Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Peach ice cream and Edna's new friend

Hello, everybody!!

  Well, I'm glad this post isn't back-to-back with Jan's hot fudge sundae (which I'm absolutely going to try) because we'd all die of a sugar high. But since the Tex had a healthy quinoa (I love to say it- don't you?) We can go on our merry way to.... homemade ice cream!
Edna was yearning for some goodies. I caught her reading this old book. It's so old, it says 'COOKY' on the front. Heehee! We love Betty Crocker. She has very lovely hairstyles. And aprons. Ok, and the recipes are good, too.
I swapped out Eda's 'cooky' book for a few other dessert books. She was having a good old time. but what she chose wasn't from these, but rather an old recipe we have for ice cream... because we have peaches!!
The thing about having your own peach trees: they all start to ripen at once. So, two trees equals lots of peaches! We're handing them over the fences on each side, throwing twenty pounds at a time at our neighbors but still... we're barely keeping up with the peaches.
I made a few batches of mint peach compote and it was tasty. But this was the winner: vanilla bean peaches. YUMMY. (See my vintage Kerr jar? Whee!) It was out of a batch of jars my dad brought over.
Here it is before it was stuffed with peaches. Oooooo!
There were a few of these ATLAS giant jars. I mean, what am I supposed to put in these?? The glass is wavy and ancient, even has little bubbles trapped in it. Lovely!
There were lots of those blue Ball jars so I sent them to facebook friends across the US last week. They got jars and I got the peace of mind that my kids would not be destroying those babies. So pretty! I sent Julie a Presto jar... but it came back to me. Can you believe I sent a package to her that didn't even have her street address? Ugh. My brain.
 Ok, so Edna wanted to make some ice cream, the old fashioned way.
NOTE: I doubled this recipe so the pictures will look like a lot more than the recipe should be. :) The amounts I give are for a single batch.
3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1/8 teaspoon table salt
  • 2 cups milk                               
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 egg yolk                               
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla     

  •  So, let's start on the base. Mix sugar, corn starch and salt in a pan and whisk together. Pour in the milk and cream, whisking constantly. Heat until thickened, stirring constantly over medium heat. After it's thickened, set aside to cool for about ten minutes.
    Separate one egg. Beat the yolk.
     Pour one cup of the cooled milk mixture into the eggs, stirring constantly. Add the egg/milk mix back to the pan and heat again until a pudding-like consistency.
     Oh, our grapes are ready! Seedless sweet grapes... Except for the multitude of spiders, we're in heaven over here!
    So that's the recipe for plain vanilla. Most of the kids just wanted vanilla, so that was fine. but we had all these peaches! And I found this awesome recipe for peach and pecan ice cream!                      
  • 1 cup peeled and coarsely chopped peaches                                                              
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons butter                               
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

  •  Here is some of the vanilla bean peaches, mashed. Mmmmmmmm.
     Add the butter, salt, and pecans to a pan and toast on medium for about 8-9 minutes.
     I split the vanilla ice cream into two bowls, so I could add what I wanted to the parents' batch.
     Stir in mashed peaches, about 1 cup. (This looks like more, and it was. And it was delicious. but the recipe says one cup.)
     Add toasted pecans. Later, I thought these tasted more like walnuts. Oh well. They were still good.
     Put the vanilla into the deep freeze to solidify. (Oh, see? Pecans in the background! I knew there were some... Hey, and rhubarb, too!)

