Make Ice Cream in a Jar

I saw the idea for ice cream in a jar on asubtlerevelry and I had to try it out because A)  I love Jars and.....really if a jar is involved, do you really need a B)?  How perfect are these for summer treats, July 4th favors, or birthday fun?  They are so simple to throw together as well...and.....you end with homemade ice cream at the end?  Yes, I think I will....

Ice Cream Instructions

1.  Place 1 c. of rock salt in the bottom of the jar. 
2.  In a quart size bag, measure 1 T of sugar, and 1 t. of vanilla powder (I found this in the spice section of a gourmet grocery store, you can also buy it online.  You can use 1 t. of liquid vanilla, but you would probably want to put this in a separate container so it doesn't mix with the sugar if this is going to be sitting around for any length of time). 
3.  Place 8 half and half packets in the jar. 
4.  When you are ready to make the ice cream, combine the powder and half an half packets in the baggie.  Fill the remainder of the jar with ice and salt, and begin shaking for 8 minutes, or until ice cream has formed in the jar. 

Cake Croutons

I saw the recipe for cake croutons via Paula Dean's magazine.  With a pint of ice cream to use, and family headed over, I decided it was time to give this a try. 
Basically, you just need a box of cake mix.  I used funfetti because.....it's fun, just like the name says.  Follow the instructions on the back of the box and bake it in a 9x13 pan.

Let it cool.

Slice it in half, sliced it in half again etc etc etc using a serrated kinfe until you have small cubes.  Place the cubes on a baking sheet in a single layer.

Bake at 200 degrees for 4 hours.  Let it cool.

Throw these in a bowl with ice cream and the toppings, or add them to vanilla pudding with bananas....they remind me a lot of vanilla wafers and would be a great substitute for that in other dishes. 

Cupcakes: Hostess Ice Cream Cupcakes

 I love everything Hostess Cupcake.  I've made homemade Hostess Cupcakes before, which I blogged about here.  I've made cake ball Hostess Cupcakes...which I blogged about here.  Now....Ice Cream Hostess Cupcakes.  I saw this idea for Marshmallow Ice Cream, and I knew this would be the perfect home for this creation. 
First, the recipe for Marshmallow Ice Cream: 
Ingredients:  2 C half and half, 1 10-oz. bag large marshmallows, 2 C. heavy cream,  2 T. vanilla
Instructions:  In a pan, combine half and half with marshmallows. Cook over med. heat, stirring constantly until marshmallows have completely melted.

Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes. Place in fridge for 20-30 more minutes, until chilled and slightly thickened.

While mix is cooling down, whip heavy cream until you have soft peaks. Fold into cool marshmallow mix and add vanilla. Stir until everything is combined. Place in ice cream maker and follow machine's directions for making ice cream. 

This is a very light ice cream, but it went well in between these rich layers. 

After my ice cream was ready I accembled my cakes. 

I baked chocolate cupcakes, not filling the liners full.  Once they were chilled, I squished it all down into the bottom to make it an even thicker base. 

 I used a plastic molded cupcake liner.  I added some ice cream. 

Then I melted chocolate (at 30 second intervals).  I poured this on top of the whole thing.  I piped on the traditional swirls with white chocolate. 

This makes about 24 cupcakes. 

Malted Milk Ball Ice Cream

I saw this recipe for Malted Milk Ball Ice Cream at Shop Annies, and I was fascinated by the process, and it doesn't hurt that I'm a fan of the malted milk ball.  I tried out some cookies with malted milk powder and candy chunks, and I had no complaints.  I'd say the same is true for this ice cream.  It reminds me of a Frosty at Wendy's.   I think the original recipe calls for vanilla malted powder, I went with chocolate, it's just a safe bet, and a good choice.  This ice cream is rich, and creamy, and yummy.     

Malted Milk Ball Ice Cream

Ingredients:  1 1/4 c. sugar (divided), 9 egg yolks, 4 c. heavy cream, 3/4 cup malted milk powder, pinch of salt, 1 T. vanilla
Instructions: 
In a large bowl, whisk half of the sugar with egg yolks and set aside.
In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine cream, malted milk powder, salt and the other half of the sugar. Bring to a simmer.
Once the cream mix is hot, while whisking eggs pour cream slowly into bowl of eggs. Stir in vanilla. Refrigerate mixture until completely chilled, about 4 hours.  Some of the mix had separated and looked funny after four hours, but it worked well.
When mixture is chilled, beat with an electric mixer until thick,10 minutes.   It won't be fluffy like whipped cream, but it will be thicker than the soupy consistency you will initially pull out of the fridge. 
Transfer to a freezer-safe, airtight container and freeze until firm.  The recipe said it would take 4 hours, mine took 10 hours before it was firm enough to call ice cream.  Makes 8 cups, and it should be consumed within 3 days....not a problem for me. 

