Sweet Corn Ice Cream w/Corn Cake

Sorry Dad, but you are making an appearance on the blog today in honor of the Father's Day weekend - I knew you would really appreciate the publicity. Andy and I headed out to Crystal Lake to play 9 holes of golf with Mom and Dad. Mom made about 22 different tee times, as I couldn't quite pinpoint a time for our arrival. Apparently, lots of people leave the city on a Sunday afternoon, head out to the suburbs, thus creating quite a bit of traffic.

I haven't played golf in oh....15 years maybe. Putt putt doesn't really count, and unless you count the Friday afternoon at the driving range this past week, I golf just about as often as I read a good classic novel. Rarely. When I hit them, I hit them good. When I don't swing too well, it shows. I suppose all golfers feel that way though. If everyone always hits them good, it wouldn't be much of a sport. If only my scores in Wii Golf would carry over, I'd be set. I was happy to chip and putt a few balls every so often throughout the 9 holes, but driving the golf cart, and enjoying the company of the afternoon is what I was there for.

As usual, Dad did most of the cooking, despite it being a day for him. We wouldn't have it any other way. We had grilled hamburgers, grilled talapia for Andy and I, cucumber/tomato/feta salad, and potato wedges. A wonderful home-cooked meal.

As I start to pack-up the apartment once again, it is time to analyze the items that I have in my kitchen. What do I keep and what could I do without? What am I using and what was a fad that has since passed? One thing that is a stand-by for sure is the food processor. How can one make sweet corn ice cream without the assistance of a food processor? It stays. The spiral vegetable peeler? Well, that is in the questionable pile. If I haven't used it in the past year, it goes. The same will hold true for my closet, which is why you may see me wearing sandals that I haven't worn in the past year. If I get a wear in now, they can surely make the trip to the new place. I'm glad I can make my own rules for these sorts of things.

But this ice cream. It's odd, I know. You may think you don't like it, but you will.

Me: So....what did you think of the ice cream?

Andy: It tastes like vanilla.

Well, there you have it folks. No matter what flavor of crazy ice cream I make, it always seems to taste like vanilla. I need to work on that. So it is a subtle corn flavor. Maybe the freshness of the corn has something to do with it? I don't know, but it sure is fun trying different flavors of ice cream. Thanks Rick Bayless for the recipe. I'll be dining at Topolobampo on Thursday, so this dish just might be on the menu.

Sweet Corn Ice Cream

adapted from Rick Bayless

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3 ears fresh sweet corn

1 1/2 cups half-and-half
4 egg yolks
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup evaporated milk

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon,

2 tablespoon orange liqueur
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Set up a 4-quart saucepan, filled halfway with water, into which you can nestle a 3-quart stainless steel bowl. Bring the pot of water to a boil over high heat while you're preparing the custard base.

Husk the corn and pull off all the silk. Cut the kernels from the ears and measure 2 cups. Scoop into a blender and add the half-and-half. Blend until smooth. In the 3-quart stainless steel bowl, stir together the egg yolks and sugar until thoroughly combined. Add the corn mixture and whisk to combine thoroughly. Reduce the temperature under the pot of boiling water to maintain a gentle simmer.

Set the bowl of custard base over the simmering water and whisk frequently, until the mixture thickens noticeably, about 20 minutes. The custard is sufficiently cooked when it reaches 180 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. Pour the base through a medium-mesh strainer into another bowl.

Fill a large bowl halfway with ice. Nestle the custard into the ice and whisk regularly until completely cool. Refrigerate if not using immediately.

Stir the heavy cream, evaporated milk, cinnamon, orange liqueur and lime juice into the base. Freeze in an ice cream freezer according to the manufacturer's directions. Scrape into a freezer container and freeze for several hours to firm.

Gingerbread Scones

This 5-day weekend of mine is slowly coming to a close. How does that happen? A birthday celebration on Thursday and Friday with Mom, a trip to Milwaukee with Andy for a wedding and then the Cardinals/Brewers game the next day, and finally a day for just plain catching up.

Thursday: Mom and I are really good at fluffing away the day when spending it together in the city. We always claim that the day goes too quickly. In honor of Mom's birthday, I thought we would spend the day in the new neighborhood and get acquainted with some of the local things going on in and around Southport. I've driven by the apartment so many times since officially renting it, that I'm convinced the neighbors think there is a new neighborhood stalker. I just like driving by it. Last week at 8pm, I was sort of in the area and thought, I wonder what's going on at the apartment at 8pm on a Wednesday - so why not drive by, right?

Instead of doing the normal Starbucks routine, we thought a trip to Julius Meinl would be fun. I ordered an Americano. What a perfect presentation. I hesitated pulling out the camera to take a picture, as we had already made a scene picking a table and ordering from the counter, so I didn't want to draw any more attention to our table - but took the picture anyway. I mean, when am I ever going to see these people again? Oh wait......

A couple of weeks ago, Andy and I had lunch on a Friday afternoon at Southport Grocery - which is also in the new neighborhood. You know who lunches on Friday here? Young mothers, with one of their other girlfriends, and their very young babies. Despite the presence of young children (I'm sure they'll eventually grow on me), I loved it and knew it would make a great lunch spot for Mom and I. I'm already a big fan of the beet salad with fresh goat cheese and the bruschetta with eggs and fresh tomato sauce.

