Bonus: Berry Crisp and Chocolate-y mint ice cream

Over the summer I bought an ice cream maker, and I've tried making several different flavors in it. (Check out the chocolate, vanilla, and peach that I made!) Even though Joe isn't a big fan of peppermint ice cream, I decided to make some because a). the recipe in the owner's manual for my fabulous Cuisinart ice cream freezer looked unusual and intriguing; and b). it called for fresh mint leaves, and I have a mint plant in a pot on my deck that someone gave me and I haven't used it much.

First, the ice cream recipe:

PEPPERMINT ICE CREAM

1 cup whole milk

2 1/2 cups fresh mint leaves

3/4 cup granulated sugar

pinch salt

2 cups heavy cream

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup chopped peppermint patties (about 10 to 12 bite-size patties)

1. In a medium saucepan set over medium-low heat, bring the milk just to a boil. Remove from heat and add the mint leaves; let steep for 20 to 30 minutes. If you desire a milder mint flavor, strain and discard the mint leaves after steeping, but for a more intense ice cream, blend the milk/mint mixture using an immersion blender.

2. Add the sugar and salt to the steeped milk/mint mixture. Use a hand mixer on low speed or whisk to combine, until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla. Cover and refrigerate, 1 to 2 hours, or overnight.

3. Turn on the Cuisinart ice cream maker; pour the mixture into the frozen freezer bowl and let mix until thickened, about 15 to 20 minutes. Five minutes before mixing is completed, add the chopped candy through the top and let mix in completely. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. If a firmer consistency is desired, transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and place in freezer for about 2 hours. Remove from freezer about 15 minutes before serving.

(From the Cuisinart Automatic Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker owners manual and Recipe Booklet)

After steeping the leaves in the milk, I took out some of them, and put the rest of the mixture through the blender.

I almost never buy these. I don't really like them much (plus Moe can't eat them because they contain egg), but they sure sounded good mixed with ice cream.

Ready to go in the ice cream freezer!

Churning...

The ice cream was an unusual color, but it was quite good! Joe said he thought it tasted like toothpaste (but that's what he says about anything mint flavored), and the rest of us thought it tasted more like mint chocolate chip.

I wasn't too crazy about the little bits of mint leaf in the ice cream (but the bits of peppermint patty were fabulous!); next time I might try making it with peppermint extract and crushed candy canes or something. But I'm not sure if I can wait until Christmas for that...

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I took some fresh blackberries and raspberries and mixed them with some brown sugar, cinnamon, and a little cornstarch.

I made a topping with about 1/3 cup each of oatmeal, brown sugar, and gluten-free Bisquick; mixed together with about 3 tablespoons of butter.

Ready to go in the oven...

YUUUMMM!

A lovely dessert, if I may say so myself.

Stay tuned for my Dear John beef stew, and then we'll dive into The Choice with some delicious jalapeno burgers!

7 Quick Takes, Volume 8

--1--

Only four more days until Nicholas Sparks' new book, The Best of Me, comes out! (Click here for a sneak peek.) Now I'll have to decide: should I go out and buy it IMMEDIATELY and read it, or wait until I'm ready to "cook" it for this blog?

Decisions, decisions. Maybe I'll at least re-read The Choice first, since that one is next in line here.

--2--

There is a new show in the works at ABC; it's a drama co-written by Nicholas Sparks called Watchers. HollywoodReporter.com has this to say about it:

The project revolves around the Archangel Raphael, who after spending centuries as a Watcher and invisibly providing support to humans in the time of need, decides to cut off his wings out of love for Sarah, a mortal woman, so that he can truly be with her for the rest of her days.

When Sarah’s life is cut short, Rafe is left to wander the Earth solo as a fallen angel. Dependent on the kindness of strangers and hunted by angels from above and below, Rafe travels undercover, performing miracles as he searches for the meaning of loss and clues to Sarah’s fate.

It will be interesting to see how it's received by folks in the Catholic media world. I expect some will find the concept of an archangel falling in love with a mortal to be problematic, but who knows? I will definitely be on the lookout for this one.

--3--

It kind of reminds me of a movie that came out about fifteen years ago: remember Michael, starring John Travolta?

