First, I just have to say that Blue Bunny ice cream is delicious and versatile.  Their website has so many good recipes with instructional videos on it.  Their recipe for Chicken Curry Salad is no exception.  I wouldn’t have thought to use vanilla ice cream in my chicken salad, but this sounds so good:

“This spicy and sweet chicken salad starts with a creamy base of softened BLUE BUNNY® French Vanilla Ice Cream, mayonnaise and curry powder surrounding tender cubes of chicken breast, raisins and diced apples.”
I’m beginning to have doubts about writing this entry before lunch and without any Blue Bunny ice cream in sight…

INGREDIENTS:
4 oz. BLUE BUNNY® French Vanilla Ice Cream, softened
1 tbsp. mayonnaise
1/2 tbsp. curry powder
8 oz. cooked chicken breast
2 oz. raisins
2 oz. diced apples

PREPARATION:
Mix the ice cream and mayonnaise with the curry powder. Fold in the chicken, raisins, and apples. Use in a sandwich wrap with sliced tomatoes, lettuce or other toppings as desired, or serve as a salad.

Here’s the video:

Chocolate Strawberry Heart-Shaped Ice-Cream Sandwiches
[Makes 24]

What you’ll need…

* 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
* 1/2 cup cocoa powder
* 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 2 large eggs
* 1 tablespoon milk
* 2 to 2 1/2 pints strawberry ice cream, slightly softened

How to do it…

1. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, vanilla, and sugar. Add eggs and milk, and mix until combined. Add reserved flour mixture, and mix on low speed until incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl with a spatula at least once. Divide the dough in half, and shape each half into a flat disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap, and chill until firm, about 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface; use an offset spatula to unstick the dough every few turns of the rolling pin. Roll dough to an 1/8-inch thickness. Cut dough using a variety of heart-shaped cookie cutters from 2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter, making sure there is a top and bottom cookie for each sandwich. Place hearts on a parchment-lined baking sheet; chill until firm, about 30 minutes. Remove from refrigerator; use a fork to prick holes all over the surface of the cookies. Bake until firm, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly on baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
3. Using half the cookies, spoon softened strawberry ice cream about 1/2 inch thick on each underside. Place matching cookie on top of ice cream, top-side facing out. Transfer immediately to freezer to harden; repeat with remaining ingredients. Serve directly from the freezer. Sandwiches can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for 3 to 4 days.

Of course, you don’t have to be exactly like Martha.  You can make your own strawberry (or whatever flavor you like) ice cream yourself using any of the great recipes we’ve found and posted on this blog.  You can also make whatever kind of cookie, too.  Check out the Valentine Sugar Cookie Mix we have on sale!

You’ll need:

- a half sphere mold to make the apple pieces

- ice cream (we prefer homemade so check out our vanilla recipe)

- 1 granny smith apple sliced thinly

- 1/2 cup of caramel sauce (you can make your own with condensed milk)

- 1/2 cup of nuts (peanuts, pecans, walnuts — whatever you like)

- 4 skewers

Assembling these ice cream caramel apples is the best part (well, after eating them, of course).  Ask your kids to join in.  In fact, make a party out of it.  Instead of a normal ice cream sundae party, have an ice cream caramel apple party!

1. Fill the spheres with ice cream.

2. Place the mold in the freezer until the ice cream is firm.

3. Remove one ice cream half sphere from the mold and place it on a plate with the rounded side facing down.

4. Place a slice of apple on top of the ice cream.

5. Place another half sphere of ice cream on top of the apple slice.

6. Insert a skewer into the “apple” to hold it together.

7. Drizzle caramel sauce on the apple.

8. Sprinkle nuts on the apple.

Repeat these steps to create as many apples as you need.  Guests can either eat the creation right off the plate or off the stick.  If they are going to eat it off the stick you should put the apples back in the freezer to let the caramel sauce harden so it’s not as messy.

Here’s a great video demonstration by Blue Bunny:

My recipe? It was pretty simple:

1 pint half & half

1/3 cup + 2 tbsp sugar

3-4 tbsp hazelnut syrup for coffee (like this one) — you can do this to taste. Mine was strong, but I like it that way.

Ok, so I mixed up the ingredients and poured them in one end of the ball. I filled up the other with ice and sea salt (I didn’t have any rock salt left).

As you can see, my ball lit up as soon as I put the ice in

And now for the shaking! Check out the neat video I shot:

Halfway through shaking, I stopped to scrap down the sides and inspect the ice cream.

Mmmm… yummy. Time for more shaking!

Another check reveals it’s almost done! I could have kept shaking for better ice cream consistency, but I prefer milkshake texture (and I was too impatient to keep going!)

Notice that my ball stayed lit up the entire time. Perfect for camping at night!

And the final outcome! Two perfect glasses of delicious hazelnut ice cream!

So, my ice cream recipe was not the healthiest. I think there were 80 calories per 2 tbsp of hazelnut flavoring, then the half & half and sugar. To make up for it I ate it with fat free cappuccino brownies. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures of those.

If you’re interested in the glowing Play & Freeze, drop me a line.

They are even adding it to baby formula since it is such an essential part of our life. “Scientists report that adding long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids — typically found in fish oil — to baby formula may help infants better regulate their blood sugar and make more proteins in their muscle cells. These results may help make better decisions when dealing with pre-term birth, low-birth weight, and feeding of infants in intensive care.” (Source)

Food technologist have been working hard to add omega-3s to everyday foods like eggs, cheese, yogurt and even ice cream. However, the addition of fish oil makes most food have a fishy or “off” taste. This is something the technologists and “food chemists” are still trying to overcome.

While the scientists and technologists continue working on hiding omega-3s in our ice cream, why not enjoy a nice bowl of avocado ice cream? Avocados are high in omega-3s and easily found in the grocery store. Here’s a great recipe from the Food Network:

Avocado Ice Cream

• 12 ounces avocado meat, approximately 3 small to medium
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk*
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream*

Peel and pit the avocados. Add the avocados, lemon juice, milk, and sugar to a blender and puree. Transfer the mixture to a medium mixing bowl, add the heavy cream and whisk to combine. Place the mixture into the refrigerator and chill until it reaches 40 degrees F or below, approximately 4 to 6 hours. Process the mixture in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions. However, this mixture sets up very fast, so count on it taking only 5 to 10 minutes to process. For soft ice cream, serve immediately. If desired, place in freezer for 3 to 4 hours for firmer texture.

*Of course, you can always substitute the heavy cream and whole milk for lighter, healthier counterparts. It may take slightly longer for the ice cream to freeze and it won’t be as rich & creamy. But it will still taste great!
]]> http://allthingsicecreamblog.com/have-your-omega-3s-and-eat-your-ice-cream-too/feed/ 3 http://allthingsicecreamblog.com/why-you-should-make-your-own-ice-cream/ http://allthingsicecreamblog.com/why-you-should-make-your-own-ice-cream/#comments Thu, 15 May 2008 14:42:21 +0000 Heather http://allthingsicecreamblog.com/?p=113 Have you ever read the ingredients on a carton of ice cream at the store? Did it sound a lot like this?
Well, why not make your own and leave all that stuff out? For added fun and convenience use the ice cream ball.