Fast Rum Ice Cream

Ever crave a bowl of ice cream but find you're out of it? Bummer. I know.
I was there just yesterday. I do own an ice cream maker, but you need to let it freeze for at least 16 hours.

But then I remembered hearing about "Ziploc bag ice cream".
It's sounded simple enough, I decided to try it out and to, of course, create my own version of it.

I was rummaging through my extracts in the pantry and came across a bottle of rum.
You know where this is going, right?

Rum ice cream. Oooohhhh yeah.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of COLD heavy cream (you can also use coconut cream, soy milk, almond milk, etc)
• 2 tablespoons of honey 
• 3 tablespoons of rum or 2 tablespoons of rum extract
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1 sandwich-size Ziploc bag
• 1 large freezer-type Ziploc bag
• Ice and 1/2 cup of coarse or table salt

The EASY steps:

1. Mix cream, vanilla, rum and honey. 
2. Pour into the smallest Ziploc, and seal it. MAKE SURE IT'S SEALED. lol 
3. In the larger bag, fill about half of it with ice. (I used 4 full trays)
   
4. Pour the salt over the ice, and quickly drop in the small bag containing the cream. Seal.
5. Shake whatcha mama gave ya, for about 10 minutes. You'll notice that the ice in the bag is melting. The coldness of it is being transferred to the cream mixture, consequently, hardening it.
   
   
6. After using all the elbow grease you have, check it. It should be slightly runny. You can eat it right now, or store it in the freezer for 20-30 minutes.**
   
   
   
7. 20 minutes later, it's now ready! You can top it off with whatever you want, or eat it as is. I chose to add some chocolate chips and pecans. Yum!**

          

That's it! Easy, right? This is perfect for when you're in a pinch! Enjoy!

** Make sure to rince the Ziploc in cold water to get rid of the salt. Otherwise you'll have some pretty salty ice cream. Been there, done that ;)

Sweet Strawberry Pie -The Godfather-

No, this is not inspired by Al Pacino or James Caan.
It's inspired by my Godfather, who is no gangster/murderer. At least... I don't think he is...

Moving on.

This one is sweet and fresh. It's very cheerful and summery. It's also sugar-free. (Bonus!)

The ingredients:

• About 20 medium size strawberries, washed and sliced.
• 1 tablespoon of butter or margarine
• 1/4 cup of splenda, or 1 tablespoon of agave or honey
• Pie crusts (2) or make your own (click here for an easy recipe, under "crust-cracker")

And the steps:

1. Preheat your oven to 400F, poke holes (using a fork) in one of the two pie crusts, and bake for 10 minutes. Reserve.
2. In a large frying pan, over medium, melt 1 tablespoon of butter.
3. Add the strawberries and stir.
4. Add the sweetener, mix well. Lower heat.
5. Let cook for about 5 minutes.
6. Fill the baked pie crust with the strawberries.
   
7. Using the unbaked pie crust, make holes using a cookie cutter. This will prevent the liquid/juice from leaking from the sides, while baking.
8. Place crust on top of strawberries, pinching along the side. 
9. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust looks golden and crispy.
   
   
   
   And that's it. Easy as pie! ;)
   
   
   This would go great with a scoop of your favourite vanilla ice cream.
   Give it a try!

Spiked&Spiced Apple Pie -The Dad-

Ahoy readers!

Spring is FINALLY amongst us! It puts me in a very good mood, how about you?
The sun, the snow melting away (my favourite part), the birds chirping...

Winter always puts me in a bit of a blue mood. My creativity tends to hibernate.
In order to boost my creative mind and find new motivation for this blog/project/book, I decided to let myself be inspired by those around me.

I will be creating recipes for my friends and family. About them, inspired by and for them.

Today I am sharing with you 2 pie recipes.

Easter was last weekend, and instead of buying the traditional chocolate bunnies, for my father and godfather, I decided to make them pies. Cause, why not?!

The first one is, "The Dad" aka the Spiked & Spiced Apple Pie.

Your ingredients:

• 5 apples, peeled and sliced
• 2/4 tablespoon on cinnamon
• 2-3 teaspoons of cayenne powder
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• about 1/2 cup of Jack Daniels (you can use any whiskey you have on hand, or even rum)
• Pie crusts (2) or make your own (click here for an easy recipe, under "crust-cracker")
• 1 tablespoon of butter or margarine

The steps:

1. Preheat your oven to 400F, poke holes (using a fork) in one of the two pie crusts, and bake for 10 minutes. Reserve.
2. In a large frying pan, over medium, melt 1 tablespoon of butter.
3. Add the apples and stir.
4. Add the cinnamon and cayenne. I advise you to add the cayenne little by little and to taste along the way. That way you can adjust the "heat" to your liking.
5. Drop in the Jack Daniels, and stir. Lower the heat. Cook for about 3 minutes. The whiskey and sugar will create this caramel-like sauce.
   
6. Taste, want more Daniels? Add a bit, tablespoon by tablespoon.
7. Fill pie baked pie crust.
8. Using the other unbaked crust, create bands, about half an inch wide, and place them in chequered  manner on top. Making sure to pinch each extremity.
9. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust looks golden and crispy.
   

And voila!

According to my father (who tested it, of course), it's good enough to eat in one seating! (sorry dad, I had to share lol)

You'll have that classic apple pie taste, with a spicy flavorful kick, in every bite! 

Try it and let me know what you think!