Don't Turn on Your Ovens! Ice Cream Cake to the Rescue!

 I'm pretty sure it's hot everywhere right now, and I'm pretty sure there are tons of us home cooks wishing we could make what we love to make without sweating through our aprons, donning extra coats of deodorant and rockin' headbands just to make it through dinner.

So we don't cook.

We say to our family, "It's sandwiches again tonight, kids." (To which, my kids anyways, start celebrating that I'm not forcing grilled zucchini salad and salmon cakes down their throats.- They just don't like it yet.)

Or we make giant salads or eat bowls of salsa and chips and call it dinner. Growing up, BLT's were the hot weather meal of choice.

So when it comes to baking in the summer, it's really tough. It feels like the oven is burping out copious amounts of hot-air balloon quality air and it's chapping my face! Slight exaggeration, but seriously, I do not enjoying doing loads of dishes in Sahara-like temperatures while dusty balls of camel hair roll past my feet. Okay, yet another slight exaggeration.

My little Tiny just turned two and I wanted something fun and festive for his cake. Cupcakes are overdone and tedious. I wanted something I could slap together and forget about, and preferably NOT use the oven.

 So I made this!

I had made this recipe some years ago, loved it and then forgot about it. It re-emerged like flotsam on the high seas of this brain of mine and I quickly decided this would be the BEST recipe for his birthday party. And it did turn out pretty great. I did, however, forget one little thing...his party was outside in 96 degree heat. All I can say is that we ate it pretty fast and licked our plates clean.
 

 

 My favorite part of this cake is the outside ring of quartered ice cream sandwiches! It's such a stunning presentation. It looks complex but couldn't be easier.

 

 Layered Ice Cream Cake

Adapted from Family Circle Magazine's recipe

Ingredients

• 15   Oreos ( I used about 5-6 more because I didn't feel the crust was thick enough)
• 1 tablespoon  milk (I added and extra tbsp for the extra Oreos)
• 8 to 9   ice cream sandwiches, depending on size
• 1 pint  mint chocolate chip ice cream
• 1 pint  vanilla frozen yogurt (I used ice cream)
• 1 pint  strawberry ice cream or frozen yogurt

Directions

Coat bottom and side of a 9-inch round springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line side with waxed paper, using spray to help adhere to pan. Trim paper to height of pan.

Finely crush 12 of the cookies (this is where I added the extras) in a food processor. Add milk; pulse just until mixture holds together. Set aside.

Unwrap 4 ice cream sandwiches. Working quickly, cut each in quarters. Stack strips of sandwiches on end, packing them snugly together, around waxed-paper-lined pan. Repeat with remaining sandwiches to form a stand-up edge. Spoon cookie crumbs into center of pan; press firmly over bottom. Freeze 1 hour.

Remove all 3 flavors of ice cream or frozen yogurt from freezer and let soften for 15 minutes at room temperature. Transfer mint ice cream to a small bowl and stir until good but firm spreading consistency. Repeat with vanilla and strawberry. Remove pan from freezer. Spread mint ice cream on bottom, then top with vanilla and strawberry, spreading all layers level. 

I used my off-set spatula to create a pattern on the top of the cake. The original recipe called for Cool Whip on top, but I don't like that stuff so I skipped it. I then broke the extra Oreos in half and stuck them in around the edge for a nice finished look.

To serve, remove side of pan, then waxed paper. Cut into wedges. It works well to use a sharp knife and dip it in hot water before you cut.

P.S. I was able to find all the ice creams without egg (unfortunately they were not "high end" brands like a luscious Hagen Daz or something like that, but I was just happy I didn't have to make the ice cream!!!) so everyone was happy.

Is that a cherub hovering over that cake? Yes, yes it is.

Told ya it was hot.

That pretty much sums it up. 

Its such a great party dessert. I hope this get you out of your hot kitchen and your face into some ice cream!

Love ya, Foodies!

Her Kitchen Reeked...of Chaos

The dishes sat in the sink mocking her.