Two struggling tabloid reporters and an "angel expert" are sent by their boss to check out an old kook who claims to have an angel living with her. Sure enough, the guy's got wings, but he's also into smoking, drinking and womanizing. Unconvinced that Michael (John Travolta) is not an Earthly being, the reporters take him to Chicago, when Michael's unconventional methods begin to work heavenly magic. Director Nora Ephron also wrote the script. (Source: Netflix)

I don't remember much about the movie; I think I enjoyed it, even though it was irreverent. (Or maybe I hated it. I don't really remember.) I know I wondered at the time if the real archangel Michael would chuckle if he saw it, or whether he'd just be annoyed. I found a review that was put out by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (Thanks to Steven Greydanyus from DecentFilms.com for helping me find it!) They weren't too terribly impressed.

--4--

One night last week as I was lying in bed with my iPad, Curly came upstairs and heard me laughing hysterically. He wandered in to see what was so funny. This:

--5--

Of course, I just had to try it.

First of all, when I tried smashing the head of garlic with my hand, nothing happened except that it hurt like heck. I ended up smashing it with a crab mallet.

I didn't have two bowls that were the same size, so I had to settle for a smaller one nested inside a larger one.

After shaking the garlic around in the bowls for ten seconds, there were only two cloves that actually came out of their peelings.

I gave the bowls another shake, and managed to get two more cloves free, and had to do the rest by hand. I will say that it made it easier because the peelings were shaken loose and were easier to remove, so I think I will keep using this technique.

Curly says next time I should let HIM try it; he says I'm just not smashing the garlic hard enough. I suppose I'm just a wimp.

--6--

The weekend before school started, I cleaned out Moe's backpack (that's right, I didn't look inside it for three months) and found these pictures he had made last spring in art class.

Moe came wandering in as I was working on this blog post, and saw these pictures. "MO-om, don't put those up there!" "Please?" "If you put them up, can I skip Tae Kwon Do tonight?" I was thinking of letting him skip it anyway, since I wasn't sure if I could get him and Curly there, run my errands, AND pick up Larry from play practice at school. So now I'm a wimp AND a pushover.

--7--

STELLAR SPARKS TWEETS

A few weeks ago, Nick went to Africa on a safari. (I presume to celebrate his finishing The Best of Me.) On Sept. 22, he posted a few photos on Twitter. Click on the tweets to see them!

On safari and enjoying the wildlife

Still on safari ... For World Rhino Day ... Amazing and beautiful animals ...

Another photo from the safari ...

Pretty cool.

Have a great Columbus Day weekend, and be sure to check out Jen's Conversion Diary blog for more Quick Takes!

Dear John: Teriyaki Grilled Chicken with Carrot Raisin Salad and Homemade Potato Chips

For more than a year now I've been juggling two blogs, a part time job, family time, and just trying to keep my house from sinking into the pit of cluttered chaos. Often I've wondered if I should put my blogs on hold and focus on my more pressing tasks, but I'm always coming back to them because, well, it's what I do. Some people knit, some scrapbook, some run marathons; I blog. (Click here to see what I've been up to lately on my other blog, Musings of a Catholic Mom.)

I realized that last Labor Day Weekend marked one year since I started this little project. I've covered ten books (Dear John is the eleventh), and I only have five more books to go, including The Best of Me, which comes out on October 11. Six if I count Three Weeks With My Brother, and I still haven't decided what to do with that one. That's only about six more months of Cooking Nick's Books. I've been thinking lately about what to do when I run out of books; and I'm considering posting more non-Sparks related projects in the near future, just so I won't have to end this journey quite so soon. We'll see!

In the meantime, I'm past due for another stop in our trip through Nick's books; this one involves Dear John and a cookout on the beach. John has just spent his first day on furlough from the Army surfing at Wrightsville Beach. (Read a little bit more about John here.) Late in the afternoon he spots two attractive young women walking on the pier and says hello to them. One says hello back, one doesn't Just then two buff guys come to fetch the girls and bring them back to the beach house where they are staying with a group of friends, and one of them (accidentally or on purpose, we're not sure which) knocks a beach bag into the ocean. The bag belongs to Savannah, the one who said "hi" to John. The jerk who tossed her bag shrugs and acts like he doesn't care, and John comes to the rescue and swims out to retrieve it. Grateful for his help, Savannah (much to the dismay of the two hotshot guys) invites John to the beach house to join the bonfire and cookout they're planning. It is at said cookout that John and Savannah begin to get to know one another--and where John learns that Savannah and her friends are in Wrightsville Beach to build a Habitat for Humanity home for a needy family--and the romance starts to sprout.

