*: HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM, AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO.....

Sunday, May 6, 2012

HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM, AND WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO.....

First up, I'd like to say THANK YOU, from the very bottom of my cotton pickin' little heart, for all of your thoughtful words via Facebook and e-mail and phone, regarding the passing of our beloved cat Pee Wee......it really means a lot......

Some non-cat-lovers would probably say "Get over it"; that he was just a CAT, for Heaven's sakes, but we love all animals, and shall truly miss our fat Pee and his sweet spirit..........

(doesn't this daffodil look like I stuck a plastic one in the ground? For reals, I didn't--it's the real deal!)

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Spring has finally sprung here in the North Country of America, and with it comes a heck of a lotta work! Wink and I have pretty much spent the whole weekend sand blasting our decks (in preparation for staining), pulling weeds and mulching flower beds (Oy, my aching back!) in happy anticipation of the growing season ahead.

These new buds on our Red-leaf Maple make me so happy, every single year.........

Love potting sweet-faced little Pansies, for a happy touch of yellow on the porch (where the deer won't eat them and the frost won't kill 'em!)...........

Even the pesky Dandilions on the lawn make me smile (but I'll for sure get to you later, my pretties!).......

I love to bring a touch of the garden indoors...check out this centerpiece I created out of an old green serving tray, terra cotta pots (5 for $3.99 at Hob Lob!), gardening tools, a birdhouse and seed packets.....Really hoping I don't set the whole darned thing on fire!...

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Have you noticed a lot of these in the grocery stores lately?

I love strawberries, but they don't love me. As I get older (and older!), I've noticed that I've become increasing more allergic (lips swell up, burning mouth rashes, fun stuff like that) to certain fruits, especially citrus fruits and strawberries.

Life is SO not fair sometimes.

Anyways, I've found that I CAN eat strawberries if they're frozen in desserts, or cooked, like in jams and pies. I just happen to LOVE ice cream, so the other day I picked up a jumbo container and decided to make some ice cream for dessert.

First thing I do is puree the de-stemmed, halved strawberries with about a tablespoon of sugar in my food processor (a blender would work fine, too).........

Then I just add this puree to my normal ice cream recipe base of 2 cups 2% milk, 2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. vanilla extract. I also added a squirt of red food coloring to this, just so my strawberry ice cream would be light pink in color...........