Family Reunions

Our family had a reunion last weekend. One of my cousins has this really cool ice cream freezer. It hold five gallons of ice cream! The motor is an old John Deere motor that pops. All the guys enjoyed hanging around it!

This sauce was served at our reunion. It’s easy and quick to make. The sauce is good on ice cream, in milkshakes, on French toast or pancakes.

Peanut Butter Sauce Royale
Yield: 1 cup

½ cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup milk
¼ cup honey
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup smooth or crunch peanut butter

In a saucepan, combine brown sugar, milk, honey and butter. Heat until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat. Add peanut butter and beat with a beater until sauce is smooth. Cool before serving.

Milkshake
Blend 2 tablespoons of Peanut Butter Sauce Royale with 1 cup milk and 2 scoops ice cream. Beat well.

The Amish, Ice Cream, and Birthdays

Awhile back, our family took a trip to visit family in Amish country. While there, we bought some ice cream sandwich wafers. My son's birthday was coming upon us, so we thought they would be good for his celebration.

I began by making the ice cream. It was an ordeal, to say the least. The motor on the ice cream freezer kept locking up. So, with the help of WD-40 and a little elbow grease, I was able to finally get the ice cream made.

The end result.....ice cream sandwiches and one happy birthday boy!

The ice cream recipe I used is my mother's standby. Give it a try!

VANILLA ICE CREAM

5 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 tablespoons vanilla
1 quart heavy whipping cream
½ gallon milk
Beat eggs, add sugar, salt, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream. Mix together. Pour mixture into ice cream canister. Add milk to top of dasher blades.

Yield: 1 gallon

Busy, busy, busy

Life is busy this time of year. My posts will probably be less for awhile. I'll share a couple of recipes with you that we made over the past weekend. Very delicious summer recipe! Sorry, I don't have a picture of the food to share.

TAPENADE PORK LOIN
from "How to Grill" by Steven Raichlen

For the tapenade:
2 cups drained, pitted black olives (two 6-
ounce cans) or 1 ½ cups pitted kalamata
and/or oil-cured olives
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons drained capers
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

For the pork:
1 pork loin roast (2 ½ to 3 pounds)
Coarse salt and black pepper
4 strips bacon or pancetta (Italian bacon),
optional

Prepare the tapenade: Place the olives, garlic, capers, mustard, and oregano in a food processor and process to a smooth paste. Add pepper to taste and the oil and process until blended.
Roll-cut the pork roast. Season the top of the meat with salt and pepper (go easy on the salt – the olives are quite salty). Spread the tapendade on the meat and roll it back into a roast. Cut four 12-inch pieces of butcher’s string and lay them out on a cutting board. If using the bacon strips, place them on the string in the opposite direction. Place the roast on top and tie the string around the roast. Season the roast on the outside with salt (if not using bacon) and pepper.
Set up the grill for indirect grilling and preheat to medium.
When ready to cook, place the roast in the center of the hot grate, away from the heat, and cover the grill. Grill the roast until cooked through, about 1 hour. To test for doneness, insert an instant-read thermometer into the side of the roast: The internal temperature should be at least 160 degrees.
Transfer the roast to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Remove the strings. Using a sharp knife, cut the roast crosswise into ½-inch slices.

ZESTY POTATO SALAD

from "Taste of Home"

2 lbs. red potatoes (peeled)
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
2 T. horseradish
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 T. parsley flakes
2 green onions
4 hard boiled eggs
3 slices bacon

Boil potatoes 20 minutes or until done. Cool completely. Cut into chunks. In a large mixing bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, horseradish, parsley, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Add potatoes, onions, eggs, and bacon.

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

The other day I was craving chocolate really bad. Since I'm on a diet and can't have any, I decided to make this wonderful cake for the kids. The chocolate smell was heavenly and I did take a couple of finger licks. That's all, honest!

You can watch the video to make this cake here. Hot Fudge Pudding Cake video

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake
From America’s Test Kitchen

Coffee Mixture
1 cup coffee
½ cup water

Mix together. Set aside.


Chocolate Sauce
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup cocoa
2 oz bittersweet chocolate

Slowly melt together in a bowl over 1 cup of boiling water. Set aside to cool.


Sugar Topping
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup cocoa

Mix sugary topping together. Set aside.


Flour Mixture
¾ cup flour
2 tablespoons baking powder

Mix together. Set aside.


Batter
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 tablespoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk

Mix together. Add cooled chocolate sauce. Add flour and baking powder. Pour into greased 8-inch baking dish. Sprinkle sugary topping over batter. Gently pour coffee mixture over top of sprinkles.

Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes. Cool for 20-25 minutes before serving.