticed about vintage cookbooks, is that quantities are often lacking and methods are not as complete as what we are used to now. Fortunately that doesn’t really matter when it comes to ice cream and whipped cream. This parfait recipe comes from a book published by Arrow Cordials in 1960 and I found it on Mid Century Menu, a blog that is all about retro food and vintage recipes.

Ingredients
1 oz or 30ml crème de menthe
Vanilla ice cream (I used Haagen-Daz Vanilla Bean.)
Whipped cream
Maraschino cherry or two

Optional to serve: drinking straws

Method
Scoop your ice cream into a pretty glass. Two or three balls will probably do. I don’t own parfait glasses so I used a Champagne flute. A brandy snifter would also work.



Pour crème de menthe over the ice cream.

Even the color is retro, don't you think?

Top with generous scoop of whipped cream and then a cherry. If you want to drizzle just the tiniest little bit more crème de menthe on the whipped cream, I would second that impulse. Stick a couple of plastic straws in, if desired.



Enjoy!

Let’s take a walk back in time together and check out all the groovy vintage recipes from my Sunday Supper group today!

Bodacious Breakfasts and Appetizers:
Made in the Shade Main Dishes:
Swell Side Dishes:
Dreamy Desserts:
The Bee's Knees Beverages:





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