I was also lucky enough to spend a weekend at home in Crystal Lake at the very beginning of June. It doesn't happen to often, and it was just so nice to be at home for longer than 3-4 hours at a time. Chloe can't contain her excitement to have me home, spending some time in the kitchen - as you can obviously tell.

I decided to wake up and make breakfast for the 3 of us while at home on Sunday. Mom warned me that there weren't too many options in the pantry, so I took that into consideration when picking a recipe. This scone doesn't contain any nuts or pieces of dried fruit - which means that if you have the normal pantry staples + molasses, you should be able to whip these up without a trip to the grocery store.

Mom makes jet-fuel strength coffee. I always credit my love of strong coffee to her. These Gingerbread scones are wonderful - and guess what - they go perfectly with a strong cup of coffee. The 3 of us sat at the island in the kitchen, reading the paper, drinking coffee, and eating scones. You can't ask for a better Sunday morning.

They come together very easily. Since I seem to be making scones on a regular basis, I've decided to ditch the step of rolling them out and cutting them into triangles. While it might look just a bit fancier, it is much easier (and faster) to drop them onto the baking sheet. Give these a whirl!

Gingerbread Scones

adapted from Epicurious.com

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2 cups flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cloves

6 tablespoons butter, chilled and cut into cubes

1/3 cup milk

2 eggs

4 tablespoons molasses

1 tablespoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 375. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Blend first 6 ingredients in a food processor. Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add milk, eggs, molasses and vanilla to the processor and mix until combined and dough forms. Drop scones into 1/4 cup piles and flatten into round disc on the baking sheet.

Bake for 25 minutes. Serve warm.

Stout Cupcakes with Stout Glaze

Apartment hunting. Moving. Going through closets. Pairing down what I have. Loving an apartment, only to find out it has already been rented. Thinking you are looking at the apartment of your dreams, only to find that the pictures don't accurately describe the actual product. Who enjoys any of that? As much as I love looking at apartments online, and thinking about what could be, it is somewhat overwhelming with all of the possibilities that are out there. On a typical night, I could easily email 15 people asking to see an apartment that they are currently listing. I can't tell you how many times, realtors respond and say they can show me a place, and I think to myself, what in the world was this apartment like? Did it have everything I am looking for? Was it in the area I want? It is quite often a blind showing with me crossing my fingers behind my back, hoping it is something I am interested in.

I initially moved to Chicago in 2007 and spent 2 years living on the 32nd floor. For the past 2 years, I've spent my time on the 11th floor. And yet again, I find myself getting ready to pack up the boxes again and moving to a different location. It is exciting. I can't wait. I'm giddy. On August 1st, I will be reporting to you from the first floor of a walkup apartment. I will give more details once they are finalized. The view isn't what it was on the 32nd floor, I'll give you that, but in my mind, the view out the front window doesn't matter.

When looking at a new apartment, the key item for me, outside of a garage parking spot and in unit laundry, of course, but ultimately, I'm eyeing up the kitchen space. How many cabinets are there? Can it hold all of the pots and pans I have accumulated over the past 4 years? I've decided that the new place can withstand the Le Creuset pots that I have on hand, but the gigantic, 18 inch diameter cake carrier? It might have to go. I'm going to make a pile at some point. 1 pile will have everything I use on a regular basis, and the other pile will be "do I really need this". I'll see what makes the cut.

I'm not a big cupcake person. I'm actually not a cake person either. I don't really like cookies or brownies, and unless you are serving ice cream or creme brulee, I probably won't bite at ordering dessert. Andy and I have been frequenting Annette's Ice Cream in the Lincoln Park area. I love their homemade flavors of ice cream. Favorites right now include Anniversary ice cream with M&M's, and Banana Pudding ice cream with oreo topping. The line is always long, but nothing beats walking down the block, standing in line for a scoop of ice cream, and eating the ice cream before it melts on the way home.

Birthdays are the exception to cupcakes and cakes. And by exception, I do mean, that I am willing to bake either of those options in my kitchen. You won't find me baking a cake on a random Sunday afternoon. Instead, you will find me at Annette's, waiting in line for my scoop of ice cream. But the birthday bell rings and I decided to make cupcakes for Miss Kacy's birthday. I do own Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book and thought it would be an ideal resource to find a recipe. If you know Kacy, you know she has an aversion to Guinness. So I thought, why not make stout cupcakes?! An obvious decision, right?

As cheesy, corny, and over-the-top boring that Martha Stewart can be, she does have great ideas and great recipes. Every cookie and cupcake that I have made from her cookbooks have been winners. And this does not disappoint. The cupcakes are moist, molasses flavored, and not overly sweet. I like them because there is not a thick frosting on top of the cupcake. The stout glaze is just the right amount of sweet for the cake. A real winner.

Stout Cupcakes with Stout Glaze

adapted from Martha Stewart's "Cupcakes"

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3 3/4 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon blus 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil

1 1/4 cups molasses

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 whole eggs plus 1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon orange zest

1 1/4 cups Guinness, poured and settled

Preheat oven to 350. Grease muffin tin or line with paper. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. With a mixer, on medium low speed, beat oil, molasses, brown sugar, eggs, zest, and stout until combined. Reduce speed to low and gradually add flour mixture until combined.

Pour batter, filling each 3/4 full. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Place onto wire racks to cool completely.

Glaze Ingredients

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup Guinness, poured and settled

Whisk together the powdered sugar and Guinness. Pour over cooled cupcakes.