Sugar Cookies Ice Cream Sandwiches

Yes, I know that I just posted a sugar cookie recipe but they had frosting on them. They didn't have ice cream in the middle with sprinkles on the edges. Plus this recipe the cookies are perfect to make up some ice cream sandwiches. The frosted sugar cookies were requested by my youngest daughter. These sprinkle cookies were made for my niece for her birthday party. Since I had doubled the recipe, I softened some ice cream and sandwiched it between two of these cookies. Then I rolled them in some more sprinkles. I am pretty sure my oldest daughter was eating one a day. I picked a red, white, and blue theme since it is so close to the 4th of July.

Sugar Cookies Ice Cream Sandwiches
Sugar Cookies (made with red, white, and blue sprinkles)
Ice Cream (made with no added cookie dough)
Sprinkles

Directions:

1. Take the ice cream out of the freezer and allow to soften. If it is a hot day, the ice cream will soften within minutes.
2. Shape the ice cream into disks the size of the sugar cookies.
3. Place the ice cream on top of one sugar cookie and top with another sugar cookie. 
4. Press down lightly but be careful not to break the cookies.
5. Place the sprinkles onto a small plate.
6. Roll the sides of the ice cream into the sprinkles.
7. Wrap up the ice cream sandwiches or place in freezer bags and freeze until harden. 

Tip: If it is hot day, the ice cream sandwiches should be made in batches.

One year ago..............................I made roasted chicken.

Did you already know.................
-In July 1776, there were about 2.5 million people living in the American colonies.
-Last year, the U.S. population was almost 314 million. 
-President Calvin Coolidge was born on July 4th, 1872.

Flag Cookies

I am so happy summer has arrived. Do you have any plans this summer? Our big plans are my children are attending camp during the day. At first, they really didn't want to go but now love it. Also, my sister is staying with us for the summer with her two girls. I love having them around but the best part is when we have dinner at night with all the kids. They really enjoy listening to my husband's stories about when he was young. Do you share a lot of your stories at dinner time too?

My abstract flags

Frosted Soft Sugar Cookies
4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 Tbsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
3. Add one egg at a time and mix well. 
4. Add the vanilla and scrap down the bowl.
5. Slowly, add the flour mixture. Mix until incorporated.
6. Cover the dough and chill it in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
7. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
8. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
9. Scoop about 1/4 cup of chilled dough and roll into a ball.
10. Place on the parchment paper and flatten slightly.
11. Space the cookies about 3 inches apart.
12. Bake for 10 minutes or until the cookies are just set. Don't over bake.
13. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring onto a wire rack. Allow to cool completely.

Frosting:
5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla extract
7 Tbsp milk (more if needed)
Sprinkles red and blue if making the abstract flags

1. In a medium bowl, add the sifted powdered sugar.
2. To the bowl, add the melted butter, vanilla, and the milk.
3. Whisk the mixture until smooth. 
4. Frost the cooled cookies and top with the sprinkles.

Recipe adapted from Annie's Eats.

One year ago......................I made Virgin Bloody Marys.

Did you already know........
-Summer solstice for this year was June 21st.
-Today the moon was closest to the Earth than it will be all year.
-Since the moon will be a full moon when it is this close to the Earth, it is called a Supermoon.          

Radish and Potato Soup

Yes, you did read the title right. I made radish and potato soup. Yes, I know I normally make a lot of sweets but I have to surprise you once in a while. I will admit radishes aren't my vegetable of choice but I received a lot of radishes lately in my CSA share. The radishes had the leaves still attached and I hadn't realized the leaves are edible. When I made the soup, the kids liked it. They even had a second bowl. Just remember, this soup is very mild but comforting. Yes, I would make it again but I probably will add some sausage to it.

Radish and Potato Soup
1 Tbsp butter, unsalted
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 cup radish leaves
4 cups chicken broth 
1 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste
optional garnish: thinly sliced radish

Directions:

1. In a large pot, melt the butter.
2. Add the onion and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes.
3. Add the potato and saute for 1 minute.
4. Stir in the radish leaves and cook for 1 minute.
5. Add the chicken broth and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Remove cover and from heat. With a potato masher/Immersion Blender, mash for a few minutes.
7. Stir in the milk. Season to taste and serve immediately.

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit.

One year ago................................I made Red, White, and Blue cupcakes.

Nice Photo!

Did you already know..................
-Since 700 B.C., radishes have been cultivated.
-The Ancient Egyptians and Greeks ate radishes.
-From seedling, radishes take only 30 days to harvest.

Steak Stir Fry

This summer I joined a Community Supported Agricultural (CSA). I prepaid for my produce for the summer and each week I pick up my share. Besides making us eat more vegetables, we also are trying new vegetables I normally would not purchase at the grocery store. The best thing is we normally eat a lot of salads (to counter the sweets) so we are just eating more salads. Since I had a lot of bok choy with spinach and broccoli this week, I decided to make a stir fry. 

Steak Stir Fry
2 tsp vegetable oil
8 oz. Strip Steak, cut into bite size pieces
1 green onion stalk, chopped including the white parts
1 Tbsp ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. bok choy, in bite size pieces
1 carrot, shredded
1 cup spinach, chopped in large pieces
1 cup broccoli, chopped into large pieces
1 Tbsp water
optional toppings: wonton noodles or toasted almonds

Directions:

1. Heat a large skillet or wok over medium high heat.
2. Add the oil and then the steak for about 2 minutes.
3. Add the green onion, ginger, and garlic. Stir for about 2 minutes.
4. Add the bok choy, carrot, spinach, broccoli, and water. Stir well.
5. Cover and allow to cook for about 2 minutes.
6. Stir and cover. Allow to cook for 2 more minutes or until vegetables and steak are cooked to the desired taste.
7. Serve over rice or pasta with additional toppings.

Recipe adapted from Steamy Kitchen.

One year ago...................................I made mini fruit crostatas.

Did you already know.....................
-CSA is a way for farmers to sell their produce directly to the consumers before the crops are harvested and the community shares some of the risk.
-There are thousands of CSA farms throughout America.
-Some CSA provide eggs, mushrooms, flowers, fruit, and other items.

Cheese Crackers

I have never made crackers before. I don't know why. My husband loves crackers with dip. I think it is his favorite lunch. Since Father's Day is this Sunday, I wanted to make him something thoughtful for being a good Dad. When he arrived home from work, he was surprised with what I made for him. Even never thought to ask me to make crackers. He thought they were great. I will say crackers are really simple to make. They are a great treat even to add to a lunch box especially since my son loved them. 

Cheese Crackers with a kick
6 oz. Monterey Jack with Jalapeno Cheese
4 Tbsp butter, softened
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp milk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a food processor, pulse the cheese, butter, flour, and salt for about 20 seconds.
3. Add the milk and combine for 10 seconds.
4. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to about 1/8 thickness and cut into desired shapes.
5. On a parchment lined baking sheet, bake the crackers for about 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

One year ago....................................I made an Icebox Dessert.

 Did you already know......................
-A cheese connoisseur is called a turophile.
-The French word for cheese is fromage.
-A person who sells cheese is called a cheesemonger.

Pizza Quesadilla

At school, my son likes hot lunches. The problem comes when they serve hot dogs since my husband has a chocking phobia. My son usually has to bring his lunch on those days. Well, we had just arrived home from being out of town so I hadn't realized the lunch menu for the day. Afterwards, I asked my son what he had for lunch that day. He told me that he picked pizza quesadillas over the hot dog. I asked him what was in the quesadilla but it sounded like cheddar cheese with pizza sauce. I figured I would make my own version. It came out great plus the best part about the recipe was no oven since it was already a hot day. My family loved it especially my husband. He didn't realize the extra vegetables I had added to the recipe.

Pizza Quesadilla
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage.
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup mushrooms
1 cup spinach
1 cup pizza sauce
12 tortillas about 8 inches
6 fresh large basil leaves
2 cups of cheese, grated (I used a blend of Mozzarella, Provolone, Parmesan, and Cheddar).
vegetable oil for frying

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, brown the sausage for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the onion with the garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add the mushrooms with the spinach and saute for about 3 minutes.
4. Mix in the pizza sauce and coat the sausage mixture. Cook for about 5 minutes and then remove from heat.
5. Lay a tortilla on a plate then cover with about 2 Tbsp of sausage sauce but leave about 1 inch border from the edge with no sauce.
6. Top the sausage sauce with 1 basil leaf and then with the grated cheese.
7. Cover the grated cheese with another tortilla to form a sandwich. 
8. In another skillet, heat over medium heat for about 1 minute.
9. Carefully, add the quesadilla to the skillet and squish down.
10. Cook for a minute or two before carefully flipping over. 
11. Cook the quesadilla for another minute or until golden brown.
12. Serve hot with additional toppings of cheese or pizza sauce.

Recipe created by Jen of Sweet Morris.

One year ago.........................I made Seven Cheese Bread.

Did you already know...........
-Over 50% of asphyxiations (choking) are caused by food.
-Hot dogs cause 17% of food related asphyxiations.
-According to AAP, children under 4 years old should not have hot dogs, whole grapes, popcorn to name a few items.

BLT with aioli

My husband loves mayonnaise. I think it is his favorite condiment. He puts it on all of his sandwiches. He likes it on his hamburgers. He also likes garlic so I figured he would like aioli. The first time I made it was for our hamburgers. My son helped and said it was really good. This time I decided to make it for our BLT which is my daughter's favorite sandwich. It was really good. If you are grilling this weekend, you may want to make some up for the hamburgers.

BLT with aioli sauce
Aioli sauce:
1 cup mayonnaise
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp chives, cut small

Aioli directions:

1. In a storage container, mix the mayonnaise, minced garlic, lemon juice, and chives together. 
2. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. 

BLT directions:
2 slices of bread, toasted
1 lettuce leaf
2 or 3 slices of bacon, cooked
2 or 3 slices of tomato
1 Tbsp aioli sauce

1. On the toasted bread, place the lettuce then tomato. Top with the bacon.
2. On the other slice of bread, spread the aioli sauce.
3. Top the bacon with the other slice of bread with aioli side down.

Recipe by Jen of Sweet Morris.

One year ago..................................I made Macaroni Grill Bread.

Did you already know....................
-Aioli sauce is garlicky mayonnaise.
-The top three condiments are mayonnaise, ketchup, and salsa.
-Hellman's mayonnaise accounts for about 1/3 of the mayonnaise market.

Dulce de leche Cheesecake

Now, I hardly make cheesecake. It isn't because it takes awhile to make it. It really isn't hard to make. I don't even mind if the top cracks since it doesn't affect the taste. It just means that I will have to make some kind of topping. The problem for me with cheesecake is it tastes soooooo good. I just want to eat it all so I have to share to get it out of the house fast. Well, this cheesecake is very rich especially with dulce de leche in it but it is soooooo good.

Dulce de leche Cheesecake
Crust: 8 oz. vanilla wafer cookies (about 2/3 of the box) 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 tsp salt 8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a food processor, finely ground the vanilla wafer cookies.
3. Add the sugar and salt. Pulse a couple of times.
4. Add the melted butter and mix together.
5. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of a buttered 9 1/2 inch pan. Set aside.

 Filling:
3 (8 oz.) packages of cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup dulce de leche plus more for topping

1 1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until creamy.
2. Add the 1/2 cup dulce de leche to the cream cheese mixture. Mix well.
3.  Pour the cream cheese mixture over the crust.
4. Bake the cream cheese for 40 minute or until the edges are puffed and the center is set.
5. Remove from oven and allow to cool at room temperature for several hours.
6. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips with the heavy cream. Stir about very 30 seconds until the chocolate chips are melted.
7. Allow the chocolate ganache to cool for about 2 minutes before pouring over the cooled cheesecake.
8. Drizzle a little dulce de leche over the top of the chocolate ganache.
9. Allow the chocolate ganache to set for several hours before serving. 

Recipe adapted from Roxana's homebaking.

One year ago.................I made Skillet Lasagna.