So what's on the menu at this barbecue? Grilled chicken, chips, and potato salad. Since I've made potato salad twice already for this blog, and I was already making homemade potato chips, I decided to prepare a new version of an old favorite of mine--carrot and raisin salad.

Years ago--before kids--we spent a weekend with our good friends Erik and Patty in upstate New York. While we were there they grilled us some delicious teriyaki chicken breasts, and I was so impressed I asked them for the recipe. I have since lost the little recipe card that Patty wrote it down on in her immaculate handwriting (I swear, this woman has the most beautiful handwriting I've ever seen--I wish I hadn't lost the card so I could show it to you), but I've made this so many times I don't need to look at the recipe anyway:

TERIYAKI MARINADE FOR CHICKEN

1 cup Soy sauce (I used Tamari because it's gluten free)

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup salad oil (I've used canola as well as olive oil; both work well)

1 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup sugar

(To be honest, I don't know if these are the exact measurements Patty gave me; depending on how much chicken you're cooking you can adjust them accordingly. I was cooking nine chicken breasts, so I needed quite a bit of marinade.)

Pour the marinade over the chicken. (By the way, you don't necessarily have to cook boneless chicken breasts; you could use this on drumsticks or thighs or anything you want.) Cover and refrigerate at least two hours. Grill until done.

Joe likes to brush the marinade over the chicken while it's grilling.

One thing I wish I had done differently was split the breasts, because these were pretty thick. I usually do this, but I didn't this time for some reason. These were delicious, nevertheless, and I had lots left over for chicken salad later!

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When we lived in Maryland we had a favorite joint called Grizzly's we used to frequent, and they served homemade potato chips--just potatoes sliced real thin and fried until crunchy. (We took the kids back there over the summer--they don't have those chips anymore, but they still have the best wings ever.) Anyway, I make homemade chips quite often nowadays, because they're super easy.

First, slice the potatoes as thinly as you can. (If you have one of those Mandoline slicers, that's great. I have one, but nine times out of ten I'd just rather use a knife. But that's me.)

Fry in about 1/4 to 1/2 inch of oil on medium to medium-high heat. You'll want to turn them about halfway through cooking.

It's not easy to get the potatoes cooked to the exact crispness you want, so watch them carefully. The one on the left is under cooked, the middle one is too done, and the right one is perfect. I'll usually take one out to test it when they're starting to look done. Depending on how thin they are, some will take longer than others.

Drain on paper towels and salt liberally. I like to eat mine with ketchup!

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When I was growing up, I was usually put in charge of making the salads at mealtime. Of course, I often prepared one that required little or no effort: a blob of cottage cheese and a pear half on a bed of lettuce; a stalk of celery and some peanut butter; or if I felt like working a little bit more, a carrot-and-raisin salad. Even that wasn't hard; just grate some carrots, throw in some raisins, add some mayo and stir. As I got older and more adventurous, I started adding a little lemon juice, honey, or cinnamon for variety. These days I don't make it much because, well, let's just say it isn't one of Joe's favorites. This day, however, I wanted carrot and raisin salad, and by golly, I was going to make some.

I looked online for some recipes, and found a couple that looked good (this one from Food Network and this one from MyRecipes.com), and decided to concoct my own version using some of the ingredients from each. This is what I came up with (measurements are approximate):

SAVORY CARROT AND RAISIN SALAD

1 lb. grated carrots

1/4 cup grated red onion

1 T sugar

1/2 t. cumin

1/2 t. paprika

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. cinnamon

1 1/2 t. minced garlic

1 cup raisins

2 T lemon juice

1/4 c. orange juice

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/4 c. mayonnaise, optional

Mix all ingredients together and chill until ready to serve.

I divided the salad into two separate bowls and put mayonnaise in only one of them since Moe is allergic to eggs, and not everyone in my family likes mayo anyway. Moe and Joe didn't care for the salad (dang it), but Larry, Curly, and I all LOVED it. I'll definitely be making this again!