     While it was chilling, I noticed Edna had struck up a conversation with this strange, leather box. He seemed sort of old and musty. I wasn't really excited about looking inside. But she was whirring and making little happy noises, so...
     There were all sorts of little leather packages inside. My favorite had its own retractable tape measure... and lenses!
     Once I figured out how to open it, the flat metal camera opened to this! How handsome is this guy?? He and Edna had a great time talking about the height of investigative journalism in the fifties and sixties. Walter (or Wally, as the kids called him) smelled faintly of cigars and vermouth.
     He'd spent a lot of his time taking Polaroid snaps of celebrities at boring cocktail parties, but his heart was in the newspapers. Sadly, he'd been in that box quite a while because they didn't even make film for Walter anymore.
    Plus, he'd never seen the internet. Of course, right after the VMA's, he decided it wasn't worth trying to follow celebrities anymore. He's going to be very happy as a showpiece. Retirement might not be that bad, after all.
     Peach ice cream... melllllllting!! It was delicious!
    This was definitely the hands down winner. Crunchy sweet/salty pecans with tart/sweet peaches were the perfect combination. You can tell how hot it is in my kitchen because it was slushy within minutes of hitting the bowl. But it was still GOOD.
     
     
     Ok, everybody! Have a wonderful week. We're headed off on vacation in a few days and I just found out that our place at the lake has no electricity. (Um, WHAT???) Now, how am I supposed to write without a plug in for the laptop?! Maybe it will be a real vacation after all!
    Or maybe I'll go nutty.
    Until next Wednesday!

    P.S. I also have Tina Russo Radcliffe over on my blog today, talking about her new book The Rosetti Curse! Pop on by and chat! She's giving away free e-books to any that are interested in giving it a try and leaving a review.

    28 comments:

    1. Oops, this posted right on top of Mindy's! Erk.

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    2. My comment disappeared.... I think Carmichael may have done that on purpose!!!!

      Downloaded Rosetti yesterday and can't wait to read it, and I'm looking at these pics and thinking you need an ice cream churn.

      I have one for the wee monsters and it's a hoot because it's so stinkin' easy.... Although back in the day we used a hand churn just to show them what it was like to actually have to WORK.... I think that pushed them all to higher education!!!! Love Edna and the Cooky Book!!!! And I've always wondered why Cooky became Cookie and an exception to the rules.

      I take exception to that!!!

      But not to peach ice cream. Oh my stars, I would eat this non-stop, it looks that good!!!

      (Don't tell Mindy, The Texan, because I kind of dissed her quinoa-stuff-thing-a-ma-jiggy yesterday. We northerners like some Southern things and peaches are one of them!!!)

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      1. Haha!

        Someone accused me to making one of my books show up at the bottom of her Kindle ticker. Well, not accused. But she said it was so neat I could do that.

        Um, no, that's not me! I am not all powerful! That is for prospective buyers and Amazon has their mysterious ways.

        As for churn ice cream makers: ours was broken at the bridge over the top was broken so someone had to sit on it for those hours while it was being turned. Guess who was the youngest? Guess whose little bottom got frostbite??

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    3. Here, I have lived in the South for ages and I never thought to combine peaches and pecans in my ice cream. Duh.

      What a marvel!!!!

      Peace and happy vaca, YOU DESERVE IT. Now take it!

      Julie

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      1. When I typed in peach recipes, it was the first thing that popped up! But their picture was infinitely nicer.

        And no, I won't show you.

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    4. Love this post! My goodness what a beautiful bunch of grapes, and a gorgeous young man holding them :) A real vacation--YAY! Looking forward to seeing you guys. Will bring the propane heaters...

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      1. Ooooh, good thought! Finally gave the kids the okay to pack.

        PANDEMONIUM!

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    5. sounds good but too much work (and I dont have peaches falling off trees!) you should trade them with that bread place at your farmer's market!

      Susanna

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      1. MMMMMM! I sure wish I lived next to 'His Daily Bread'! They're only a few blocks away. Maybe I should go offer a trade.

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    6. You are certainly having a bountiful harvest this year! And I can just see your neighborhood - produce of all kinds being pitched over fences in all directions :)

      Sharing is the absolute best way to take care of the bounty, isn't it?

      Have a wonderful vacation. A REAL vacation. Leave the laptop at home and come back refreshed!

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      1. Leave the... what? But... I like writing! I like publishing books!

        And one of neighbors actually asked us what we were planting, so he could plant something else, and then we could trade. :)

        Great guy!

