Caramel Apple Ice Cream

One Year Ago: Odds & Ends
Two Years Ago: Monster Munch
Three Years Ago: Banana Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins and Coconut Rum Ice Cream
Four Years Ago: Pumpkin Scones and Bombay Sloppy Joes
Five Years Ago: Indonesian Chicken with Peanut Sauce and Tuscan Pumpkin White Bean Soup

Lighter Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

One Year Ago: Asian Turkey Burgers with Cucumber Cabbage Slaw and Reese's Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookie Bars
Two Years Ago: Grilled Asparagus Salad and No Bake Desserts for Summer
Three Years Ago: Raspberry Cream Sandwich Cookies and Homemade Cheez-its
Four Years Ago: Grilled Vegetables in a Foil Pack and Grilled Pork Chops with Fresh Nectarine Salsa

Peanut Butter Berry Cobbler

Raspberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

I don't ever want to have to answer the infamous "last meal" question, mostly because I love way too many foods to narrow it down. My last meal would have to be some sort of all-you-can-eat buffet to ensure I get all my favorites! One thing's for sure, however, and it's that ice cream would be a non-negotiable. In fact, I'd probably start and end my last meal with ice cream. 
Like most homemade ice creams, this cheesecake ice cream is far better than any store bought cheesecake flavored ice cream we've tried. I've said it before and I'll say it again; you cannot beat the flavor of freshly made ice cream from scratch! Try it once and you'll be a convert forever! We still buy ice cream, mostly because I don't have time to be churning ice cream day in and day out, and because when the homemade stuff is in the house, it goes waaaay too fast! 
One of the best parts of cheesecake is the graham cracker crust, which I tried to emulate here by adding crushed graham crackers to the finished ice cream. I also swirled in some raspberry jam, which turned the ice cream a pretty shade of pink, not to mention a fruity tang. The possibilities are endless with the base cheesecake ice cream recipe...enjoy it plain, topped with fresh berries, swirl in oreo crumbs and serve with hot fudge, or throw in chunks of brownie or chocolate chips!

One Year Ago: Lentil Quinoa Burgers with Fiery Fruit Salsa and Root Beer Baked Beans
Two Years Ago: Summer Quinoa Salad with Basil & Lemon Vinaigrette and Chocolate Biscoff Muffins
Three Years Ago: Mocha Coconut Granola Bars and Frittata with Chard, Sausage, and Feta
Four Years Ago: Cranberry Nectarine Salad and Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

Maple Pecan Ice Cream

Maple pecan ice cream will forever have a special place in my heart. After all, it was the last ice cream I had before Brecken was born. Thus when Tonewood Maple sent me some of their premium maple syrup as part of their ambassador program, I knew exactly how I wanted to use it. Is there anything better than chowing down on ice cream and reminiscing about those first days with our sweet baby girl? (No, no there is not!)

Ryan did not order maple pecan that fateful night at Serendipity Ice Cream, but he was quickly won over by my homemade recreation of it. In fact, I don't think I got more than a few bites before he'd finished off the batch!

Thankfully, when ice cream's this easy to make (no eggs! just mixing and chilling!), we can enjoy it again and again. Someday I'll make it for Brecken and tell her the story of the night I went into labor...

One Year Ago: Turkey Sausage and Spinach Lasagna and Chocolate Pudding Pie with Peanut Butter Cookie Crust
Two Years Ago: Crispy Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Eggs and Mini Quiche Lorraine
Three Years Ago: Sweet Potato Butter and Marshmallow Brownies
Four Years Ago: Veggie Tuna Pasta Bake and Carrot Soup 

Chocolate Pudding Ice Cream with Peanut Butter Swirl

And just like that, another year has passed. Twenty-six was a hard year for me, in a lot of ways. I was stretched and grown in ways I certainly didn't ask for. Then again, do we ever ask for painful growth?! Coming out of twenty-six and heading full swing into twenty-seven, I can say with certainty that, like every year, I'm emerging stronger, more sure of myself, and more comfortable in who God has made me to be. 

Lest this sound too vague or like too much of a downer, let me emphasize--this year was fantastic in a lot of ways. I had one of the best weekends of my life, celebrating Julia and Nate's wedding. I ran my fourth (!!) RAGNAR Relay and fell in love with California Wine Country. We hosted friends and family for dinners, weekend visits, and visited friends in New York, watched my brother play basketball in Minnesota, spent a girl's weekend with my sister and cousin in Orlando, and made many visits to Chicago (and Wisconsin) to visit the family. I finished my Master's Degree and continued to learn and be challenged in my job. Somehow, amongst all that, I managed to deepen relationships, maintain this blog, and eat a lot of good food!

Chocolate Pudding Ice Cream with Peanut Butter Swirl

What better way to wish twenty-six goodbye and welcome twenty-seven than with ice cream. Creamy chocolate pudding ice cream with a peanut butter swirl, no less! My sister-in-law Kate gave me these adorable ceramic ice cream cones for my birthday (Anthropologie!) and I've been dying to make an ice cream to fill them with. I could not have made a better creation for the inaugural use of the cones.

As it turns out, pudding mix does amazing things to ice cream, much like it does to cookies. The chocolate ice cream was rich and creamy, without the use of a single egg yolk. I was tempted to eat the mixture (which obviously had the taste and consistency of pudding) before it made it to the ice cream maker, but I'm so glad I held out for the finished result! While nearly perfect as is, the peanut butter swirled throughout puts the final product in a league of its own. I can't wait to experiment with adding other pudding mixes to ice cream bases!

