Bubblegum Ice Cream

Blue bubble gum ice cream was IT for me when I was a kid.

Rainbow sherbet? No thanks. You can have your Rocky Road... Bubble gum ice cream topped the charts. And not just any one, the blue kind. 

Which apparently manufacturers thought was in short supply because they hoarded that stuff. I knew of one location when I was younger and I would beg my parents to take me. Unfortunately, it was a good hour away.

But you know when you are alone and you're like:
"mom, lets get donuts" and she says... 
"no! eat your carrots" 
"for breakfast?" 
"don't ask questions!!"

But if your friends are over she's like... 

"Of course honey, what kind!?" psh... 

I eventually became privy to that game so when my cousin was here I knew she'd never say no!

To this day my cousin and my favorite ice cream is still blue bubble gum. And when I was pregnant with my second son the craving struck.... I wish I could say I was motivated enough at 7 months to make homemade ice cream but I won't lie to all of you. I was lucky enough to find it at our local grocery store here and it was fantastic.

This will sound funny tho. I was never keen on those HUGE gumballs sitting there all frozen in my ice cream. I avoid anything that stands in my way of NOT having to chew. I did love picking them all out and setting them aside and then when everyone was done with their ice cream treat, I still had mine! Muahahaha....

So for my ice cream recipe I found these awesome little gum "nuggets" that wont hurt if you swallow them (and I refuse to believe they sit in my stomach for 7 years...)

*WARNING: The bubblegum base may cause sticking to your pan, I experienced this with my own. As this is bubblegum, please don't use your favorite pan! Also, nonstick helps!*

Ice Cream Base:
2 1/2 cups half and half
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
Blue or red extract, depending what color you want
12 pieces Dubble Bubble
Gumballs, nuggets, Chiclets.... the options are endless!

1. In a saucepan over medium heat, whisk together all of the ingredients up to the Dubble Bubble. Make sure everything is combined and starting to warm through. 
2. Add in the pieces of bubble gum and bring to a light boil. Whisk until the gum is practically melted and the base has started to thicken. 
3. Remove from heat and place in a sturdy container. Cover and place in the fridge until completely cold. A minimum of 6 hours but I think overnight is best. 
4. You might notice a lot of the gum particles have sunken to the bottom but using a fine mesh strainer pour the base through to remove any remaining.
5. Pour your base into an ice cream maker and churn for a good 30 minutes. If you are adding in smaller pieces of gum, pour in during the last 10 minutes of churning. Otherwise if using the bigger gum balls combine with the ice cream once churning process is finished. 
6. For a "soft serve" feel eat once it's finished otherwise, I like to freeze mine for a good 2 hours more. 

I realize you're all thinking "What difference in flavor does the food coloring make?" "Why would pink taste any different than blue?"

It wouldn't.... OK!? But there's nothing more satisfactory than a blue ring around your mouth! SO it's still my favorite.

The base has a full bubble gum flavor so gum balls aren't even necessary! Enjoy this today!

(By the way... The first 6 ingredients make a great base for any flavor of ice cream. The options are endless!)

*notice happy blue ring around mouth!!*

Butter Crackers (aka: Ritz)

I had full intentions of JUST calling these Ritz crackers until someone managed to run off with my wavy cookie cutter... I am fairly sure it was the kitchen gnomes. Anyways...


I am a cracker fiend!


My family being from Wisconsin often meant my meal of choice was Kaukana spreadable cheese, summer sausage and of course... Ritz crackers.


It's a mystery that I haven't died from a heart attack yet, I'm just saying...


I wish I could take 100% credit for this creativity but alas.. I found it on Pinterest and its from cupcakeproject.com.


Check out her site, it's awesome. She devoted quite some time to perfecting these beauts...


Ritz Crackers:
2 cups all purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tbsp cold butter + 3 tbsp melted butter
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2/3 cup cold water


Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Place the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into your food processor and pulse to combine.
Add the cold butter, cut into pats and pulse until crumbly.
Add the vegetable oil, all at once and pulls until dough starts to become sticky.
With the processor on, slowly pour in the water. The dough should form a ball once finished.

