Cookies & Cream with Homemade Oreos

My original plan to post five or six ice cream recipes may have to fall by the wayside.  Per usual, the last few days have gone faster than I planned.  Instead I'll focus on the best of the best and get as far as I can before I leave on my trip.

When I asked Charlie what type of ice cream he wanted for the ice cream party we had a couple of weeks ago his immediate response was Cookies & Cream.  This is an easy enough ice cream to make.  You just crunch up Oreo cookies and mix them up with softened vanilla ice cream.  Of course, I needed cookies and vanilla ice cream to do that so I set about finding recipes.  I've made vanilla ice cream a couple of times this summer, and I've used fresh vanilla beans for a super fresh flavor and the little black specks that I like so much.  This time I opted to go another route and use vanilla extract because it's cheaper, and I believe the subtleties of the vanilla bean ice cream would be lost with the addition of the cookies.  I made a basic Philadelphia-style Vanilla Ice Cream.

Philadelphia-style ice cream (also called New York Style) is super quick and easy.  Unlike custard-based ice creams (also known as French-style), it doesn't contain eggs and requires no cooking.  Milk, cream, and sugar are combined, then churned, and that's it!  This recipe makes a great base for a variety of ice creams.  Try adding fresh fruit, various extracts, nuts, chocolate chunks, or crunched up cookies.

Philadelphia-Style Vanilla Ice Cream

ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract

In a bowl, stir together the cream and milk.  Add the sugar and whisk until the sugar is dissolved, 3 - 4 minutes.  Test for graininess by tasting a small amount of the liquid; it should feel smooth on the tongue and there should be no sugar visible on the bottom of the bowl when it is stirred or spooned out.  Stir in the vanilla extract.

Fill a large mixing bowl halfway with ice cubes and enough water to cover them.  Place the bowl with the ice cream mixture into the larger bowl and let cool for 30 - 45 minutes.  Remove the bowl with the ice cream mixture and place a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface and on top of the bowl.  This prevents the formation of a skin on top of the liquid and will keep the ice cream smooth when churned.  Refrigerate until mixture is very cold, about 3 hours.

Churn the ice cream in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions.  Place the churned ice cream in a plastic storage container, cover with plastic wrap (again, pressing the plastic wrap against the surface of the ice cream), and freeze until ready to serve.  The ice cream will keep for up to a week but is best eaten within two days of churning.  

This is a good, easy ice cream recipe.  I really like it as a base for Cookies & Cream, but if I were going to make a vanilla ice cream to serve on its own I would go with a custard-based recipe that uses real vanilla beans.

And now for the glamourous part -- homemade Oreos.  These were so much easier to make than I anticipated.  In fact, these were some of the easiest cookies I've made in a while, and I think the results are pretty impressive.  They would be really great with a simple glass of cold milk and would be just lovely for a picnic.  

The recipe originates from Retro Desserts by Wayne Brachman.

  

Homemade Oreos

Makes 25 to 30 sandwich cookies

For the chocolate wafers:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp room-temperature, unsalted butter

1 large egg

For the filling:

1/4 cup room-temperature, unsalted butter

1/4 cup vegetable shortening

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Set two racks in the middle of the oven.  Preheat to 375 degrees F.  In the bowl of an electric mixer thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar.  On low speed add the butter and then the egg.  Continue mixing until dough comes together in a mass.

Take rounded teaspoons of batter (it won't look like enough but will spread when baked) and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet approximately two inches apart.  With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough.  

Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking.  Set baking sheets on a rack to cool.

To make the cream, place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and at low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla.  Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2 to 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.

To assemble the cookies, spread teaspoon-size blobs of cream into the center of one cookie.  Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream.  Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie.  Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream.  Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

I really wish I'd taken more pictures as they were very pretty.  Unfortunately, I crunched up half the cookies for the ice cream, served a number of them, and gobbled down all but the two pictured before photographing them.  The two I had left were a little wobbly and uneven, so expect yours to be prettier than those pictured.  

And now, for Cookies & Cream!  Crush up about 10 cookies and gently fold them into softened Philadelphia-style vanilla ice cream.  Serve with a whole cookie.  

Make Mine A Double Scoop

Summer demands homemade ice cream, and I am happy to oblige. A few weeks ago I made this fabulous double chocolate ice cream for my Dad. My wonderful sister found the recipe on a fellow blogger's site, and it turned out just beautifully.  A ripple of peanut butter revs up the richness of this fantastically decadent treat, but you can leave it out if you'd rather stick with just the chocolate.  

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream

courtesy of Joy the Baker

ingredients:

2 1/2 cups whole milk

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

pinch of salt

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup heavy cream

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (all-natural is the best!)

In a sauce pan over medium heat stir together 2 cups whole milk, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt.  Heat until the milk starts to steam but before it boils.

In a small bowl stir together the remaining 1/2 cup of whole milk and the cornstarch until no lumps remain.

Add the cornstarch mixture to the heated milk and chocolate mixture and bring to a low boil.  Boil until thickened.  The mixture will have the consistency of chocolate pudding.  (This is a good time to sample the beginnings of your creation!)  Remove from heat.

In a small sauce pan heat 1/2 cup heavy cream.  Once boiling, remove from heat and pour over the chocolate chips.  Let sit for 1 minute then stir the cream and chocolate mixture until incorporated.

Stir the cream and chocolate mixture into the cooling chocolate ice cream base.  (Another perfect moment to pause and try a spoonful.  It's delicious.  In fact, it's so good you could simply chill it and serve as a pudding with a little whipped cream.) Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and put in the fridge until cool.

Once cool, follow the manufacturer's directions on your ice cream maker to churn.  Once the mixture has chilled and thickened in the ice cream maker slowly drizzle 1/4 cup of peanut butter.  (Notice the velvety texture of the all-natural peanut butter.  Also,  there's no pesky high fructose corn syrup.)

Transfer the ice cream into a freezer-safe container and fold in the remaining 1/4 cup of peanut butter.  Cover with plastic wrap and press the plastic wrap so it touches the surface of the ice cream.  This prevents ice crystals from forming in the ice cream.  Freeze for at least two hours before serving.

Get ready for an intense chocolate experience.  This stuff is going to knock your socks off!  

I think the chocolate base of this ice cream would be tasty with other things in it as well.  Ever tried Ben and Jerry's Phish Food?  It has crunchy fish-shaped chocolate bits sprinkled throughout, gooey marshmallow cream, and caramel.  Some day I'm going to add all of those things to this ice cream along with some peanut butter chips and see how that works out.  :)

It's personal now...

This has been a difficult year for my family. My older brother suffered a traumatic brain injury in March, and things changed for every member of my immediate family in a number of different ways. My brother, of course, has tremendous challenges ahead of him. Already he's fought so hard and has beaten the odds, but there is much more ahead for him, his wife, and his two daughters. Books have been written about such challenges, and I'm not here to dwell on them. He has always been a stubborn person, for better or for worse, and now is the time when that hardheadedness becomes useful.

Origionally I didn't plan on writing about this at all. It hasn't appeared in any of my status updates on facebook, I haven't sent out an email, and have only vaguely mentioned a disruption on my blog. It felt exploitative at first, but as time has passed I see that this event is part of my life too. I'm not exploiting my brother by discussing how his illness has affected my life. I'm not asking for pity or *hugs* (I hate that). So, from time to time there may be a reference here. It has changed the way I live, and it has changed the my family.

So, what does this have to do with food? Plenty, I believe. For starters, I've used cooking to relieve a lot of stress over the past few months. Baking bread, in particular, soothes me. I'm certainly not the first to say this, but kneading can be a highly therapeutic activity. It's rhythmic and gently feeds a lot of senses. Concentration and patience are required, but not so much that one's thoughts can't wander. And, oh, the metaphors...

Over the course of this experience Charlie and I have had a lot of company, mostly my family. All of our visitors have been very kind, and it's a comfort knowing such loving people will step up in times of need. Charlie, too, has been remarkable. We are still in our first year of marriage, and I've asked a lot of him this year. Not once has he failed me, and I know what a lucky woman am to have him. And, I'm drifting...back to my point. We cooked for a lot of people, in March and April especially. Many people were concerned about the amount of work that meant for Charlie and me, but what a wonderful escape it has been! After hospital visits all day it was a good thing to gather for a family dinner and discuss what was happening. A lot was sorted out around the table.

Don't worry, this isn't going to turn into a personal journal about my feelings. :) It's still a food blog, and here's a recipe to prove it. My brother and I made these chocolate chunk muffins for my Dad for Father's Day. Making the muffins with my brother was a strange experience. For a while I didn't think we would ever have that opportunity again. He's made such progress, and I'm so proud of him. Oooh...it's sounding like a feelings journal again, isn't it? I'm turning into a sap. :) Let me just get to the recipe.



Chocolate Chunk Muffins
*perfect for Father's Day

ingredients:
3 oz unsweetened chocolate, coarsly chopped
10 oz semisweet chocolate chunks
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup whole milk
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. Melt unsweetened chocolate and 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chunks in a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring. Remove bowl from heat and cool slightly.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk vanilla into milk in another bowl.

Beat butter with brown sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, then add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add melted chocolate and beat well. Mix in flour and milk alternately in batches, scraping down side of bowl and beginning and ending with flour. Fold in remaining chunks.

Divide batter among lined muffin cups. Bake 22 to 25 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Cool muffins in pans on racks 15 minutes, then invert onto racks to cool.



These are a delight. They are muffins rather than cupcakes simply because they are not frosted. Don't expect a breakfast muffin from this recipe! The chocolate chunks contrast texturally with the cake, and all of the ingredients really work together. My Dad loved these, and I did too. :)

C is for Cookie

The word Chocoholic was invented for my Dad.  He also loves bananas, walnuts, and cookies.  So when I found a recipe for Banana-Walnut Chocolate-Chunk Cookies I knew I was on to something.    I made the cookies and ended up with a gooey, chocolate chunk cookie with a hint of banana bread and a nice crunch from the walnuts.  The chocolate chunks left big pockets of melty chocolate, and the addition of rolled oats (old-fashioned oatmeal) contributed a soft but substantial texture.  The finished product was delightful.  Everyone oohed and aahed after the first bite, and the flavors deepened the longer they sat.  My Dad, in particular, loved them.  :)

Here's the recipe:

Banana-Walnut Chocolate-Chunk Cookies

ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 large)

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

8 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped into 1/4-inch chunks

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (about 2 ounces), toasted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Whisk together both flours, salt, and baking soda in a bowl.

Put butter and both sugars into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy.  Reduce speed to low.  Add egg and vanilla; mix until combined.  Mix in banana.  Add flour mixture; mix until just combined.  Stir in oats, chocolate chunks, and walnuts.

Using a 1 1/2 -inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing about 2 inches apart.  Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until golden brown and just set, 12 to 13 minutes.  Let cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes.  Transfer cookies to wire racks; let cool completely.  Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperatures up to 2 days (if you have any left after 2 days!)

I know you're not supposed to eat cookie dough if it has raw eggs in it, but I couldn't stop.  It's so good!