"Yup, we're going to be extra crusty in the morning," the cookie sheet said as it nudged the mixing bowl.

"Yeah, crusty dishes plus her coffee breath equals a grumpy mommy, " the mixing bowl mused. "You know how she hates the smell of her own coffee breath."

A coffee mug, buried deep beneath everyone, mumbled something but no one could quite make it out. And no one bothered to ask it to repeat itself.

A spoon poked it's head out to see if anyone had been loaded into the dishwasher. When it saw that everyone was still in the sink, it slowly lowered itself back down into it's hole for the night.

She had given up tonight. Normally, dishes were not left in the sink until morning, but tonight was different. She threw down the dish rag and simply walked away.

On top of that, everything seemed to need de-cluttering. The fridge was over-loaded with her children's artwork, coupons, birthday cards, invitations, to-do lists and moments of inspiration, jotted down on a scraps of napkin. She had gotten so used to looking at it, that she didn't realize how cluttered it had become until she took this picture.

She felt overwhelmed. That's why the dishes did not get done...among other things.


And this was a strawberry rhubarb pie that she was so excited about making that, though looking full of potential here, ended up accidentally under-cooked (she didn't take the time to carefully read the cooking time instructions...probably because her kitchen was in such utter chaos) and left a rather chewy, fibrous feeling in the mouth. Yet another reason she felt deflated and unenthusiastic about cleaning.

She felt very embarrassed as she wrote this post and hesitated to post it, but posted it nonetheless. The process of creativity is not always a pretty one.

Oh yes, and three other little reasons why she sometimes leaves the dishes in the sink, under-bakes a pie and dives head-first into a chocolate bar. But would she have it any other way? Most certainly not.

Now where's the chocolate?

Love Ya, Foodies!

Green Monster Pizza

Do you ever have this happen, where you see just the tail end of a recipe on a cooking show and you find yourself "winging it" in the kitchen to recreate what you think you saw? That's sorta how this came about...

I had seen Giada making what I thought was a pizza with some sort of green cheese mixture for the base. I couldn't get it out of my head and rather than Google it, I decided to just try and make up my own. Besides, it's so much more fun than following a recipe, right?

Problem is, when you "wing it" it tends to be more experimentation than getting it right the first time. And sometimes it means that things happen that you don't expect. It can also mean that you end up with a giant mess in your oven of burnt, molten cheese mixture. Yum.

I should have photographed the oven after this venture. Actually, it's probably still there...ehm. I don't clean my oven. I just wait for it to burn away. Sad but true.

Although, the mess was so bad I had to scrape the pizza stone of some of the bigger bits, so I didn't set the smoke alarm off. You know it's bad when you are opening your windows in 10 degree F weather to air out the kitchen. My poor little children were shivering like Oliver Twist in an alley way.

So anyways, the problem was that this cheese mixture, although thick and dense when cold, turned into a river of cheese pouring over the sides of the crust when hot. Part of the messy problem was that I applied way to much. When I put less, it was much better.

The cheese mix

Strewn pizza dough awaiting rolling and baking in a 550 degree oven. Looks a little scared.

Delicious little bits of chicken Italian sausage, also awaiting searing hot oven heat.

I think this was the third pizza that Bubba and I made. It grew a tumor of sorts while baking and of course, it's grotesque physique found it's way into Bubba's heart and stomach.

Proud owner of the pizza tumor.

Tackling it...

Boo is on an anti-pizza run. She used to like it. None of us know where it all went wrong. So she was eating a turkey sandwich- a dismembered turkey sandwich that is.

Who needs teething toys? In this family our babies cut their teeth on stainless steel mixing bowls, guaranteeing a foodie future.

Tiny's transferring all his cubed pizza bits into the bowl and back onto his plate and not eating much of anything...ah, toddlers.

Either the last one or first one of anything you make seems to be the best. This was the last of 4 pizzas and it turned out pretty nice.  How I love making pizzas...I could make pizza all day long.

