Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream {gluten free, egg free}

I've always thought vanilla ice cream to be boring.  I always wanted a chocolate based ice cream, or mix-ins at the least.  I never thought plain vanilla ice cream was worth the calories.  I used to think that... until my husband created the absolute best and perfect homemade vanilla ice cream recipe.  

This ice cream is not only absolutely amazing, but it is lower in fat than other ice creams. Bonus!  

Plus, if you follow my easy peasy Diet Tip you'll get to have a treat, but you won't over indulge.  

The Diet Tip for today is, use ice cream cones rather than bowls.  Each night you want a treat, place 1 scoop into a cone.  The cone is more fun to eat, and you will only treat yourself to a little treat rather than an entire bowl of ice cream that most of us fill up way too much.
    

The other benefit with a delicious Vanilla Ice Cream recipe is you can add fresh fruit (or other not so diet friendly mix-ins) for a simple yet very summer like dish.  We went to a farm nearby and picked peaches as a family.  The kids had a blast, and the fresh peaches to gobble up makes everyone happy.

You definitely need this recipe, just like you definitely need an ice cream maker.  We love this Cuisinart one. 

Vanilla Ice Cream
Recipe: Alohamora
Active Time: 5-10 minutes
Inactive Time: 2 1/2 hours + 8 hrs for firmness
Servings: About 5 cups

Ingredients: 
1 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 c. milk (we use skim, but whatever you want)
3/4 c. white sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla

Directions: 

1. In a small bowl mix all of the ingredients together.
2. Cover and place it in the fridge for at least 2 hours; the longer you place the mixture in the refrigerator the creamier the ice cream will be.  
3. Turn the ice cream maker on, and pour the cream mixture into the ice cream maker bowl.  The bowl we use is kept in the freezer so it is good and frozen when we need it.  We have noticed our Cuisinart bowl needs to be in the freezer for longer than 10 hours.  Let the ice cream maker do all of the work for 20-30 minutes.  
4. Your ice cream will be soft serve at this point.  We always enjoy a scoop now, and then place the rest in an airtight container in the freezer.  The hard ice cream will set in about 8 hours.
5. Enjoy! 
6. Store leftovers in the freezer in that airtight container. 

Happy Delicious Hard Not to Love Vanilla Ice Cream eating! 

My Favorite Things... in the Kitchen

I love this time of year.  Sure, the holiday fun is great, but I really love all the sales on baking items.  I stock up on baking chips when they are $2.50 or less, powder sugar, brown sugar, flour, and more baking supplies.  It hooks me up for a good long while.  Just a little bit of thrifty shopping with my baking addiction. 

Almost every other time I am stocking up on supplies I get a cashier or bagger that says "Baking? I want to be at your house."  I think to myself, "Yes. Yes you do!"  Okay, I'm not that cocky; I actually say something like, "I like to bake."  Honestly, I should be saying, "I have a baking problem, and apparently I'm not trying to help the problem."  

With my baking problem I often bake treats for family and friends when visiting.  When visiting my sister in October, her daughter wanted to make cookies with me.  It was great, but man I was missing some of my favorite kitchen tools.  

Some of these tools are inexpensive and some are a little more pricey.  Though, listing them out may help those of you with a little Christmas money to spend on something you want. 

My Favorite Things... in the Kitchen

Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer, 5 Qt- $250

The 5 quart size is the best size.  It holds a lot, and mixes the best.  The 4.5 quart is not quite big enough, but the 6 quart professional series doesn't mix the bottom of the bowl as well as I'd like.  Go with the 5 quart. Another fun thing I love about the Stand Mixer is there are a ton of colors to choose from. 

Cookie Scoop- $14

I have a Pampered Chef scoop, but my Oxo scoops are my favorite.  The Small scoop is best for mini-muffin pan, or Brookies.  The Medium scoop is the one I use 90% of the time for my cookies.  The Large scoop is best for cupcakes or large  bakery style cookies. 

Silicone Baking Mats- $14 for 2

I prefer the Standard Size mats for my 17x12 cookie sheet.  These mats save the earth a bit by not using constant parchment paper, and they provide the best texture when baking. 

Liquid Measuring Beaker Set - $11

These are awesome for liquids and the markings stay on well. Though, I have only hand washed my beaker set.   There is a glass shot glass with 1 oz-1 teaspoon markings on it that works awesome too.  You can get the baking shot glass measuring cups for $2 at Walmart, cheaper than Amazon.  Though, the baking shot glass markings don’t last, so plan on replacing it every couple years if you hand wash it, and sooner if you throw it in the dishwasher.  