Roll out the dough as thin as you can get it, it's OK if they are different sizes they are homemade after all.
Use your ruffly cookie cutter (classic Ritz shape) or really any shape you like will do. Poke holes in the top of the Ritz to allow for even baking.


Brush a light coat of butter onto the crackers and sprinkle lightly with salt before baking.

Bake for 12 minutes or until your desired brownness is achieved.


Brush with more melted butter (and a sprinkle of salt if you like) immediately out of oven. Cool and enjoy!


These aren't as crisp as typical Ritz but definitely flaky. They are easy to whip up and are best with a topping like I don't know.... Cheese and Summer sausage? ;) Enjoy your week everyone!!

Twix Brownies

It's simple.


Basically, I like my brownies like I like my men.


Sweet, rich, layers of complexities and rich....Did I mention rich?


So when I thought of the idea for Twix Brownies I knew they would be a winner.


And I wouldn't have to eat a salad on the first date or nod my head  to pretend like I'm listening.


Twix Brownies would just "get me".


Oh and get me they did... twice. 


Anyways, please make these amazing rich brownies. All it takes is a simple short bread recipe and a boxed brownie mix.


Also, check out my best friend's Homemade Twix over at Crafts, Cakes and Cats... They look amazing!


 Short Bread Layer:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temp
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 teaspoons Vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour


Favorite Box of Fudge Brownie Mix


Caramel Layer:
1 bag caramels unwrapped
2 tablespoons whole milk


Chocolate topping:
1/2 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips plus 1/2 bag dark chocolate chunks
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup whole milk




For the shortbread, preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Line a 9x13" pan with parchment paper then spray to grease. Set aside.
In your stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the flour and continue to beat until mixture comes together. Take the dough and using your hands, press evenly into the pan. Prick the crust all over with a fork to allow even baking.
Bake the crust until pale, around 20-25 minutes.  Take out the pan and cool slightly.


Make the brownie mix, following the back of the box. Increase the oven temperature to what is specified on the back of the box. Pour brownie batter over shortbread and bake for necessary amount specified or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let your brownies and short bread cool completely. 


Once cooled, place caramels and milk in a saucepan. Cook over medium low heat until caramel is melted. Pour over the brownies, making sure to work quickly and spread evenly.Allow to cool on counter or if short on time cool in fridge for 15 minutes covered with plastic wrap. 


During this time start on the chocolate layer. Place all of the ingredients in a sauce pan and stir over low heat until completely melted, smooth and glossy. This should take 5-10 minutes. Remove brownies from fridge and pour chocolate over the caramel layer. Cover with plastic wrap and cool completely in the fridge until the top layer is firm.

Allow brownies to come to room temperature and cut. Enjoy by itself, warmed with ice cream on top or snuggled up in a blanket watching Ryan Gosling. I tend to go with the latter. 

Happy Sunday Everyone!!

Homemade Pop-Tarts

Husbands are funny.


And not even in a little kid "laugh-because-they-don't-know-better" kind of way.


Because they DO know better...


They're like adult children or something.


My husband and I got into a fight this afternoon on baseball and what counts as "an out". 


I'm sorry my religion isn't sports and I don't pray to the football God's every season.


Actually I kind of do (Go Packers!) But that's irrelevant...


He gets frustrated with me so I give up. If you're such a "genius" when it comes to sports, shouldn't you be able to explain it all?


I mean, what are you going to do when our kids are older and they ask about soccer and why that forsaken sport is 10 hours long!?


Anyways, my man-child husband inspired to me to make one of my childhood favorites: pop tarts.


These are a little time consuming but anything worth having is worth some effort.


Like marriage...




You are welcome to use your favorite pie dough... This is mine.


Tart Dough:
(makes 8-10 tarts)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 stick, or one cup, butter. Cut into pieces and chilled.
1/4 cup ice water, plus extra if needed




Filling:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
or:
Your Favorite jam or Nutella...
Plus 1 egg, whisked for brushing


In the bowl of your food processor, pulse together the flour and salt. Once combined, add in the chilled butter and pulse until pea-sized crumbs form (with a small amount of larger pieces mixed in). This will take 10-15 seconds of pulsing. 