Ice Cream Cake

I had this cake a little over a year ago, compliments of Laine.  It was yummy, and after she shared the process....I knew it was a must try b/c it's so easy, and so delicious.  I made it for my ice cream-loving-extended family a few months back after dinner, but it seems like another goody to pull out for a 4th of July get together. 
Ingredients:  1 box of 12 ice cream sandwiches, caramel topping, tub of whipped cream, chocolate, toffee bits, nuts etc. 
Instructions: 
1.  Lay the ice cream sandwiches across the bottom of a cake pan. 

2.  Cover with caramel topping.

3.  Cover with whipped cream. 

4.  Drizzle with your favorite toppings:  chocolate (I was lazy and just used bottled syrup), toffee bits, nuts sprinkles etc.

5.  Cover with syran wrap and freeze for a few hours + until serving. 

Linking To:  Sunday Showcase Sundae Scoop Nifty Thirfty

Fried Ice Cream

I stay up late at night wondering how I can throw more calories into my desserts. It's the one area of life I never fail....ever. ;o) I didn't come up with fried ice cream, but I think I managed to add a few calories. This is good....too good. Don't try it if you want to wear a swimsuit or something this summer, but if you are cool with hiding inside under sweaters, I recommend it.
INGREDIENTS
1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream
2 egg whites
4 c. cinnamon toast crunch
cooking oil
hershey's syrup
whipped cream
cherries
flour tortilla
spray butter
cinnamon/sugar
DIRECTIONS
1. Scoop ice cream into 1 c. size balls. Place on wax paper and freeze for 1 hour.
2. Crush cinnamon toast crunch, and place them in a ball.
3. Whip egg whites in a bowl until foam. Roll ice cream balls in egg white mix, and then roll in cinnamon toast crunch until coated. Place on wax paper and free for 3+ hours.
4. Heat oil, roll ice cream balls in oil for a few seconds just to get the outside crunchy.
5. Place flour tortillas over the back of a muffin tin,

spray with butter, and cinnamon sugar mix, and bake at 350 for about 8 minutes (until just browning).

6. Serve ice cream in bowl, top with toppings, and enjoy. And then run, don't walk to the gym.
Linking To:
It's a Blog Party

Cookie Cups

I saw this recipe awhile ago on the familyfun website, and I wanted to try it out when more than myself would be partaking in the treat....it was just one of those 'rational moments' in life when I thought-you know-a WHOLE dessert probably isn't the best idea for an evening at home alone. So...July 4th's dessert seemed like a good plan. Since I've been baking and cooking with "me" for awhile now, I knew it was also important that I provided an alternative dessert in case my experiment didn't work out....I tend to get distracted easily and I can mess up ice cubes if given enough outside stimuli. Basically, the recipe for the cookie cups is the same premise as the chocolate chip cookie, but it's a lot firmer so the shape holds (or maybe it was firmer b/c I did mine wrong?). I also could not fit 1/4 of the flour into the mix b/c it was already getting so dry. I could only make six cookie cups, not the number they listed using these measurements (if I had pressed harder with the rolling pin, maybe one or two more could have been squeezed out). I just sprayed pam on the foil covered muffin tin bottoms (instead of shortening), and the cups slipped right out after drying. Here is the recipe.
http://family.go.com/food/article-ff-230821-ice-cream-cookie-cups-t/
They turned out pretty good, and the nice thing was that the ice cream gathered in the 'bowl' instead of slipping all over the plates (and your cake, if you were using this for a party). The cookie was a little hard to break, and not as good as a regular cookie, but interesting. I bet you could jazz it up with some more interesting flavors, and toppings. You could also definitely smooth the edges out around the sides of the bowllike their picture shows, and work on the shapes....I was just very tired (it was 2 am when I started baking b/c I had to finish Uncle Sam first) and this was about an eating opportunity, not aesthetics (despite my original purpose, it's funny how plans change at 2 am). The bowls out of the oven: