Churnless Banana-Mango Frozen Yogurt
Posted: May 26, 2013 Filed under: Fruit (15), Ice Cream/Frozen Treats (13) | Tags: Banana-Mango Frozen Yogurt, Churnless Mango Frozen Yogurt, Donna Hay Banana-Mango Frozen Yogurt, Mango Frozen Yogurt, Vitamix frozen yogurt Leave a commentFirst of all, I want to thank all my readers for coming back each week to read my blog. Second, I want to inform my wonderful blog family that I (We- The Husband, Son and thee) have moved. MOVED as in FAR AWAY from California. We moved to the “beautiful island” of Formosa known as Taiwan.
Taiwan is my husband’s birthplace-just so you know I’m not totally crazy baked moving to a foreign country (only half crazy baked). I will continue to post my treats and you might notice a slight tropical or Asian flare sometimes with the choices I bring to my recipes, but American style treats will continue to be a large presence on my blog.
By request from my friends and family-I am also going to try to post more pictures (other than just food porn), so you can enjoy my discovery of Taipei/Taiwan along with me. I am having such a blast discovering all the amazing food and especially the fruit here in Taiwan. I cannot get enough of the fruit. To kick off my most recent fascination of mangos, I chose this recipe from Donna Hay.
Last week I bought some ripe mangos at the out-door market here in my neighborhood and they were so amazingly sweet I had to go back for more this week. Did I mention I love the fruit here?! I keep telling my friends back in the States that the fruit here in Taiwan is so freaking amazing, and I have to admit I never had a mango that tasted so good until I moved here. The mangos here have a flesh that is soft and silky and not fibrous at all. The bananas in this recipe are there more for the creamy texture that they bring to the party rather than the taste, so restrain yourself from using bananas that are overripe as that is not what is required in this recipe.
Biking around Taipei is easy and convenient thanks to the Ubike system. Notice how clean the streets and sidewalks are. No grafitti.
Isn’t he cute? spotted him in the park while walking back to the Taipei City Hall metro stop.
Banana-Mango Frozen Yogurt
recipe: Donna Hay
yield: 4-6 servings
1 Cup thick plain yogurt, cold
2 ripe (not overipe) bananas
3 ripe mangos
1. Cut the bananas and mangos and place in ziplock bags. Freeze until firm-about 3 hours.
2. Place the yogurt first in a Vitamix or blender. Top with the frozen fruit and process until smooth. You may serve at that point which will give you a more soft serve texture. To continue until firm, place the finished frozen yogurt in an air-tight freezer safe container and freeze until firm.
Pineapple Mint Ice Pops
Posted: May 13, 2013 Filed under: Fruit (15), Ice Cream/Frozen Treats (13) | Tags: Pineapple Mint Ice Pops, Pineapple Popsicles with Mint Leave a commentBefore you know it, the dog days of summer will be here, (WOOF!) and everything will seem unbearably hot. In the next instant– you will be scratching your head wondering where the summer went as you cover your plants to prevent frost. Does it not happen that fast?
The day the mercury reaches 90 is when you realize you do not have a tank top (silly you for waiting until July) and you will head to the mall to find winter coats on display. What- you were not aware you passed into that parallel universe of seasons?
Sitting on the porch, with your heels kicked up, the music playing a soft Marvin Gaye in the background…The kids are at the movie theatre with their friends, the husband is out playing golf and it’s just you and the dog staring at each other. Woof.
Yes, I hate to tell you, but you are panting just like the dog. Woof. That’s why he’s staring…
Pull this ice pop out of the freezer, kick back, close your eyes and enjoy the solitude, and try to forget you were too late in buying a tank top, ’cause it doesn’t really matter…relaxing is what matters.
Tank top be damned.
Pineapple Mint Ice Pops
yield: ~ 6-9 pops (depending on size of molds)
one pineapple (rind removed, cored) cut into chunks + it’s own juice OR one 20 oz. can chunk pineapple packed in juice
Sugar (to taste-1/4 Cup to 1/3 Cup)
8-10 mint leaves, washed
In a blender place the pineapple including all the juice, and the sugar and blend until smooth. Add the mint and pulse the blender until mint is the size of very small flecks (about 3 pulses). Let the mixture sit about 10 minutes (bubbles will float to the surface). Pour the mixture into popsicle molds and tap the molds on the counter to release any bubbles. Freeze for 40 minutes and insert wooden popsicle sticks. Continue to freeze until firm.
Lava Flow Ice Pops
Posted: April 15, 2013 Filed under: Ice Cream/Frozen Treats (13), Strawberry (17) | Tags: Lava Flow Cocktail Pops, Lava Flow Ice Pops, Strawberry Pineapple Coconut Ice Pops Leave a commentI love a good lava flow. Cocktail that is. Okay, perhaps witnessing an actual lava flow (from afar) is pretty cool too. Years back we took a cruise to Hawaii. NCL cruise line does a Hawaii cruise and it’s pretty darn fun. The ship cruised around the Hawaiian islands and at night our ship was strolling past the big island (I think it was the big island) when we saw the actual lava flowing into the sea. Now, I’ve never seen The Husband get so excited before. Who knew it took molten hot lava. He was like a little kid when he saw that red orange hot lava flowing over the cliff edges into the cool sea. I’m getting just as excited to think these little puppies are sitting in my freezer box as we speak. So whenever you’ve had a bad week; take some time to whip these little pops up and sit back, close your eyes and pretend you are sitting in Hawaii. No lava needed…
Lava Flow Cocktail Pops
yield: ~ 6-8 pops depending on size of your molds
1/2 lb. (about 8 or 9) fresh strawberries, washed and hulled
2 Tbsp. sugar
10 oz. can Bacardi Frozen Pina Cola Mix, thawed
6-10 oz. Coconut milk
4 oz. Light Rum (optional)
Non-Alcohol version:
In a blender combine the thawed pina colada mix and 10 oz. of coconut milk, blend to combine. Pour into a 2 cup measuring container. Set aside and rinse the blender. Combine the strawberries and sugar in blender until pureed. Strain the seeds either through cheese cloth or a fine mesh strainer. Place the pureed strawberry mixture into a 1 cup measuring cup and set aside.
For original version with alcohol: Follow instructions as above except use 4 oz. of rum and 6 oz. of coconut milk instead of the 10 oz. of milk.
To create Ice Pops:
Pour about 1 Tbsp. to 1 1/2 Tbsp. of strawberry mixture into bottom of ice pop molds. Take the mold and hold it in your hand at a 45 degree angle and carefully pour the prepared pina colada mix along the side of the molds until mold is full. Hold the mold up straight, and take chopstick or table knife and insert to hit bottom, and drag the strawberry mixture along the sides of the mold in 3-4 places from the bottom upwards to create a flowing effect. Freeze the molds for about 40 minutes and insert wooden sticks and continue to freeze until mixture is completely frozen. To remove pops run mold(s) under hot water for a few seconds to release.
Green Apple Sorbet, Tuile Cookie Cups and Ice Cream Cones
Posted: March 15, 2013 Filed under: Apple (13), Cookies (40), Ice Cream/Frozen Treats (13) | Tags: Green Apple Sorbet, Sorbet In A Vitamix, Tuile Cookies, Tuile Ice Cream Cones 3 CommentsSt. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner. I wanted to make something green. I’ve been wanting to make this green apple sorbet for a while, so decided that in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day it would be a good idea. The sorbet is so refreshing. It is very tart but a little sweet. It would be perfect on a hot sweltering day. The contrast between the tart sorbet and the sweet cookie is perfect. Tuile cookie batter is fun to play around with as you can make all sorts of shapes once you bake it off. I added 2 different tints of green to small portions of the batter to make it festive and fun. Happy St. Patrick’s Day.
Note: this recipe takes several hours of prep; so make sure to read through thoroughly before starting.
I love how pretty these look, lined up on a tray
The perfect little treat on a hot day…
Tuile batter ready for the oven
I could not live without my Vitamix…
Green Apple Sorbet
4 Granny Smith apples washed well, stems removed
juice of one small lemon
1 1/3 Cup apple juice
6 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1. Place the lemon juice in the bottom of a large bowl. Peel 2 out of the 4 apples, leave the other 2 apples with the peel on, but core (discard the cores) and cut all the apples into 1/2 inch cubes. Stir the apple cubes well with the juice and placed the cubes flat on a baking sheet and place the cubed apples in the freezer and freeze until firm.
2. Take the apple juice and place in a glass measuring cup and add the sugar. Microwave on high for about 2 minutes so that the sugar dissolves. Place the apple juice in the refrigerator to chill.
3. While the apples and juice a chilling; make the tuile batter.
4. Once the apples are frozen firm, (about 2 hours) place the apple juice in the bottom of a blender or Vitamix, and then add the frozen apples. Blend several minutes until smooth. Process in your ice cream maker as directed. Pour the mixture into a freezer proof container and freeze until firm. Note: If you don’t have an ice cream maker- you can make it in your Vitamix. Allow the mixture to become almost frozen- then scoop out and process again in Vitamix for several minutes then freeze again until completely firm.
Tuile Cookies & Tuile Ice Cream Cones
recipe adapted from Fine Cooking
(yield: ~ 12 cones)
3/4 Cup sugar
3 lg. egg whites
1/2 Cup (1 stick) unsalted butter melted, cooled to room temp
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 Cup all-purpose flour
green food coloring (optional)*
* For purposes here- I used Americolor in electric green and leaf green
1. In a medium bowl mix the egg whites and sugar with a whisk. Stir gently just to combine-you are not looking to make the mixture foamy. Add the cooled melted butter and vanilla, and stir to combine. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Portion a small amount of batter into two separate bowls and add 2 drops of leaf green to one, and combine. Add two drops of leaf green to the other portion, stir to combine. Place plastic wrap over all 3 bowls of batter and chill for 4 hours. You can make the batter the day before if you wish.
2. To make the cookies. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Prepare a sheet pan with a Silpat mat or similar silicone liner. Take a small amount of batter and spread it thinly into a circle on the prepared tray. Tip: only bake off 2 cookies at a time, so you have ample time for shaping. Place the green colored batters in either a small paper cone, piping bag or small zip lock bag. Snip off a small corner. Pipe dots or stripes as desired over circles of batter. Have an offset thin spatula ready to form cookies once they come out of the oven. Bake cookies for 10-15 minutes or cookies are lightly golden brown. Immediately take the spatula and carefully lift edge of cookie then slide spatula under cookie to remove and place the cookie over a small glass (to form a bowl) or shape into a cone for (ice cream cones). Tip: for ice cream cone shapes; when rolling pinch the pointy end firmly to make sure there is no hole in the bottom. Let cool.
Coconut-Lime Ice Pops
Posted: June 25, 2012 Filed under: Coconut (11), Ice Cream/Frozen Treats (13) | Tags: Coconut Cream Popsicles, Coconut Lime Ice Pops, Coconut-Lime Popsicles Leave a commentWhich type of coconut person are you? Are you a COCONUT LOVER or not? I know when it comes to coconut people seem to really love it or not…. Guess which one I am? Yep, COCONUT LOVER. I’m kookoo for coconut. My favorite popsicle or ice pop is coconut cream.
My Mom was a tupperware lady when I was growing up and we had beaucoup tupperware. Cupboards of the stuff. One of the things we had was a popsicle maker. My Mom used to make us homemade popsicles and fudgesicles when we were growing up. Now a days you have so many choices in the stores when it comes to buying popsicles and there are ones that are certainly more healthy than others that do not contain a lot of sugar. I like both types of popsicles; healthy and ones not so healthy…..The thing is; there is no reason to feel guilty about indulging in a good popsicle. Decide which type of flavor is your favorite and go from there. The possibilities are endless.
Coconut-Lime Ice Pops
Coconut-Lime Ice Pops
(recipe adapted from Ice Pops by Shelly Kaldunski)
yield: makes 10-12 ice pops
1 Cup Heavy cream
3/4 Cup superfine sugar
1 can regular (not light) coconut milk
1/2 Cup sweetened shredded coconut
grated zest of 3 limes
1/2 Cup whole milk
In a chilled bowl combine the heavy cream and the sugar on high speed beat until thickened and reach soft peaks; about 90 seconds.
In a blender combine coconut milk and coconut until mostly smooth. Stir in the lime zest. Transfer to a 4 cup meauring cup with a pour spout. Stir in the whole milk. Gently whisk in the whipped cream.
Divide the mixture evenly in ice pop molds. If using wooden sticks; wait about 50 minutes before inserting sticks and continue to freeze until solid; about 4 hours.