With the machine running, start with a 1/4 cup of ice water, and pour slowly (in a steady stream) through the tube of the processor. I always need around 2 tablespoons more following. You want your dough to come together but not be too wet. Test by squeezing a small amount of dough together. If it sticks and is not too crumbly you are all set.

Divide your dough into 2 equal portions and form each into a flattened disk and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour or up to overnight.

If you have chilled your dough overnight, make sure to let it sit on the counter for 15-30 minutes before using.


Place a piece of your dough on to a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle that is around 1/8" thick. You will want your rectangle large enough to trim to 9x12". Cut your rectangle in half horizontally (at the 4.5" mark) then vertically every 3 inches. Making 8-4.5x3" squares.

Carefully transfer 4 (bottom tarts) onto your baking sheet. Taking the whisked egg, lightly brush the tops (of the bottoms. HA!) 


Combine your ingredients if making the brown sugar filling, or if using jam, take 1 tablespoon of either and spread onto the bottom tart. Leaving around a 1/2" edge. Grab another rectangle and place on top, pushing down lightly to seal the edges. Press the tines of a fork around the edges of the rectangle and repeat. 
Half of the dough should provide you with 4 full tarts. 
Brush the tops of the tarts lightly with the egg was and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the tarts for 20-25 minutes until they are golden. Cool completely on a wire rack.

For the Glaze:
(if you like)
Combine 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 tablespoon of milk and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon in a small bowl and stir to combine. Adjust the milk to more or less depending on your desired consistency.


Allow the tarts to cool before glazing. 


Now enjoy... the options are endless and even the strawberry would be great with a vanilla glaze and sprinkles. I like mine just plain.

Cinnamon-Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

Holidays are exhausting. As much as I wish I could say I'm Susie homemaker and can cook and bake all day without getting tired, its far from the truth.

So when it's the end of the day and all I can hear is the sound of my children's whining... I'm actually a happy woman.

And evidently it's always expected of me to make some amazing food...

This bread was no exception (if you'll allow me to pat myself on the back for a second).

I was literally on Pinterest the other day drooling at this recipe, which isn't a first because Pinterest has like a bajillion yummy things.

And yes bajillion is a legit number its like.... a billion times a million or something.

I'm not a math major...

Anyways, long story short the next time a holiday comes around make this bread and people will be impressed. And will start coming around more. So don't cook it when your in-laws are in town....

I'm kidding... kind of.

Bread Dough:
Adapted from foodsnots.com

2 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp all purpose-flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 envelop (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp butter
1/3 cup whole milk
1/4 cup water
2 room temperature eggs, whisked
1 tsp vanilla

Filling:
1 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 tbsp butter, melted


In your stand mixer combine 2 cups of flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Set aside.

In a small saucepan melt the butter and milk together. Once the butter is melted take off of the burner and add the water and vanilla. Let this mixture cool for 5 minutes.

Pour the butter mixture into the large bowl with flour and such and mix well. Pour the whisked eggs into the batter and continue to mix. Add the 3/4 cup of flour and mix until combined. You will notice the dough is very sticky, this is right. Grease a medium sized bowl, place the dough in it and cover. Let sit in a warm place to rise, until doubled, for 40-45 minutes. Once the dough has doubled in size, knead in the 2 tablespoons of remaining flour cover the dough again for 10 minutes.

During this time start the filling. Combine the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small bowl.

Grease a bread pan.

Once the dough is ready roll out onto your surface, creating a rectangle as closely as possible, until about 1/8 inch thick. Brush on the melted butter and sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture on top covering its entirety. Saving a small amount. With a pizza cutter, cut the dough rectangle into equal sized pieces (about a 2x2" square). Stack the squares into 3-4 piles and place in your bread pan. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar and any that fell off of the squares while cutting. Cover the dough and let rise for another 15 minutes.