French Rolling Pin- $15 

The French rolling pin is definitely the way to go. I have more than a couple rolling pins, but my French rolling pin with the flat edges is my go to rolling pin.  It is so easy to use and clean and you have a much bigger surface area to work with.

Dessert Maker Pro- $32

Frosting cupcakes and making churros is a cinch with this tool.  You could probably get the plastic one and be just as happy, but I got the metal one to go with all of my metal Wilton tips.  A couple of my tips get stuck pretty good, so I’m not sure if the tips are supposed to be universal.  Either way, the ease of this tool makes it a favorite of mine.

To be honest, the Amazon reviews aren’t amazing.  However, the ease of not having to use a pastry bag is nice, and I’ve never had any issues with mine.  I’ve used mine more than a dozen times and it is still working like a champ.  

Blendtec Total Blender- $340

We bought ours at Costco- now online you can get a spatula which may be nice, b/c the Vitamix with it’s center push down tool is awfully nice.  Vitamix and Blendtec are both great, and I don't think I can go back to my $50 blenders now.  Though, if I had to choose between Blendtec or Vitamix, I’d probably still pick the Blendtec. 

Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker- $46 

Homemade ice cream is the best!  Nothing beats it.  It’s creamier, a little healthier, and you know everything that is going into it.  It’s delicious!  This ice cream maker is hands down SO MUCH better than the old days when homemade ice cream involved lots of ice and rock salt. The awesomeness of this ice cream maker is there no ice or salt; you get the "ice" part of ice cream from the bowl that it is mixed in freezes.  Seriously, this kitchen tool is a brilliant invention.  Homemade ice cream now has never been easier. 

Immersion Blender- $40

I love immersion blenders; they are incredibly handy for small batches of whipping cream, mixing dressings, and this blender makes pureeing soups effortless.  It is ridiculously handy.   I have grown to love the Kitchen Aid immersion blenders, but I haven't used many others.  I used to use this blender for my green smoothies, until I tasted the game changer Blendtec for my smoothies.  However, I still use this blender at least a couple times a week. The immersion blender has become a must have kitchen tool.  

BlenderBottle – $7

This is a definite must for any active or busy person, which is pretty much every one, right?!   Mixing protein shakes, my go to quick breakfast or after workout drink, or Greens in this bottle is quick and easy.  I sometimes get a little gunk in the lid spout that takes a toothpick to fully clean, but I haven’t found a better bottle for mixing protein drinks in.  The whisk ball, or I have a solid ball (got from my husband’s work and I can’t find it online anywhere) that works awesome, is the key to mixing on the go happiness.  

Kitchen Tip: How to Ripen a Peach

A couple of years ago I was spending time with my 90+ year old grandpa.  At the time we were hanging out at his house, going up to our cabin, and just spending time talking.  It was a great few days.  We had gone grocery shopping and my gpa picked up some peaches.  They were pricey and oh so delicious.  My grandpa stated, "There is nothing better than a good peach." 

I'd have to agree with him. 

My husband has stated that a peach is like a women.  It's either really good or really bad.  They can be very fickle, but there is nothing better than a good ripe peach.  

We all are in search a good ripe peach.  However, more often than not the peaches I see on sale are usually hard and not even close to being ripe at the grocery store.  

With these two tips you will learn how to make a hard peach a tasty and delicious ripe peach for eating, baking of pies, jams, salsa, cobblers, and so so much more.

You will learn...

 How to Ripen a Peach 

1. Place your peaches in a closed paper bag for 3 to 4 days.  Do not put the bag on top of the fridge.  The heat from the fridge will be no good.  Place the closed/rolled over bag on the counter or in your pantry and let it be. This ripening technique is best used when you want to eat the peaches straight up. 

2. Place your peaches in a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Immediately remove the peaches and place them in an ice bath.  Let the ice cold water cool the peaches completely for at least 5-10 minutes before removing them.  The skins will then easily peel off and you can dice or cut the peaches as you may. This ripening technique is best used when you want to bake the peaches in a cobbler, pie, jam, salsa, etc.  

No more hoping to find the perfect ripe peach.  Now you can enjoy peaches even if they are hard.  

Happy peach eating!