Apple Pie Ice Cream with Cheddar

Ice cream.

I love it all year long. I have my favorites. Haagen-Dazs Dulce de Leche, Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia, Edy's Caramel Delight. '

I could eat ice cream for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

but there's something about summer that compels me to MAKE ice cream. It's so easy--I have a countertop ice cream maker. There's nothing but natural goodness in every bite. And I can add all the flavors I love into the mix.

I don't know if you'll remember, but last year I made an Espresso Mascarpone Ice Cream that was to die for. (Good from a mystery writer, yes?)

Mascarpone was the cheese. It blended well. It worked more like a cream than a "cheese."

For this week's recipe, I wanted to use cheese again (go, figure!).

But there's a rule of thumb that says you "shouldn't" freeze cheese. Here's the reason.

Artisanal cheeses are delicate. Their molecular structure will weaken in the freezer. When they defrost, the structure breaks down and the cheese can become crumbly and dry. Still, I wanted to try.

So I decided to make an apple pie ice cream and use a Cheddar cheese.

[My father LOVED apple pie with Cheddar cheese. I love apple pie with ice cream.] Cheddar is firm and not as airy as other cheeses.

The experiment was a success. Not because of the cheese. The flavors of apple and cinnamon and BROWN sugar were simply luxurious.

The cheese, which held up under the frozen conditions, was an added bonus adding texture. Caveat: the cheese didn't have the same flavorful tang as a fresh sharp cheese. Still, I absolutely loved the result and will make it again. I hope you will enjoy.

Happy summer eating!

APPLE PIE ICE CREAM WITH CHEDDAR

Ingredients:

3 egg yolks

1 c. sugar

1 c. half and half

1 c. whipping cream

1 c. (8 oz.) mascarpone

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 apple, pippin, peeled and diced

2 oz. cheddar cheese, cubed into teensy cubes

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

In a sauce pan, over low heat, mix apples, brown sugar, water and cinnamon.

Cook for 10 minutes, until tender. Set aside and let cool completely.

In a separate sauce man, stir together yolks and sugar and cook, 30 seconds on low.

Add half and half, cook 1 minute on low.

Stir and cook 1 more minute.

Stir and cook 1 additional minute. [Total 3 ½ minutes.]

Add whipping cream, mascarpone, and vanilla.

Stir and let cool to room temperature. Chill 1-3 hours in refrigerator

Then: Start counter top mixer.

Add cream mixture. Whip 20-25 minutes.

Add apples and cheddar cheese to ice cream mixture. Whip 5 more minutes until goodies are incorporated.

Pour into clean containers and freeze.

About three hours later, it’s a perfect consistency.

Enjoy!

JULIE'S CONTEST

Tomorrow Julie will announce the winner of her latest contest to honor the launch of GRACE UNDER PRESSURE. Check in for the name! If you haven't picked up your copy yet, do!!!! The book is terrific. A thrill-zy with pace and a winning protagonist.

And then, on Wednesday, June 9, a NEW CONTEST will start

as a countdown to the launch of

THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE. [Seems I made a blooper on Friday and somehow posted all the info for the contest. Cyber-Avery's ghost or something. Oh, my. Sorry to all who thought the contest was starting. It'll starting Wednesday.]

Check Wednesday's blog for details! You will be the sleuth!!!

Good luck and good eating.

~Avery

Welcome Isabel Sharpe!

Greetings Mystery Kitchen ladies and readers! I’m very pleased to be here. This is such a fun site, and since reading, writing and food are my three greatest non-human loves, I feel right at home.

I was invited to contribute because I have a book out this month from Avon/HarperCollins. No, it’s not a mystery, but it has mysterious elements in a story from the main character’s childhood, told by her mother, of a beautiful woman named Gillian who appears briefly in a small village in 1920s Shetland, causes a ruckus and disappears soon after. Did she really exist? Maybe, maybe not, but her influence is very real for a group of modern-day women in a knitting group in Comfort, North Carolina, called Purls Before Wine, who learn to knit lace the way it was done on the Shetland Islands back when Gillian supposedly lived.

Maybe you’ve heard of the traditional Shetland wedding shawl, so lacy and delicate it could be drawn through a wedding ring? The talent of these turn-of-the-century (you know, the real century, not this silly baby new one) women was astounding, especially given the difficult lives they led, two hundred miles from Norway and two hundred miles from the Scottish mainland, on treeless islands at the mercy of storms and the sea.

Now I love knitting, so I tried to knit a fairly simple lace scarf. I got about an inch into it before I realized I was not a patient enough person. And I don’t have a husband or son at sea every day risking his life fishing from a tiny sailboat, nor sheep and chickens and a vegetable garden to tend to, a peat fire to keep going, meat and fish to dry and store, baking and laundry and oh my goodness. Nor do I spin my own yarn from wool plucked by hand. Such tough lives and they created such astounding beauty out of their own traditions and imaginations.

Most of the book takes place in modern-day North Carolina, but the Shetland research really fascinated me. So when it came to sharing a recipe with you all, I thought why not a traditional Shetland recipe? Like krappin: fish heads stuffed with a mixture of fish liver and oatmeal!

Your mouth is watering, isn’t it. I know! Mine too! Fish liverilicious!

I hope you won’t be too disappointed, but in the end I decided on a scone recipe I tried recently which is easy and really good. It’s from Epicurious, so I need to honor their copyright policy and give a link rather than recopy the recipe, but I hope you will understand. The scones are really worth trying. Cranberry Tangerine Scones

Enjoy and thanks so much for having me!

I encourage you to return the visit at: www.isabelsharpe.com

Cheers,

Isabel

Thanks so much for joining us, Isabel.

This is such a treat for me because not only

am I a huge fan of your work, but I'm a

knitter, too.

I just got my copy of Knit in Comfort and

was captivated by the very first page.

Banana Cream Cheese Coffeecake

It's time for overnight guests again and that means brunch and breakfast. My guests often emerge at different times. There is always an early bird who wakes but politely waits until the aroma
of brewing coffee wafts to the bedroom. There's also the slip-out-of-the-house guest who can be found on the porch swing enjoying the crisp morning air. Then there are those who linger in bed as long as possible, eyes barely open when they finally drift into the kitchen.

The varied times make it difficult to know when to serve breakfast, so I lazily opt to serve brunch. But those who are up and about are peckish, waiting for a nosh with their coffee or tea or juice. If I lived in near a bakery, like my protagonist Sophie Winston, I'd be sorely tempted to take an morning walk to fetch fresh pastries. Where I live, though, it would be a very, very long walk. So I usually bake something for my early risers. Of course, coffeecake is perfect for that purpose.

This recipe was inspired by a recipe from Gourmet's Sweets. I was quite curious about the topping since most of the streusel toppings I've made have contained substantially less flour. The topping is okay, but it doesn't stand up to the delicious banana-laden moist coffeecake underneath. Frankly, the next time I make this, I'm going to toss the walnuts into the batter, forgo the streusel altogether and simply drizzle the top with melted chocolate. Yum!

If you don't happen to have buttermilk around, just use milk and add 1 teaspoon of vinegar to it.

Banana Cream Cheese Coffeecake

Streusel

1/2 cup chopped walnuts
6 tablespoons butter
1 cup flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar


Coffeecake

3-4 ripe mashed bananas (preferably ones that have black spots already)
4 ounces cream cheese
1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla


1. Take the butter, cream cheese, and eggs out of the fridge to bring to room temperature. Make the buttermilk if necessary.

2. Preheat the oven to 350.

3. Cut a piece of parchment paper or waxed paper to fit the bottom of a 10 inch by 10 inch baking pan. Butter and flour the pan and the paper.

4. Mix the ingredients for the streusel in a food processor. (If drizzling with chocolate, skip this step.)

5. Cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar.

6. Add the eggs, one at a time.

7. In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt with a fork to blend. Slowly add to the butter and eggs, alternating with the buttermilk and bananas.

8. Add the vanilla.

9. Sprinkle the streusel over the top.

10. Bake for 50 -55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Pour a cup of coffee or tea,
and relax with your guests until the rest of the crew wakes up!

Last Chance!

Today is the last day to enter Julie’s release contest!

Julie’s first book in The Manor House Mystery series, Grace Under Pressure (starred review in Publishers Weekly!), debuted June 1.

To help launch the book and to celebrate its release, she's running a very special contest: Pre-order Grace Under Pressure, and you're eligible to win one of two $25 gift certificates from Mystery Lovers Bookshop! (and if you've already pre-ordered, you just need to let Julie know!)

No receipts required. Just email Julie at JulieHyzy@gmail.com with the date that you pre-ordered and the name of the bookstore you ordered it from, and your name goes in! (Put "CONTEST" in the subject header!)

And Julie's provided a few helpful links to get you started:

Independent Bookstore List: here

- Mystery Lovers Bookshop (free shipping on book orders over $10!)
- Centuries & Sleuths (Julie's local mystery bookstore)

-Barnes & Noble

- Amazon.com

Good luck!

Quickies Challenge: MISSION...POSSIBLE!

SECURITY LEVEL:
Eyes Only

THE MISSION:

Take on the Quickies Morning, Noon and Night Cooking Challenge

KEY INGREDIENTS:
Avocado and Feta Cheese must be used!

VARIABLES:

Open – add any ingredients to complete the dish

THE JUDGES:

Chef and author Denise Fletcher of Quickies on the Dinner Table; Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks; and Natasha of Five Star Foodie Culinary Adventures.

FULL DISCLOSURE: 

Although one of the prizes for winning this challenge is Denise’s gorgeous cookbook, Quickies: Morning, Noon and Night, I must confess that I already purchased it, and I’m so very glad I did.

Quickies: Morning, Noon and Night
by Denise Fletcher

Denise's Quickies is not just a book of recipes. It's a joyous, vividly illustrated trek through breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks, and desserts with a knowledgeable culinary professional by your side chatting wonderfully witty insights as you go. The recipes themselves are by turns eclectic, exciting, comforting, and inspiring. (I LOVE this book!)

In fact, inspired by the many useful tips she includes throughout (like how to pair wine and food or choose a tender cut of meat), I decided to make my own cheap, little visual aid to go with this recipe. Just click the arrow in the window below (and please hold your guffaws until you've finished reading the entire post…).

So what is my mission here? Amuse Denise, Lazaro, and Natasha with my own fumbling attempts at a recipe using any ingredients I wish as long as they include avocado and feta cheese.

Okay, here we go…

My first try working feta and avocado into the same recipe was this savory cheese tart. Pretty, isn’t she?

The filling for my tart (ricotta and feta) was delicious with the tomatoes and thyme. I planned on creating an avocado-cilantro coulis to drizzle over the slices, but ... I took a wrong turn with the crust. Instead of pastry dough, I wanted to try something very different. Too different as it turned out. You see, I’d just made a graham cracker crust for a frozen key lime pie (a Terry Odell special, stay tuned for that delicious recipe) by pulverizing sweet crackers and mixing in butter.

I decided to try the same kind of press-in crust method by swapping seasoned bread crumbs for the graham crackers and olive oil for the butter. Sounded logical. Tasted like shite.

Try, try again, right? But as I prepared to re-make the tart, another thought struck me. With the start of summer here in the USA, many households will be looking for meals to make on the grill or stovetop—anything to keep from using that oven.

I also thought about the ricotta, which is a very neutral carrier of flavor, just like...avocado. So, why not just mix the avocado pulp with the feta cheese? A generous squeeze of lime was a no-brainer for flavor and to keep the avocado pulp nice and green. (Note better living through food chemistry – an acid will prevent your avocado’s flesh from darkening right away.)

While you can certainly eat this yummy feta guacamole with tortilla chips, I had a much better idea for lunch. You see, I live in Queens, New York, a short hike from the neighborhood of Astoria, where Greek immigrants bake the most delicious pita bread in the US (IMO). So I decided to make the base a pita bread—Naan bread, flatbread, or a pre-baked round of pizza dough will work just as well.

Toppings? When nobody’s looking, I’ll be piling it on (red onions, roasted peppers, black olives, anchovies…) but since my Quickies pita pizza needs to be photographed, I decided to stick with sweet, brilliant and currently plentiful grape tomatoes. A little chopped cilantro adds aromatic floral fun for the olfactory senses as you bite and chew.

And that’s the ticket. Probably not a dish that will get me hired onto Wolfgang Puck’s gourmet pizza brigade, but a nice, light summer lunch just the same—easy, healthy, colorful, and best of all Quickies-inspired.

Quickies Challenge

A “Quickie”
Fresh Summer Pizza
with Feta Guacamole

Makes 1 serving

Ingredients:

1 round of pita bread (or Naan or 8-inch round of flatbread or baked pizza dough)

1 tablespoon olive oil (approximately)

1 small ripe avocado (I use Hass)

1 teaspoon lime juice

2 ounces (about 50 grams) feta cheese

8 grape tomatoes, halved

1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped

Method:

Step 1 - Toast the pita bread: For an outdoor grill: lightly coat the pita on both sides with olive oil. Place the round over the heat of your grill and turn several times until bread is toasted and crusty. For a stovetop: Coat the bottom of a skillet with olive oil. When the pan is good and hot, add the pita bread, turning several times. Bread should not be soft when you remove it. You are doing more here than simply heating the bread; you are making it firm and crunchy. Plate the bread.

Step 2 – Make the feta guacamole: Remove the flesh from the avocado and mash it with the prongs of a fork. Mix in the lime juice. Crumble the feta cheese and continue mixing with a fork or spoon until you’ve created a smooth paste.