One Year Ago: Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake Chocolate Layer Cake
Two Years Ago: S'Mores Cheesecake Bars
Three Years Ago: Peanut Butter Ice Cream

 The only thing worse than enduring a disaster in your kitchen is knowing one of your best friends is enduring a disaster in your kitchen…and you’re not there to commiserate. When my friend Paige was in town last month, she spent one afternoon making 60+ cookies for a bridal shower she was attending while in town. Her intentions of making striped piñata sugar cookies, while good, were unfortunately a far cry from reality…and I say that in the most loving of ways.

Over Father's Day lunch last month, my sister-in-law Erin mentioned that she'd recently made ginger ice cream. She then asked me what ice creams I'd made so far this summer and I was ashamed to admit I had yet to break out my ice cream maker. It had been too long of a hiatus since my Cinnamon French Toast Ice Cream and I was determined to fix that.

Of course, then I couldn't get the thought of ginger ice cream out of my head. I picked up a large hunk of ginger from the grocery store the very next day and got to work on this unique ice cream. Of all the ice cream flavors I've sampled (and it's a lot), ginger was a new-to-me flavor.
I'm so glad I couldn't get this out of my head because the results were fantastic. My brother-in-law Justin mentioned that ginger ice cream isn't something you can binge on and he's definitely right...which in my case is probably a good thing. It's spicy, with that telltale ginger taste, leaving you satisfied with a moderate portion. I actually think this ice cream would be the perfect accompaniment to this Southern Comfort Apple Pie, or sandwiched between gingersnaps, or in a root beer float! Then again, it's also great as-is, served as a light dessert to finish off a dinner party.

One Year Ago: Banana Coffee Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake
Two Years Ago: Butter Pecan Ice Cream
Three Years Ago: Banana Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

 There are some not so great things about being a grown-up, like working all summer long or paying taxes. Today I’m choosing to focus on the upside of being an adult, things like a glass of wine after a long day at work or staying out as late as you want. Okay, let’s be honest, I stayed out later when I did have a curfew! Another plus of adulthood? Recreating nostalgia whenever you want!
One Year Ago: Blueberry Salsa
Two Years Ago: Pink Lemonade Crumb Bars
Three Years Ago: Asian Inspired Salmon Burgers with Lime Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

Is there anything more fun than creating birthday desserts for people? Even people who rarely eat dessert (clearly I am NOT one of them, ha) tend to splurge on their birthday...which usually means they choose their very favorite dessert and enjoy it then. I absolutely love making birthday desserts for friends and family. There's nothing better than taking requests and then fulfilling them for their day of celebration!
My sister Julia doesn't have a classic dessert that she requests for her birthday each year. Instead, she usually just asks for something with both peanut butter and chocolate, her favorite dessert combination. She's now lived in St. Louis for four years and I've managed to make a different chocolate peanut butter concoction each year. Year 1 was the Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte. Year 2 was a Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake. Year 3 was the Reese's Fudge Pie. All included excessive amounts of both peanut butter and chocolate. Needless to say, all were awesome.
I wasn't sure if I could top any of the previous desserts, until I realized I hadn't yet made her a chocolate and peanut butter ice cream cake. If you know our family, you know we love ice cream above ALL other desserts, so it only made sense to combine her chocolate peanut butter infatuation with the ice cream obsession. In a perfect world I would have made my own homemade hot fudge and ice cream, but I'm struggling to stay on top of work and school and everything else this month and honestly, using the store bought stuff was just as good (and way easier!).
This ice cream cake starts with a peanut butter cookie crust, followed by a layer of hot fudge, a whole lot of Moose Tracks ice cream, and then topped with more hot fudge and chopped Reese's peanut butter cups. You probably don't need me to explain just how good this was...it's possible I won't be looking for another chocolate peanut butter dessert next February because we might just be sticking with this combination from now on!

One Year Ago: Bacon and Egg Risotto
Two Years Ago: Split Pea Soup
Three Years Ago: White Chili

My mom loves root beer floats. She also loves chocolate. This cake manages to combine them both, which is why I knew it would be the perfect cake for my mom's birthday this year. Much as I love going crazy and making elaborate layer cakes, I was relieved that this one was a simple bundt cake--no mixer was even required!
Michelle of Brown-Eyed Baker, where I got the recipe from, said the root beer flavor which intensify over time, so I made it a day ahead of time. Unfortunately we couldn't detect a whole lot of root beer in the cake. It was moist, practically melting in our mouths, and full of intense chocolate flavor, making it an overall success--just not necessary deserving of the root beer title. Next time I'll try adding some root beer extract for an extra punch. The frosting, though?! WHOA. Quite possibly my favorite chocolate frosting ever, or at least right up there with this hot chocolate buttercream! I will absolutely be using this frosting again!

Can you consider eating ice cream and then eating MORE ice cream a hobby? If so, it's my new hobby. To be more specific, I prefer to eat a new-to-me ice cream flavor out somewhere, and then go home and recreate it. I did it with the Maple Whiskey Bacon Ice Cream and now I'm back doing it again, this time with Sunday Brunch ice cream! What happens when you mix breakfast with dessert? MAGIC. This particular ice cream is inspired (read: copied) from Ample Hills Creamery in Brooklyn, NY which I told you all about.
This is cinnamon ice cream, which is fantastic enough to stand by itself. But then Ample Hills Creamery went ahead and added pieces of french toast to it which of course blew my mind, and now here I am at home doing the same thing! I started with a cinnamon ice cream recipe and simply added a few pieces of french toast that I'd made using an egg batter with extra cinnamon in it. If you love cinnamon toast, snickerdoodles, or french toast, you will love this ice cream! I liked it best when it was still pretty soft from the ice cream maker and I might add a tablespoon of vodka next time to keep it a little softer after it's spent some time in the freezer.

Maple Whiskey Ice Cream with Candied Bacon

The scene is this: