blueberry-cream cheese ice cream w/ cookie chunks

Remember the blueberry shortcake I made a few days ago? I know a lot of people loved that post; I got a ton of emails from people telling me how much they loved the donut cake that was served with the fresh blueberry compote. It's a very versatile cake that can be used for anything shortcake, trifle, coffee cake, etc...
Since the cake went much faster than the compote did, I had a little bit of compote left over.
Knew it had to be used in an ice cream. Blueberry compote in a homemade ice cream--as Ina would say "how bad can that be?"
I suppose I could have canned it and saved it for winter, but I haven't dabbled in canning....yet. I want to, and hope to this fall. Canning seems to have gotten quite popular over the last couple years.
Have any of you done canning? There are a lot of books out now on canning. The food item I'm most looking forward to canning is bread & butter pickles. You know the good kind with the onions in it. So good.


any fruit compote would work.


I prefer Loran Doone cookies as they stand up better to ice cream. (OK, and they're really buttery too).







blueberry-cream cheese ice cream w/ cookie chunks
ice cream base adapted from Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream
print recipe

ice cream base:
2 eggs (farm fresh, clean eggs)
½ cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
¼ cup whole milk
pinch of sea salt

Shortbread chunks:
¾ -1 cup (or more if you like) of your favorite shortbread cookie, crushed into med-sized chunks

Blueberry-cream cheese compote:
1 pint of blueberries
juice of one lemon
3-5 TB sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)
Cornstarch slurry (1 TB of cornstarch in ¼ cup of warm water)

8 ounces of cream cheese, room temp (very soft)

Cook notes:
I used a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream recipe that uses raw eggs. I use farm fresh eggs that are clean and safe. Please use whatever ice cream method you prefer and are most comfortable with. When you mix the blueberry compote with the cream cheese, use as much or as little as you like--all dependent on how much blueberry flavor you like in your ice cream.

For the blueberry compote:
Heat up a small saucepan, heat up the blueberries with the lemon juice and sugar. Bring to a boil until most/some of the berries have broken up and this is visible juice.
Take off heat. Get your slurry ready. Add in the slurry when the berry mixture has cooled a bit.
Mix well, put back on heat and heat over low heat until mixture has thickened a bit.
If it’s too thick, just add some water. I like mine fairly thick.
Do a taste test when mixture is cooled to see if it’s sweet enough for you.
Store the finished compote in the fridge for at least an hour before using.
You want this nice and cold before adding to the ice cream mixture.

For the cookie chunks:
Crush up about ¾ - 1 cup of cookie chunks (I used Lorna Doone shortbread—they hold up really nice in the ice cream)

Make the ice cream base:
Take out the blueberry compote from the fridge and mix it in a bowl with the room temp cream cheese. (you can mix all the blueberry compote or half; all depending on how much blueberry flavor you want in your ice cream).
It’s ok to have lumps. Set aside.
Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, then continue to whisk until completely blended, about 1 minute more.
Pour in the cream and milk and whisk to blend.
Pour this into the ice cream maker and start churning.
The last few minutes of churning and/or when the ice cream just starts to slightly harden, add in the blueberry-cream cheese mixture.
When ice cream is done, pour half the mixture in a glass or ceramic bowl.
Sprinkle the cookies crumbs over the ice cream then place the remaining ice cream on top.
Cover and freeze ice cream until it hardens.
Should make a little over a quart.

friday links

Happy Friday! I've got a lot to share with you--let's just jump right in!

Frozen, boozey drinks? Yes please. How about some that don't require a lot of work? Yes please!
Well that's what I found when I came across this fabulous book Poptails by erin nichols, our blogging friend from erincooks.com
Poptails is a one of a kind book that features all the best cocktails in frozen-on-a-stick form. With 60 boozy recipes and 20 full-color photos. These adult treats are perfect for pool parties and barbecues. This is an excellent book for the hostess that wants to stay hip without a ton of work.

Some of the top ones include:
appletini
lemondrop
tequila sunrise
margarita
irish coffee
bellini (my favorite)
red wine sangria




Wicked watermelon pg. 82


sweet manhattan pg. 54

My latest obsession from Trader Joe's. Have you tried these? So good.



Newest flavor from Salty Oats. Clever little bakers!



17 Tips to make your life easier. (these are good ones, not the boring stupid repeat ones--you'll use these)

which steaks are best served rare?

how to tell if your adrenals are fatigued (plus how to support them)

How to Eat Like Your Favorite Authors

amateur gourmet has a new cookbook coming out: Secrets of the Best Chefs.

where food goes in the fridge. what do you think? Is this right?

everyone wants a "sushi bazooka"! I do.

6 Tips to Help You Tap into Your Intuition

brownie sundae bon bons from bakerella.com

excellent tips on making homemade ice cream from food & wine



Great video on the makings of "Notes from a Kitchen: A Journey Inside Culinary Obsession"

This is interesting. 10 Common Food Combinations that Wreck Havoc on Your Health. Have you experienced this?