Green Cheese Mixture

*Note: Since, like most foodies, we are in the business of "winging it" these are approximate measurements, so use your best judgement. Taste and taste again, until it's how you like.

1 cup cottage cheese

1/2 cup Parmesan, grated

1/2 cup low-moisture mozzarella

1 good fistful of fresh basil leaves

3 roasted garlic cloves

Salt and pepper

Throw it all in the food processor and make into a paste.

Toppings:

Go wild, but I used the browned chicken Italian sausage bits and fresh tomato. Use the cheese mixture as the "sauce" and don't use too much, if you know what's good 'fer ya.

For the pizza dough recipe and video, CLICK HERE! Its super duper easy. I know the recipe says it makes enough for 2 pizzas, but I got 4 smaller ones out of it as well. My oven is smaller than my last one, so I had to adjust it.

Love ya, Foodies!

You Got Some 'Splain-en To Do

So first off, I hope you won't be let down by my less than exciting explanation of where I've been, because you all had MUCH more creative ideas than what was actually happening. I mean, a chess game or cracker factory? Brilliant.

Drum roll please...There were a few of you who hit the nail on the head, as it were. MOVING. In no particular order, here are the fabulous peeps who guessed what I was doing...

Lorraine at A Multi-Dimensional Life
Mariko at The Little Foodie
Jamie at Mangiabella

If you haven't visited them, they are all really fabulous ladies with amazing blogs.

Add to the boxes, rolls and rolls of tape, overflowing boxes of bubble wrap, and loads of packing paper. Mixed with children in transition, cardboard cuts (the long, distant, evil cousin of paper cuts), and one stressed mommy equals family fun!

Where are we moving you ask? Down the street? Over the river? No. The Hubs accepted an offer for a new job in my home town and our new house is just a hop, skip and jump away from my overly excited parents. I haven't lived at home, Kansas City, for 10 years now. I am so happy to be home, regardless of the wonky-out-of-whack-feelings I have. We are currently bunking with my parents until our stuff gets here, tomorrow. I can't wait to move into our new place.

To share a bit of our insane journey from Houston to K.C., I have created a little montage for you. What we saw, what to avoid and what landed like a bomb in my stomach.

that pretty much sums up the trip...

poor kid

this was pretty much the extent of our diet - a total belly bomb.

sad.

what every foodie needs on a road trip...Food and Wine and some fiber bars, just to keep everything, you know, regular.

boredom at its peak.

what to avoid.

what we were listening to

what the kids were watching...if Barney made you sick before, just try 2 days straight in an enclosed vehicle. Barf.

Here's some nice cows, right? Look a little closer...

this is a zoom in of the picture above. A Fed-Ex anarchy van in a cow field? I have nothing to say about that.

Love Ya, Foodies!

Thanks for hanging around for me. Now, let me get situated in the house and I'll whip up something delish.

She Saga: Pants and Cheap Wine

She stumbled into the kitchen and flipped on the light switch. Her sensitive blue eyes squinted hard as the light overwhelmed them. With one eye open, she scooted across the cold tile floor to her "finish line"- the coffee maker. She robotically measured out enough coffee for an extra large cup of the caffeine-infused stuff. She pressed the "on" button and walked back to her room hugging herself to keep warm. With her feet officially freezing, she jumped back into bed to toast while the coffee made it's gurgling and sputtering sounds- sounds that equalled her other eye opening up for the rest of the day.

Not wanting to leave the warmth of her bed, she delayed her coffee-retrieval until she was desperate- about a half an hour later. She dug out her favorite cup from the dishwasher of clean dishes. She poured the piping hot brew, then added sugar and creamer. She took a sip to taste it.

She returned to her cozy bed to imbibe her coffee and work on emails. Before she knew it, it was time to get the kids up.

She tossed her laptop off her lap, slid out of her bed and put on her hot pink, velour sweatpants. She took a final sip of her now lukewarm coffee- a last ditch effort to perk up her sluggish disposition.
She clunked up the two flights of stairs like a grizzly bear who had just awoken from a long winter's nap. Why am I so tired today? she wondered, but because of her lethargic mind, her thought disapated.

She cracked open the door to her daughter's room and was greeted by her chirpy, little voice. "Happy Tuesday, Mommy!" Her little Boo said the same thing everyday. She had a 1 in 7 chance of getting it right. Today just happened to be Tuesday. She yawned back, "Happy Tuesday, baby." She kissed her little, independent lady on her warm, sheet-wrinkled face.

She walked over to door number two, all the while trying to adjust her hot pink, I've-completely-given-up pants, because they felt strange and tight in the crotchal region. She never bothered to look at them, because it required too much thought and energy to gaze downward.

She was greeted at door number two, by her bouncing, oldest son, who had just peeled off his p.j.'s and was running around in his diaper with his feet still in the footie part of the footie pajamas. He ran towards her with his arms open-wide. He hugged her legs, without answering why he was half-naked. She hugged him back, while kissing the black curls on top of his head.

At door number three, she was greeted by her happily squealing, one year old. Her youngest always hugged her, while pressing his protruding teeth into her shoulder. She loved the way it felt. It was his special little hug. His diaper was soaked and he smelled like urine. Off to the tub with his siblings.

With the children bathed and fresh, they caravaned down the stairs for breakfast. The two oldest let the elderly, family dog outside while tossing treats out of his line of sight. Then they throned themselves on their booster seats to wait for one of two choices: cereal or oatmeal.

She asked them to wait patiently while she ran to the bathroom. Her coffee was now in her bladder. She sat down on the toilet. While she waited, her eyes met with her pants. Staring up at her was the back pocket of her hot pink lounge wear. That's why the crotch on my pants felt so weird! She felt a giggle bubbling up inside of her. It rushed to and out her mouth as she thought about how funny it was. She mused at the fact that she was no different from her children, who occasionally got shoes on the wrong feet, underwear on backwards or t-shirt inside out. She sat on the toilet for 30 seconds simply to laugh. It became so funny to her and why? She had no idea. It certainly wasn't THAT funny, but she continued to laugh anyways feeling as though she must need it- some sort of strange cleansing.

As her laughter died down and the impatient squawkings of her hungry children arose, it dawned on her that she drank two glasses of wine the night before, which was very uncustomary for her. Mainly for the reason that it always made her groggy the next day, hence her backwards pants. Mothering in a cloud was not her idea of fun. With the coffee finally kicking in and bladder empty, she exited the bathroom with a big smile on her face and her pants facing the right direction.

Okay, so the above was based on actual events and this wine.

I'm not going to call this a wine review ('cause it's not), but more like a wine deal alert. This Three Wishes Chardonnay is very inexpensive and pretty darn tasty. At our Whole Foods Market, it's selling for $2.99 a bottle and $33 for a case! If you're doing some big holiday entertaining, this is the way to go. I think your guests would enjoy it and it would pair nicely with just about anything. I mean at that price, who really cares? It also works well for parents who are on a budget but still like to get tipsy on a decent wine, ehmm.

Love ya, Foodies.

Everything's Lame But The Tart

I had a total lame-o mommy day, today (this was actually yesterday). Some mornings you wake up and just don't feel like being a mom. You want a vacation, a break, a massage...a margarita.

That wasn't happening, so I schlepped the kids to Target, our go-to place for fun and excitement! See told ya, I was lame.

Normally, I attack a Target shopping errand like Lara Croft would attack a mission to retrieve a highly-prized, ridiculously expensive artifact from some ancient Chinese culture- quick, with strategy and armed...with snacks. Today? Well, I didn't  really bother. Not with the diaper bag or even a smidge of make-up. Sports bra? check. Frumpy tank top? (yes, we are still wearing tank tops here in jungle steamy Houston) Check. Helping to support the stay-at-home-don't-give-a-crap mom stereo-type? Check. Hmmm...The Real Housewives ain't got nothin' on me. Okay, maybe I do need a wig and a glass of chardonnay with a couple ice cubes in it.