While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place a cookie sheet underneath your bread pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 15 minutes then invert onto a serving plate.

Enjoy!

Happy Easter/Passover/Holiday everyone!!

Inside-Out Carrot Cake Muffins

Just in time for Easter.

As if it's not enough to come up with awesome Easter Basket ideas (so your kids don't suspect it's you), spend hours at Church, put on the perfect egg-hunt and make a beautiful ham....

....I guess you ALSO have to feed them some kind of breakfast so they don't binge on Cadbury eggs and Chocolate Bunnies.

Plus, what would my breakfast be then if they eat it all before I get to it?

So here's a quick and "healthy" (because carrots are healthy) recipe that's sure to please everyone in your family...

...And if it doesn't, tell them the Easter Bunny doesn't exist and they're NOT getting a basket next year....


JUST KIDDING!!!!!!!!!

Muffin Recipe:
Adapted from King Arthur Flour


2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar firmly packed
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large carrots, grated (you will want about a cup)

Filling:
1- 8 ounce package cream cheese
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners and spray lightly with cooking spray.

First, start by making the filling. Place your cream cheese in a microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 40 seconds. Add in the sugar and stir until combined. Set aside.

For the muffins, in a large bowl mix together all of the dry ingredients (up to the salt) with a whisk. In a large measuring cup or another small bowl, whisk the eggs, water and oil. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry.

Add the 1 cup grated carrots. It is to your liking the size of grated carrots. I like to use the large grater but feel free to use the smaller if you want the carrots to incorporate more into the batter.

Drop 2 tablespoons of the batter into your muffin tins and top, aiming for the middle, with 1 tablespoon of cream cheese filling.

Cover with another tablespoon or so on top to completely cover the filling. Spreading as necessary. You will want the muffin pans quite full. Now leave plain or sprinkle with a little turbinado sugar.

Bake for 20 minutes or until puffed and a toothpick inserted comes out clean (minus the cream cheese).

Immediately remove from pan after baking and place on wire rack to cool.

Once completely cooled enjoy with a thicker or filling or warm if you want an oozy filling. Also, you may want to refrigerate after a couple of hour since it is a cream cheese frosting. If they last that long...

Happy Easter everyone!!!!!

Funfetti Cake Batter Mini Cheesecakes

We have a local commercial around here for a help wanted site. Basically, it's a site to search jobs in this hopeless economy.


The radio commercials are so funny though and their catch phrase is "long name, amazing results".


Which is exactly what these cheesecakes are. 


They might have a long name, take hours to wait to for, and won't guarantee a job after the application. 


But I promise if your potential boss got even a whiff of these, you'd be hired on the spot.


I'd hire you anyways...


Plus, who doesn't like cake!? And not just any cake... Funfetti! 


Next time you go for a job interview attach these little guys to your resume, drop it on the desk and walk out.


Guarantee they'll call you in 5 minutes....






..... to finish the interview but that's irrelevant......


Cheesecake Batter:
Adapted from Gingerbreadbagels.com


16 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten slightly
1/2 cup full fat sour cream
2/3 cup funfetti cake mix
2 tablespoons rainbow sprinkles
18-20 Birthday cake or Golden Oreos (I used both!)




In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium speed for a few minutes. Add in the sugar and mix for a couple of minutes longer until combined. Add in the vanilla and mix. Slowly add in the beaten eggs and mix until fully incorporated. Add in the sour cream and beat on medium until combined, careful not to over beat the cheesecake batter.  


Sift in the cake mix to decrease any lumps. The sprinkles will not sift so simply pour those in. Add the 2 tablespoons of sprinkles and mix on low until just combined. 

Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Place a whole Oreo on the bottom and cover with 2 scoops from a "cookie dough spoon". Spread the batter out with the back of a spoons or knife.


Bake at 275 degrees for 30 minutes. Let cool in the pans for 5 minutes then transfer to a refrigerator to set.

  

(Excuse my cupcake pans they have been through a lot but are the BEST!)

Once set up you are free to enjoy... and enjoy you will!!!! Have a good weekend everyone!