Coffee Ice Cream

I'm not going to lie, one of the major perks about getting married had to be all the amazing kitchen gadgets we got from friends and family. It wasn't that my kitchen was bare and in dire need of pots and pans, but there were a few items that I have had my eye on for some time but was too cheap to actually buy for myself.

One of those things being an ice cream maker.

Thankfully, our amazing friends Kurt, Sarah, Caleb and Jill read my mind (err....our registry) and bought us our very own ice cream maker attachment for my KitchenAid stand mixer. Needless to say, I was pretty excited and got to work making my first batch of ice cream in less than three days after returning home from San Diego.

The results were pretty darn stellar. The ice cream was smooth, creamy and full of rich coffee flavor - better than most coffee ice creams I have purchased. Of course, I can only imagine it would be stellar to stir in some chopped candy bars, chocolate covered espresso beans or a swirl of fudge, but for our first ice cream experiment I kept things simple.

Coffee Ice Cream
Recipe adapted from SimplyRecipes.com
Ingredients
*1 1/2 cups whole milk
*2 1/2 cups heavy cream
*1/3 cup granulated sugar
*1/3 cup brown sugar
*1 tablespoon instant coffee (I used decaf)
*1 teaspoon vanilla extract
*Pinch of salt
*4 egg yolks

Instructions
*In a small bowl, beat together the egg yolks. Set aside. 
*Combine the milk, 1 1/2 cups of the cream, the sugars, coffee, salt and vanilla in a large saucepan. Heat over medium high heat just until mixture begins to steam, stirring frequently.
*When mixture begins to steam, pour some of the mixture into the egg yolks, stirring quickly to combine and temper egg yolks so they warm but do not cook.
*Add egg yolk mixture back to remaining milk mixture in saucepan and continue to cook until mixture reaches 170°F or it coats the back of a wooden spoon.
*Remove mixture from heat and add in the remaining 1 cup cold cream. Transfer to a large bowl. Refrigerate until chilled, preferably overnight.
*Once mixture is chilled, pour through a mesh sieve. Pour strained mixture into ice cream maker and prepare according to manufacturers instructions.

Happy cooking!

Madison

Coffee Cheesecake Ice Cream Pie

Sorry for the delay in posting, friends. I was excited to share this recipe on Friday before I left to celebrate my best friend's wedding in Minneapolis for the weekend. But blog host site issues kept me from posting before I left and the weekend was 100% computer-free.

Last week was unbelievably hot for Iowa in May. On more than one day, temperatures reached far into the 90's, turning my thoughts to ice pops and ice cream pie. This ice cream pie in particular will be making an appearance many times this summer, I can already tell.

It's unbelievably simple, rich, smooth and creamy. The perfect blend of sweet ice cream and tangy cheesecake frozen into a single no-bake pie. I could continue to wax on about this pie, but really, with a name like Coffee Cheesecake Ice Cream Pie, do I really need to?

Didn't think so.

Coffee Cheesecake Ice Cream Pie

Ingredients
*1 pre-packaged graham cracker crust
*2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
*2/3 cup powdered sugar
*1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
*1/3 cup milk (I used 2%)
*1 pint coffee-flavored ice cream (I used Starbucks), softened
*1/2 cup chocolate chips, melted (optional)

Instructions
*With an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk and beat until creamy. Add in the ice cream and beat until smooth. Pour mixture into graham cracker crust and freeze in the freezer for at least 3 to 4 hours, or until completely firm and frozen.
*Before serving, drizzle with melted chocolate, if desired.

Happy Baking!

Madison  

Monday Is For Coffee

I had no intention of leaving my blog unattended for this many days, but as is typical, life sometimes goes by much too fast! Now that I am back to the weekday routine, I decided that a perfect post for Monday was one about my all-time favorite drink. I have been remiss in posting about that which this very blog derives its name... espresso of course!

While reading my daily dose of news and searching the internet this morning, I happened upon a post about the best boutique coffee shops in America from Forbes. I was, to say the least, intrigued. Although I rely regularly on Starbucks for my coffee fix, I much prefer local, boutique shops to the standard Starbucks or Caribou. Something about coffee seems to demand authenticity and creativity. Perhaps that's why I find the little coffee shops so endearing. Each has a specific personality of its own.

The only shop on this list that I had actually visited myself was Barnie's Coffee. With ten stores in the Orlando area, it isn't a completely unique experience, but it's a local favorite that only exists in Florida, so I suppose that is close enough! If any of you have been to the others on the list, I would love to hear what you thought. I'm always looking for new places to go when I travel, coffee shops being one of them.

The link below will take you to the Forbes article and the subsequent slide show. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Best Boutique Coffee Shops in America

Madison