A great meal for a fall barbecue!

Next, I think I'll be making beef stew again, and the challenge will be to find a recipe that's different from my usual stew that everyone loves, but also a stew that will satisfy all my picky eaters. Wish me luck! And stay tuned for another 7 Quick Takes, and that peppermint ice cream I've been promising to share.

Dear John: Spaghetti with Meatballs and Sausage, and Grandma B's Amazing Sauce

Background: John Tyree has come home to Wilmington, North Carolina on furlough after three years of active duty in the Army. He's been spending his days on Wrightsville Beach surfing. One day he meets Savannah, who has come to Wrightsville for a month with a group of college students, who are building a house with Habitat for Humanity. For the next couple of weeks, until it's time for John to return to Germany where he is stationed, John and Savannah spend most of their time together when Savannah isn't working on the Habitat house. After John returns to active duty, they write to each other almost constantly, and count the days until they will see each other again.

John's father lives alone in the modest house in Wilmington where John grew up. John barely remembers his mother; she had left him and his father when John was very young. The two have never had a close relationship, however; John's father has always been quiet and reserved; often spending hours at a time with his extensive coin collection. John had been quite rebellious as a teenager, and joining the Army was a way for him to get away from his father.

The night John came home on leave, his father brought him to the house and cooked spaghetti, as he had done every Friday night of John's life. It was comforting in a way for John to come home to find things pretty much the same at home as they had always been, right down to the daily eggs, bacon, and toast every morning and the spaghetti every Friday night. John's father looked older and more tired, however, and even though the two hadn't seen each other in three years, they couldn't seem to find much to talk about. That was how it always had been.

Now, if I were cooking spaghetti on a Friday night, I would open up a jar of Ragu', maybe brown up a little meat, and call it done. But since this blog is for the most part a weekend project, I decided that the day after Hurricane Irene (a Sunday) was a great day to make my mother-in-law's special pasta sauce. Or "gravy," as she calls it.

GRANDMA B'S AMAZING PASTA SAUCE

First, make the meatballs.

When Grandma makes them, she soaks some bread in milk, and then mixes it with a couple of pounds ground beef along with some chopped fresh parsley, an egg, some salt and pepper. Since mine need to be gluten, dairy, and egg-free, I put about a cup Organ All-Purpose Rice Crumbs in a bowl with a little rice milk to moisten it; then I mixed it in with the ground beef, along with approx. 2 T each of chopped parsley and thyme, and a heaping half tablespoon (which is just about a whole tablespoon, really) of Ener-G Egg Replacer mixed with two tablespoons of water. The meatballs should be about an inch and a half in diameter.

My dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free supplies

For the sauce:

1 to 2 lbs meatballs

1 to 2 lbs Italian sausage links (hot or mild. Grandma uses a mixture of both, and cuts the hot ones in half so folks can tell the difference. Me? I go for all hot.)

1 medium onion, diced

2 to 3 cloves finely chopped garlic (For the record, I almost always double or triple the number of garlic cloves my recipe calls for. But you can do whatever you want.)

1 small (6-oz) can tomato paste

1 large (28-oz) can tomato puree

2 large (28-oz) cans tomato sauce

red wine

basil leaves (if fresh, says Grandma. But a dried bay leaf or two will do in a pinch.)

Brown sausage in a large saucepot; remove and set aside. Brown meatballs and remove; drain off most of the fat. (I don't necessarily cook the meat all the way through, because later it will cook in the sauce for several hours.) In the same saucepot, sautee onions and garlic over medium heat until they begin to soften; add the tomato paste and cook for about a minute, stirring frequently. DO NOT BURN.

I use so much meat, I need to brown it in two pots. Here's my local free-range hot Italian sausage.

Don't worry about the browned bits that stick to the bottom of the pot.

Fill the tomato paste can with wine; add to the pot and cook for another minute, stirring frequently. Ad puree and bring to a simmer; add sauce and bring to a simmer again. Add salt and pepper to taste; add basil (or bay leaves) if available. Bring to a simmer. Add sausage and meatballs to sauce; bring to a simmer. Cover and turn heat to very low. Keep covered on very low heat for 2 to 3 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. It is VERY IMPORTANT to stir the sauce every half hour so that it doesn't burn.