LOVE these spice kits from plantbrooklyn.com


Chopsticks for the chopstick impaired (for my hubby, found them at Market Basket on cape cod)



Homemade sugar cones from annies-eats.com

Top 5 Places you can't go . Loved this!

Homemade funnel cakes to make at home. Way better than the greasy carnival kind. From Macheesmo.com

I finally saved up enough money to get a new iphone.
Was more than excited to start talking to Siri.



Unique temporary tattoo's

My local airfield place (cape cod airfield) has a couple new planes on their lot.
The red one is available for biplane rides.
I am SO saving up for this one--you have no idea how badly I want to do this! BUCKET LIST bad!
The DC 3 is not available for rides, sadly. Cool right?





I have some new friends in my backyard.



Went to a local greek festival here on cape cod. As always great food, great people, good times.



And after a greek fest one should always close the night off with ice cream.



Have a great weekend!

black bottom coconut-graham bars

Ever try a recipe and it just does not come out? And you think, hmmm, that's weird, it's from a trusted source. I ran into that with the martha stewart black bottom coconut bars (I added in a layer of graham for texture and flavor--quite good actually).
If you read through my cook notes you'll see where the errors were. Don't get me wrong, I do love martha stewart recipes, and always will; I guess every once in a while it happens.
Of course you don't have to add in the layer of graham, I did solely for the reason of wanting to have some graham with my coconut. Graham and coconut, what a great pair.
I might try this again with a layer of marshmallow. Now that's a a trinity: coconut, graham and marshmallow.









black bottom coconut-graham bars
recipe base adapted from Martha Stewart
print recipe

chocolate base:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)

graham center: (I added this in, optional but wonderful)
3/4 cup crushed graham crackers, (I like rough chop, not powder, to keep it crunchy)
4 ounces melted butter

coconut topping:
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar (I used ½ cup)
1/2 ts vanilla extract (I used almond extract)
1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 package sweetened shredded coconut (7 ounces), 1/2 cup reserved for sprinkling

Cook notes:
The original recipe does not call for a graham center. I wanted to add this in for a nice crunch effect. Up to you if you want to add it in—it does lend a nice flavor and texture.
Also, I ran into a problem with Martha’s original recipe. In Martha’s recipe, it says to pre-bake the chocolate base for 10-15 minutes; I only prebaked it for 7 minutes. On the first batch, I did the 10-15 minutes, it was way too long/much and it ended up being overdone when I had to bake it again. So I highly suggest only prebaking for 5-7 minutes or not even prebaking it at all. The chocolate base is VERY THIN. Maybe if you double the base ingredients, then prebaking would come out fine. Also the original recipe says it makes 24 bars? From an 8-9 inch pan? I only got about 12.

For chocolate base:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving a slight overhang; butter bottom and sides of foil (not overhang).
Place butter in a large microwave-safe bowl; melt in microwave. Add sugar and salt; whisk to combine. Whisk in egg, then cocoa and flour until smooth. Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake just until sides begin to pull away from edges of pan, 10 to 15 minutes (I only prebaked for 5-7 minutes). Let cool slightly while preparing coconut topping. Keep oven on for next sets of toppings.

For graham center:
Melt 4-5 ounces of butter, let cool a bit. Then mix with the ½ cup of crushed graham. Sprinkle this mixture over the chocolate base. Next move onto the coconut topping.

For coconut topping:
In a medium bowl, whisk eggs with sugar and vanilla. Gently mix in flour and coconut (except 1/2 cup reserved for sprinkling).
Drop mounds of mixture over chocolate base; spread and pat in gently and evenly with moistened fingers. Sprinkle with reserved 1/2 cup coconut.
Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached, 25 to 30 minutes (mine was done at 22-23 minute mark). Cool completely in pan. Lift cake from pan, peel off foil, and cut into 24 bars (mine made 12 bars). Store in an airtight container 3 to 4 days.

ground beef gyros (quick and easy)

[First, I'd like to say congrats to the winners of the "The Cookie Dough Lovers Cookbook" #25 Barbara and #69 Ellen. Congrats to you both, please email me your shipping address.]

It's no surprise the recent heatwave in the northeast has left me with no desire to bake anything. I'm sure a lot of you are in the same boat.
Laziness comes with a hefty dose in the extreme heat and humidity.
I look for the easiest ways to make something delish, even if it is in "baby" steps.
The baby steps with these gyros?
Chop up veggies in the morning, buy or make the tzatziki sauce in the afternoon (I choose the latter in this heatwave), make gyros meatballs at night. Not so bad right?
And by the way, if you're looking for a good recipe for tzatziki?
Head over to Kalyn's Kitchen, not only does she has a good recipe, but she also included links for variations of tzatziki.