Did you already know....
-In 1872, William Lawrence of Chester, NY purchased a factory and was reproducing Neufchatel but created a creamier version.
-Mr. Lawrence called his creamier version cream cheese and began to distribute it in foil wrappers.
-The cream cheese was distributed under the Empire company but was later renamed Philadelphia cream cheese.

Cherry Cheese Danish

Oh, I love fresh cherries. I especially love when they are in season and are reasonably priced. We have been eating them like maybe tomorrow they won't be available anymore. Well, I figured I could depart from eating a couple of them just until I used them in a dish of some kind. I figured a breakfast danish would be perfect. I will admit sometimes I feel bad that I'm not one of those mothers that make their children a great breakfast before school. A lot of times we are running down the street to catch the bus while eating breakfast. My oldest daughter is good and will sometimes make up some eggs for her younger siblings. So, I decided to make this recipe for breakfast on a school day. They were really happy but we did miss the bus. I didn't mind since I think the danish was worth the little extra time to savory it. My oldest daughter told me it was wonderful. 

Cherry Cheese Danish
1/2 cup sliced almonds
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 egg yolk
4 Tbsp flour
6 Tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract (or 1/8 tsp almond extract)
1/3 to 1/2 cup cherries, pitted and chopped
2 (9 inch) sheets of puff pastry, thawed
1 egg for egg wash
powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. On a small baking sheet, arrange the almonds in a single layer and toast the almonds for about 7 minutes. Allow to cool.
3. In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese, egg yolk, flour, sugar and vanilla extract. 
4. Fold in the chopped cherries.
5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
6. Roll out the puff pastry sheets. Cut each puff pastry sheet into 4 sections.
7. In the center of each puff pastry, spoon about 1 Tbsp of filling.
8. Fold the puff pastry diagonally in half. Seal well.
9. In a small bowl, whisk the remaining egg.
10. Brush the top of each puff pastry with the whisked egg.
11. Top each puff pastry with the toasted almonds slices.
12. Bake the danishes for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.
13. Allow the danishes to cool for about 10 minutes.
14. Dust with powdered sugar before serving. 

Recipe by Jen of Sweet Morris. 
Tip: If your cherries are very juicy, use less cherries or your filling will be a little more wet. It will still taste great.

One year ago.........................I made Homemade Mascarpone.

Did you already know...........
-The Sweet Cherry originated from Asia.
-In 1600s, English colonist brought sweet cherries to America.
-Michigan is the leading
-The Bing Cherry is a sweet cherry.

Vanilla Buttermilk Cupcakes with peanut butter frosting

My husband just celebrated another birthday. He doesn't want me to discuss his age but all I can tell you is he is currently a couple years older than me. He doesn't think I'm funny and reminds me in a couple of months that he is now only one year older than him. My husband loves Superman but I didn't have any matching liners so we went with the next best thing....Spider-Man. He loved the cupcakes and frosting. I used this peanut butter frosting recipe with chopped fine pieces of peanut butter cups mixed into the frosting.

Vanilla Buttermilk Cupcakes
12 oz. unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 egg whites
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cups buttermilk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
3. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy.
4. Scrap down the sides of the bowl before adding the egg. Mix until just combined.
5. Add the egg whites and mix until combined.
6. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 
7. Add 1/3 cup of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until incorporated.
8. Add 1/4 cup of buttermilk and mix.
9. Add another 1/3 cup of flour and mix before adding another 1/4 cup of buttermilk.
10. Add the remaining flour mixture and then the rest of the buttermilk. Mix until combined.
11. Fill the cupcake liners 3/4 full of batter.
12. Bake the cupcakes about 18 minutes or until golden brown.
13. Allow the cupcakes to cool before removing from pan and allowing to fully cool on a wire rack.

Recipe adapted from Pastry Queen cookbook.

One year ago.................I made Savory Lobster and Shrimp Cheesecake.

Did you already know........
-Peter Parker's middle name is Benjamin.
-Peter Parker was born in Forest Hills (Queens), New York.
-Spider-Man is 5'10" and weights 167 lbs per Marvel website.