I had some red wine from the Finger Lakes that was a little bit too sweet for our taste, but it's perfect in Grandma's sauce.

(Onions, garlic, tomato paste, and wine)

Fortunately I had some fresh basil on my deck. It really does make a difference.

This makes A LOT of sauce. When I make this I'll divide it in two and freeze half of it; the rest we'll have for several nights of dinners. (Spaghetti...lasagna...eggplant parmesan...meatball/sausage subs...even pizza.)

When the sauce is done, I put the sausage and meatballs in a separate dish for serving.

John and his father ate their spaghetti with a glass of milk. We opted for mojitos instead. (This was Joe's plate. My gluten free pasta of choice for this meal: Mrs. Leeper's corn spaghetti.)

During their brief time together, Savannah meets John's father and visits him several times. Savannah sees something in Mr. Tyree that John has never considered before, and this revelation ultimately helps John to better appreciate and accept his father's awkward quirkiness.

There's also a guy named Tim in this story (maybe we have a little bit of a love triangle?), an autistic boy named Alan, a hotshot named Randy, some horses, and the full moon.

I'll tell you more when I share my recipe for teriyaki grilled chicken!

Bonus: Peach ice cream, and an Irene update

Now that summer is pretty much over, and fresh peaches will soon be a thing of the past, I want to share the peach ice cream that I made--twice--more than a month ago now in my new ice cream maker.

I found this recipe at Barbra's (aka scmom) at "Bless Us O Lord" blog:

5 large ripe peaches

3/4 cup sugar, divided
large pinch kosher salt

1/2 t. lemon juice

1 1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup milk

Peel, pit, and chop the peaches. (The first time, I chopped them; the second time I puree'd them as well. Details below.) Place them in a medium saucepan with 1/2 cup sugar, salt, and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until jamlike in consistency, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, combine cream, milk, and remaining sugar in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until liquid begins to bubble around the edges, stirring occasionally.

Transfer to a bowl and add peaches and sauce. Place bowl in a bowl of ice water and let sit for about 30 minutes or until room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled.

Churn in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer's instruction. Freeze until scoopable to your preference.

(source)

You can dice your peaches as big or as small as you want, depending on what you like.

We had to lock it in the laundry room for this part so our dog wouldn't eat it.

Churning...

All finished and ready to eat! (That's gluten free granola on mine.)

The only complaint I got from Joe and the boys was that the chunks of peach in the ice cream were frozen and were cold on their teeth. (I liked it this way, though.) I made it again a few days later, and this time after cooking, I put the peaches in the blender and puree'd them before adding them to the milk and cream mixture.

Not as chunky, but just as delicious!

Not long ago, I tried making peppermint ice cream; soon I'll share with you how that turned out!

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I guess I kind of left everyone in suspense in my last post, and maybe you're wondering how everyone fared in the midst of Hurricane Irene.

Nick had this to say on Twitter on the days following the storm (I'm combining the 140-character-or-less tweets into somewhat of a paragraph):

My family is safe, the house is fine. Just a little water in the yard. Other parts of New Bern weren't so lucky. Many -- hundreds -- of houses in New Bern flooded, lots of downed power lines, power off to thousands of homes, many fallen trees. 9 out of 10 people in New Bern without power. Might take time to get it restored. Flooding in town ranged from nothing at all to up to 8 feet in some places. We have a generator, so we're okay. It might take a week for power to be restored. Internet and phone is spotty ...Downed power lines everywhere ... The problem is that even the stores have no power so have to leave town to buy things like milk and bread. Thank you to all the utility crews that have come to Eastern North Carolina to clean up after Hurricane Irene.

Now he's back to publishing tweets like this:

"When life hands you melons, you know you're dyslexic..."

"Do we STILL not know who let the dogs out?"

(Check out Nicholas Sparks' official Twitter page for more cheesy jokes.)

In my neck of the woods, we got a healthy dose of wind and rain from Irene, but not nearly the amount of flooding and damage as other parts of the East Coast. We didn't even lose power, which was the best part! (Nick hasn't said anything about Lee; I expect they're getting quite a bit of rain from that one like we are.)

Coming up next: Spaghetti with meatballs and sausage, and my mother-in-law's amazing pasta sauce. I promise.