Step 3 – Assemble, top, and serve: Spoon the feta guacamole onto the toasted pita and use the back of the spoon to work it into a smooth, even layer. Place the grape tomato halves on top of the pizza, sprinkle on the cilantro. Slice into quarters and serve.

Additional topping ideas: This pizza is also delicious with roasted red peppers, black olives, anchovies, and red onions. Instead of cilantro, you might try chopped parsley or thyme leaves. You might also try tossing the grape tomato halves with olive oil, cumin, oregano, and sea salt before placing on the pizza. Then...

Eat with joy!

~Cleo Coyle

author of

The Coffeehouse Mysteries

To get more recipes ideas or to find out about the books in my nationally bestselling Coffeehouse Mystery series, visit me at my official website:
www.CoffeehouseMystery.com

Coming
August 2010

Roast Mortem

by Cleo Coyle

----------------------------

Julie's Contest!

My fellow mystery-writing cook, Julie Hyzy, is celebrating the release week of her new mystery, Grace Under Pressure! To help launch the book and to celebrate its release, she ran a very special contest. Check in with us on Tuesday, June 8 to find out who won the $25 gift certificate from Mystery Lovers Bookshop! We'll also be telling you how to enter our brand new contest to celebrate the release of author Avery Aames' The Long Quiche Goodbye, the first book in Avery's brand new Cheese Shop mystery series. (Don't you just love our titles. :)

Comments for
Cleo welcome!

Supper in a Second—Apricot Chicken

Oh, life has been sooo crazy lately. I know—no one can be too sympathetic because we’re all in the same boat! Most people have something to make life crazy—busy workplace, hectic afterschool schedule, big family.

Sometimes you just need to have something on standby…something that’s tasty, inexpensive, and simple to prepare.

I offer you---Apricot Chicken!

What if you’re not an apricot fan? Make it with whole cranberry sauce.

The nice thing about this recipe is that it’s made with only a few ingredients. And you could buy them when they’re on sale and they’ll keep for a long while in your pantry—pull them out whenever you need a quick dinner.

Apricot Chicken

12 chicken thighs (but I used chicken breasts—about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 cup apricot preserves (can use whole cranberry sauce instead, if you like)
1 cup French dressing
1 package dry onion soup mix
pineapple chunks (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.
Combine the preserves, French dressing, and dry soup mix in a bowl.
Put the chicken in a 9 x 13 baking dish and cover with apricot mixture.
Cook uncovered for 50 minutes. Add pineapple chunks (if you like) and cook for 10 more minutes.

Really, it doesn’t get too much simpler than this for a weeknight meal, even if you’ve had a stressful day. And it’s healthier and less expensive than takeout! :)

Riley/Elizabeth
Delicious and Suspicious (July 6 2010) Riley Adams
Pretty is as Pretty Dies –Elizabeth Spann Craig
http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com

Julie's Contest!

Remember, you’ve got through June 5th to enter Julie’s release contest!

Julie’s first book in The Manor House Mystery series, Grace Under Pressure (starred review in Publishers Weekly!), debuted June 1.

To help launch the book and to celebrate its release, she's running a very special contest: Pre-order Grace Under Pressure, and you're eligible to win one of two $25 gift certificates from Mystery Lovers Bookshop! (and if you've already pre-ordered, you just need to let Julie know!)

No receipts required. Just email Julie at JulieHyzy@gmail.com with the date that you pre-ordered and the name of the bookstore you ordered it from, and your name goes in! (Put "CONTEST" in the subject header!)

And Julie's provided a few helpful links to get you started:

Independent Bookstore List: here

- Mystery Lovers Bookshop (free shipping on book orders over $10!)
- Centuries & Sleuths (Julie's local mystery bookstore)

-Barnes & Noble

- Amazon.com

EMERGENCY! (Or no chocolate in the house)!

It doesn't happen often that
I am caught unaware that my
stash of chocolate has hit critical and
I am abruptly rendered...gulp...
chocolateless.

But it did happen the other day
and it was a pitiful state, truly.
Luckily, a little creative panic
saved the day.

Scouring the pantry, I found some unsweetenend
cocoa powder and I remembered a cookie that my
mother used to make when I was a kid that I loved.
It's a chocolate cookie rolled in confectioner's sugar
that flattens and cracks when it's baked into crunchy
on the outside, chewy on the inside chocolatey
goodness! And just like that -- ka-ching we were on
our way to chocolate cookies!

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups light brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup sour cream
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetenend cocoa powder
1 tspn baking soda
1/4 tspn salt
1/8 tspn black pepper
1/2 cup powdered sugar


Directions:

Beat brown sugar and oil in medium bowl with
electric mixer. Mix in sour cream, egg and vanilla
and set aside. Mix flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt
and pepper in another bowl. Add flour mixture to
brown sugar mixture, mix well.
Refrigerate dough until firm (3-4 hrs). It was a
chocolate emergency, so I froze it for half an hour
and it worked out just fine. Preheat oven to 350. Pour
powdered sugar into a bowl. Roll dough into one inch
balls, roll balls in powdered sugar. Bake on ungreased
cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes. Try to wait until they're
cool enough to eat! I barely made it.

ENJOY!
Jenn

http://www.jennmckinlay.com/

SPRINKLE WITH MURDER
Available now!

CUT TO THE CORPSE
Lucy Lawrence
Available Now!



Julie's GRACE UNDER PRESSURE just came out yesterday!
Woo hoo, Julie! Be sure to pick up a copy! It got a starred review
from Publisher's Weekly and it's sure to be a hit!

Garlic Potato Salad and Book News

Good Morning! (Or good afternoon, evening... whenever you're reading this.)

Today is a very exciting day for me ... and I hope I can make it an exciting one for you, too!

Two things - I'm sharing a recipe for Garlic Potato Salad that I absolutely love and I'm celebrating the release of Grace Under Pressure! Now, what would you like first? The potato salad or the book news?

I'll start with the recipe, how's that?

A few years ago, my husband and I went out to dinner with one of my high school BFFs and her husband. They suggested a tapas restaurant we'd never been to, nor heard of, but it was spectacular! By the way, can you tell how much I enjoy eating out? I think that's my official hobby...

Anyway, the best part of the meal, IMHO, was the garlic potato salad. It was utterly fabulous and the garlicky-est thing I'd ever eaten. I knew I had to make it at home. That put me on a quest to find the perfect garlic potato salad recipe. I thought I'd have a difficult time locating one, but it turned out there were hundreds to choose from. I experimented with several and finally decided which basic recipe I liked best. I've since adjusted it to our family's tastes and I love serving this in the summer with other cookout favorites. Have you noticed how much we've all been talking about cookouts lately? It's been a long, cold winter and I think we're all just itching to get outside and grill!

Garlic Potato Salad

5 lbs red potatoes

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise (+/- as you prefer. I usually add more)

1 entire head garlic, cloves minced

1 bunch fresh parsley, very finely chopped

salt and pepper to taste

optional: finely chopped celery, finely chopped green pepper

Boil potatoes (skins on) until fork tender, but not soft. Drain them and let them cool before peeling. Cut them into bite-size pieces... roughly square shaped. Mix mayo with garlic and parsley (you can use the entire bunch, or less if you prefer) with any optional items you've chosen to add. Once it's all well mixed, stir in the cooled potatoes. Salt and pepper to taste.

I like to let this sit in the fridge for at least a couple of hours before serving. That way it gets nice and cold and the garlic flavor permeates everything.

We serve this as often with burgers as we do with steaks. It's a nice summery alternative to hot potatoes and my family gobbles this stuff up within a day of my making it. Just a little warning... with all the garlic, you may need an antacid after eating this!

Now... BOOK NEWS!!

Grace Under Pressure is released today!

Here's the cover I posted ages ago, and it's the jpg I have on my hard drive. As it turns out the "subtitle" of the series has changed. Yep, and I just found out last Friday. That's okay though, it's a wonderful subtitle and I'm looking forward to sharing the news everywhere.

Take a look at the cover below. See where it says "A Manor of Murder Mystery"? Well, if you take a look at the cover of the actual finished book ... which I got my first look at on Friday ... you'll see that it says "A Manor House Mystery." Not vastly different, but a change nonetheless.

I have another change to report as well... a contest update: For those of you who entered the pre-order contest, it will be just a little bit longer before I announce the winner. I found out, after I started this contest, that readers trying to pre-order digital copies were stymied. Digital versions aren't set up for pre-order. So... in the interest of fairness... I've extended the contest entry date (for all versions, paperback and digital) through June 5th with the announcement coming here on June 8th - a week from today. But... to make up for this last minute change, I'm going to award two (2) $25 gift certificates. Hope that's okay with everybody!

Thanks so much to everyone who picked up a copy of Grace Under Pressure. I'm just so thrilled by all the lovely emails I've received letting me know it's out there. Readers have been spotting it here and there, and I'm always excited to find a new place and to hear where it's displayed. Thank you, all!

Meet Grace. Visit Marshfield Manor.

Come for the tour,

Stay for the murder!

Hugs to all!

Julie

www.juliehyzy.com