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    7. Vacation? You can't go on vacation. At least not now, Virginia. My bags are packed. I'm headed your way. Peach and pecan ice cream... Be still my Texas heart. You know, Virginia, you could fit into Texas life quite well.

      You know, you might want to leave a surveillance camera going while you're gone. No telling what kind of new friendships Edna might strike up. You could come home to find little beaters everywhere. Or just a bunch of dirty old ones. :D

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      1. Mindy!!!!!! LOL. Good one.

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      2. Hahaha! I think Wally is a bit old for her. And she doesn't care for the cigar smoke. I thought the old trunk was pretty close to her type, but they parted ways...

        We shall see!

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    8. Wow that ice cream looks wonderful. Grapes here in Western New, York about about ready to pick as well.

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      1. I love purples grapes, but this is what was here when we bought the house thirteen years ago. The vines were dead, but my husband worked in the vineyards for a while and he said grape vines are rarely ever truly dead... and he was right! It took about 8 years of pruning and babying, but they came back!

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    9. Gorgeous peaches!! I'm so impressed that you grow your own. Actually, I'm very jealous! They're my favorite fruit. (well, probably a tie with blueberries)

      What a yummy recipe! I love it! Thanks for sharing. And for a touch of romance today (Edna and Wally). :)

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      1. Someone gave us these trees when they were about 8 feet tall. It's five years later and we're loving them, too!

        My husband can really grow anything.

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    10. Have a great vacation being unplugged! I've actually heart of a study that said it takes 3 days of being away from electronics to truly relax. So you're doing well to go!

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      1. This study, did it have parents of six kids? Because being without electricity and cooking over a camp stove may actually wind me up a bit, hahahaha!

        But yes, I know what you mean...

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    11. I LOVE THAT TINA IS IN UPSTATE NEW YORK!!!! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!

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    12. I wish my mixer read some cook books, it would make life easier for me. ;) Peach ice cream- hmmm.
      You are too brave to go on vacation unplugged. Have fun!

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      1. Oh, boy. This is where the kids and hubby wanted to go.

        I'm thinking San Francisco. I'm pretty sure they still have some nice view and you can swim in the bay, right?

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    13. Oh my gosh, this was so much fun on so many different levels. First love that Edna's a reader. I kind of thought she was, but seeing it confirmed like that makes me happy! And my, but isn't she opening your world by introducing you to new and interesting friends? Whatever did you do before Edna? I had a dear, long term relationship with a turn of the century box camera, Mr. Marcowitz. Alas, you chose to move on a while ago and I still feel a pang of regret that I let him slip away.

      I have such trouble picking out good peaches. Not sure if that's because they are being shipped up here and therefore picked under ripe and haven't ripened yet? But they usually end up tasting kind of woody and bland. It's very disappointing. But I might just have to try picking up some peaches and giving this recipe a try...it sounds divine.

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      1. I think there are several varieties. Even between our two trees, one tastes much different than the other.

        I would also vote for the 'being picked under ripe' theory. Ick. Nothing like a tree-ripened peach for sweetness and flavor!

        I have to confess, I love peaches but don't usually eat them raw. I don't like how juicy they are or the bit of tart they can have or how they can also be over ripe. I prefer nectarines. Just me.

        But I do love to cook with them!

        I love old cameras. :)This one will actually be headed to an internet friend who is a photographer and writer, and who is starting a collection with her teenage daughter. They'll take good care of Wally! We've loved him and now we can share him with someone else.

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    14. Guess who picked up a ton of organic peaches on sale today before even seeing this? Haha!
      Peach Ice Cream...Yum! Perfect for the hot Texas weather!
      I'm in total agreement with Mindy by the way...you would fit right in here in here in TX. ;)
      l love Edna stories. They give me that warm, fuzzy, happy feeling. :)
      Wally is awesome! What is it about vintage things that just make them so cool?
      Enjoy the vacation!! You definitely deserve it!

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