And if you have fussy eaters in the house?
This is a great way to get them to eat their veggies.
Works on my hubby. I just hide them in the sauce.





ground beef gyros
print recipe

1 pound ground beef (I used 85% lean)
½ cup minced sweet onion
1- 2 TB fresh oregano
3- 4 TB fresh chopped parsley (I used a bit more)
pinch of cumin
a couple dashes of salt & pepper

Cook notes:
You could add in a touch of mint if you wanted: ½ - 1 TB minced fresh mint.
It gives it a nice flavor without a minty taste.
I used a lot of parsley in these meatballs as I wanted a nice hearty earthy flavor to pair with the grilling flavor.
If you use really lean meat, make sure to fry these in a bit of oil or the meatballs dry up. One pound should make about 20-25 meatballs, depending on size.

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.
Form meatballs and fry in pan or on grill. Grill gives a nice flavor.
Serve in warm naan or flat breads. Then top with your favorite toppings.

Serve with:
Tzatziki sauce
Tahini sauce
Crumbled feta
Kalmata olives
Chopped cukes, red onions, lettuce, peppers, etc..

blueberry shortcake

I can only take the sound of fireworks so much.
Granted it's that time of year when fireworks go off (a lot) and that's fine.
But not when you know a certain neighbor of yours will be lighting them starting july 1 straight, every night, until the end of September (usually when his stash runs out).
The nights when the humid air on cape cod is so thick you need to chew it before you breathe it, I'll have the A/C on and can't hear the fireworks; I'll only hear a distant rumble much like the sound of distant heat-thunder. Lately, we've had wonderful sleeping weather; low 60's and lower dew points. The perfect time to leave the windows open and feel that cool air caress you as you sleep. So the dreaded boom, crash, hiss of the fireworks fills the air late into the night--until at least 1am, and I have to close one set of windows to stifle the noise a bit.
As I try to fall asleep, I think doesn't this man have a job to wake up to in the morning? How much money does he drop on fireworks per year? Isn't he BORED with them by now?
His house isn't in my area; it's well behind my house, past the conservation land, along a busy rural road. But since it's all flat land, the sound carries--carries very well.
Why aren't other people complaining about this noise? Will I be the only person calling the police begging them to please make him stop lighting them at night?
Just the other day, I saw another neighbor, teaching his young son (7 or 10?) how to light fireworks. Yes, light them. Crazy right? This man, the father of a young impressionable mind, outside on a gorgeous summer day teaching his son how to light fireworks? And so they did just that a good part of the day. I stood there, looking out the window in pure shock. Wondering if the young boy loses a finger will Dads' brain FINALLY turn on and say "hey maybe this wasn't such a good idea".

My love for strawberry shortcake is strong. But as of late, I've gotten tired of it or rather I've run out of ideas in which to create "new" ways of making it. So why not try the 'other' fruit--blueberries. Just as tasty when made into a compote.
But a blueberry shortcake I've found needs a moister cake than your average shortcake. So I found just the right cake to use, that has a hint of buttermilk in it.
This recipe was so good. I received so many compliments on this one--I highly suggest you make this one; you won't be disappointed. I've heard that the cake can deflate? It hasn't happened to me yet. But then again I don't open my oven a lot, I let it do its own thing and never poke at it until it looks "almost done" then I give it one poke.


Blueberry compote is now one of my favorite summer eats. Endless uses.


This cake is a great base for many others summer treats and dishes.




Happy Summer!

blueberry shortcake
print recipe

cook notes:
Catherine says that the cake is destined to sink once it cools, but I had no such problem. This cake does not keep well. By day 3 it was already getting hard. So use it up in two days (which should be no problem).

blueberry compote:
1 pint of blueberries
juice of one lemon
3-5 TB sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)
Cornstarch slurry (1 TB of cornstarch in ¼ cup of warm water)

Heat up In a small saucepan, heat up the blueberries with the lemon juice and sugar. Bring to a boil until most/some of the berries have broken up and this is visible juices.
Take off heat. Get your slurry ready. Add in the slurry when the berry mixture has cooled a bit. Mix well, put back on heat and heat over low heat until mixture has thickened a bit. If it’s too thick, just add some water. I like mine fairly thick. Do a taste test when mixture is cooled to see if its sweet enough for you.

Cake base:
from Catherine Newman's Donut Cake
Makes one 9-inch cake

1 stick unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/3 cups sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 ts vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
2 TB cornmeal (I did NOT use this)
1/2 ts kosher salt
2 1/2 ts baking powder
1/4 ts freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature

Heat the oven to 375°F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan, and set it aside.
Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about two minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating to incorporate after each addition, then add in the vanilla. Scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula. Set aside.
Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg.
Add the flour mixture to the batter in 3 parts, alternating with the buttermilk, starting and ending with flour.
Make sure each addition is incorporated before adding the next, but don't over-beat it at the end. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Bake until the top is puffed and golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a rack before serving warm or room temperature.

To assemble:
Slice up cake and serve with blueberry compote and fresh whipped cream.