Back to the actual story and then, yes, THEN a recipe. I've yet to figure out how I'm going to segway into that.

It was just one of those days where I didn't care if we walked around Target for hours. Normally, I can get in and out in 20 minutes, with 3 kids. I mean, that's pretty good. Well, that's if they hang on the sides of the cart, which I normally make them do, so I can go faster. Lara Croft would totally approve of fast and unsafe strategies.

I let the kids get ONE stupid, made-in-china, possibly-lethal-paint-coated-toy each. Normally, I whiz right by. If you act like your in a big, serious hurry, you can usually get by that crap-toy trap without a peep. Not today. Because I was in slow-mo and didn't give a flyin' fig, I let them dive-in, head first.

For some reason, ONE toy is a very difficult concept for three year-olds to understand. They must have thought I said, "One ARMFUL each."

Then we get to the Christmas aisle. Oh Lord. I get giddy and have to touch everything just like they do. That led us to the Christmas music CD display with the touch pad where you can sample the CDs before you buy them. Like I said before, if this was a mission-kind-of-day, I would speed by without even a thought of "sampling", but today I parked the cart right in front of it and let the kids push the buttons into oblivion.

I was not surprised that the Mickey Mouse Christmas Special Extravaganza Musical Music Blowout Disney Supercalifragilistic Best of the Season Special Album got the most attention and I was equally not surprised that I wanted to bash my head into the shopping cart handle to find relief from Mickey's incredibly annoying, someone's-squeezing-his-nether-regional-area voice.

The children? Well, they were in "mousie" heaven. Boo was galloping around in circles claiming Goofy was singing a "cowboy" song, while Bubba acted as operational engineer of this button-pushing carousel of holiday hell.

I guess, it really wasn't that bad. I was actually enjoying every minute of it. I loved that Boo thought "Jingle Bells" was a country song and Tiny was clapping randomly and squealing as he watched his sister do her awkward dance. We stood there for a good 10 minutes, wearing down that display and most likely scaring away anyone who was mildly interested in a Crooner's Christmas with 'Ol Blue Eyes.

I am really thankful for my kids. I'm really thankful I am a mom. I'm so thankful for those silly moments that I can take and tuck away into my heart. I guess it wasn't so lame afterall, more like pretty much perfect- except for the fact that I still looked like the poster-child for Help A Fashion-Challenged Mom Foundation.

Alright. Are you ready for a recipe? If you're not, I'm going to start talking about poop diapers...

Okay.

This recipe was going to be for the Challenge 8 of PFB. It turned out really well. I've never made any kind of tart tatin before. I took Rachel Allen's recipe for Apple Tart Tatin and substituted fresh pumpkin for the apple, came up with a brown butter rum ice cream on the fly and topped it all off with salty, crunchy pumpkin seeds. It totally satisfied my love of salty-sweet.

So with summer garb and non-autumnal weather outside, I was trying to usher the chilly air with this little number. I hope you enjoy.

Git yer pumpkin. (don't ask.)

Slice off the top...

take off its jacket.

scoop out the seeds and reserve.

rinse and dry really well.

cut pumpkin into slices

I used a cookie cutter for the centerpiece.

practice your slices in the pan to make sure they fit.

my addition: spices. Nutmeg, cinnamon, clove and ginger.

Toss with your pumpkin pieces.

until they are well coated.

roll out and cut pie crust to size. (if in a pinch you could use a pre-made pie crust pastry)

make your caramel...so fun and kinda scary.

cook your pumpkin in the caramel and top with crust.

bake until golden and pumpkin tender.

gaze at its beauty...

take your toasted pumpkin seeds

 (and shove it...just kidding. Any time I hear some one say, "Take your..." I want to say, "and shove it.")

and top your slice of pumpkin tart tatin, along with some brown butter rum ice cream.

really difficult part...eating.

Pumpkin Tart Tatin

adapted from Rachel Allen's Apple Tart Tatin Recipe

I'm going to leave the recipe as is, in case you want to make it with apples and I will put my changes in bold.

200 g (1 1/2 cups) plain flour, sifted

1 pinches salt

100 g (7 tbsp.) butter, chilled and cubed

2 tbsp soured cream, or crème fraîche

For the filling

Approx. 3/4 of a small pumpkin, peeled and cut into slices or 4 eating apples, GrannySmith or Golden Delicious; if using a small variety, such as Cox’s Orange Pippin, you will need about 6 apples

1/2 tsp. EACH cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and clove ( if you like you can add these spices to a apple tart too)

125 g (1 1/4 cups) caster sugar

100 ml (scant 1/2 cup) water

25 g (2 tbsp.) butter

1 egg, beaten

Method

1. For the sour cream shortcrust pastry: place the flour, salt and butter in a food processor and whiz briefly. Add half the sour cream and continue to whiz. You might add a little more sour cream, but not too much as the mixture should be just moist enough to come together. If making by hand, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs then, using your hands, add just enough sour cream to bring it together.

2. With your hands, flatten out the ball of dough until it is about 2cm thick, then wrap in cling film or place in a plastic bag and leave in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or, if you are pushed for time, in the freezer for 10–15 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 200ºC (400 degrees F)

4. For the filling: prepare the apples, by peeling them with a peeler to keep them in a nice rounded shape, then cut into quarters. Remove the core from each quarter and set aside. Don’t worry if they go brown, and don’t cover in water or they will be too wet. (Toss pumpkin pieces in spices)

5. Place the sugar and water in a medium-sized ovenproof saucepan set over a low–medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.

(follow the recipe as is, substituting pumpkin for apple)

6. Increase the heat and boil the syrup until it starts to caramelise around the edges – about 5 minutes. Do not stir once it has come to the boil otherwise the syrup will crystallise. Once the syrup starts to turn golden, you may need to swirl the pan slightly to even out the caramelisation.

7. Once the syrup is a golden caramel in colour, add the butter and swirl the pan again to distribute it through the caramel.

8. Remove the pan from the heat, and place the apple quarters in a concentric circle around the outside and any remaining pieces in the centre, keeping in mind that the tart will be flipped over when serving. The apples must completely cover the base of the pan; you may need an extra apple!

9. Place the pan back over a medium heat and cook for 10 minutes to slightly caramelise the apples, while you roll out the pastry.

10. Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured work surface to a disc about 2cm wider in diameter than the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and place the pastry on top of the almost cooked apples. Using the base of a spoon or a fork, tuck the pastry in around the edges of the apples. Brush the pastry with beaten egg then, using a skewer or fork, prick a few holes in the pastry.

11. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden and the apples feel cooked when you insert a skewer through the centre.

12. Remove from the oven and allow to stand for just a few minutes before placing a plate on top of the pan and carefully (it is hot!) but quickly flipping it out. Use a plate with a slight lip to catch the delicious juices. Cut into slices to serve. Serve with ice cream and pumpkin seeds.

Pumpkin Seeds

Seeds from one pumpkin

salt

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse and dry pumpkin seeds. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Spread evenly on baking sheet and bake until fragrant and crunchy, about 20 minutes. Just try and stop yourself from eating all of them before the tart is finished.

Brown Butter Rum Ice Cream

2 tbsp. butter

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups milk

2 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 tbsp. dark rum

In a heavy pan melt butter and let it get golden brown and fragrant. Add milk and cream. Let it come to simmer. Meanwhile beat eggs and sugar with a fork, until creamy and lighter in color. Add a bit of the hot milk to the eggs to temper them. Then add the egg mixture into the saucepan with the rest of the milk. Stir over med-low heat until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon.

Add vanilla and rum off heat. chill in fridge until cold or in an ice bath. Follow your ice cream makers instructions.

Happy Thanksgiving, Foodies!

P.s. Thank you for all your really, really sweet comments on my "Dumped" post. I cannot tell you how warm and fuzzy it makes me. I'm super thankful for you, my readers.