Ice Cream Tea Party, When Chai is Not Enough...Plus A Giveaway!

 
   The one thing I love on a cold winters night here in Sonoma is a nice hot cup of chai. I always make my own as most of the store bought stuff is far too sweet for my taste. I want control of my spices and sweets. When Summer rolls around and the hot weather is upon us, there's always iced chai but somehow I'm always too lazy to make it. Enter Adagio Teas......

   I was contacted a couple of weeks ago by the folks at Adagio asking me if I'd like to sample some of their teas. I love tea, and always have a lot of it in the cupboard, but what I really like to do beyond drinking it, is to cook and bake with it, such as these Earl Grey Macarons with Meyer Lemon filling I made for CocoaPlanet last year...GlutenFree of course as all macarons are, but also Vegan all the way.
 

  
   Anyway, I was extremely impressed with the tea choices at Adagio...the teas are Direct Trade, and beautifully described as to flavors scent etc. There are full instructions as to how to brew it, and what the cost is per cup (I, being a canny shopper love that!) and who's growing it. Everything anyone needs to know, plus the varieties they offer are extensive. If it's a specific tea you want, chances Adagio has it.

   After checking out everything, I chose some of my favorites to work with and I started with Darjeeling Sungma Summer Tea. Since it was about a zillion degrees here in Sonoma the day my tea arrived, there was only one thing I wanted to do with it first and that was to make ice cream!

   So, I'm saying up front, this recipe is for an ice cream maker. If you don't have one I'd say try and find one. I got my first one used for 25 bucks and it was the best investment on my money I ever had. It's still working and I have added other brand new ones since then. I kind of have a thing for ice cream machines, as ice cream is one of the fastest, easiest kid- pleasing desserts out there. 5 minutes in the machine, an hour in the freezer and you are good to go. So just putting this out there...for this recipe one needs a machine. It's very simple and only uses a few spices...so here we go.

Darjeeling Ice Cream

Here's What You Need:

2 cups of whipping cream
2 cups of whole milk
3/4 cup of sugar
10 whole cardamom pods, cracked
4  whole cloves
2 slices of peeled fresh ginger
6 peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick
5 Adagio Teas Darjeeling Sungma Summer Tea Bags


Here's What To Do:

Mix the whipping cream and milk together with the sugar, ginger, cinnamon, peppercorns, cloves, and cracked cardamom pods
When it's well mixed put it on a medium flame and heat it up.
DO NOT BOIL it, just get it nice and hot below the boiling point.
Take it off the flame and add in the Adagio Darjeeling Sungma Summer Tea Bags.
Put a lid on the pot, and let everything steep for about 10 minutes.

Remove the tea bags, and strain all the spices out.
Place the mixture in the fridge for a few hours or overnight to chill thoroughly, then when it's cold enough, put it into your ice cream machine and follow ice cream making instructions.
When you take it out of the machine, put it into a freezer container and let it chill in the freezer for an hour or two till it firms up.

   When I served it, I couldn't resist baking a few madeleines to go along with it ...click on the link for the recipe for those.

      
 Now here's the Giveaway...

   Adagio Tea and The Colors of Indian Cooking are giving away 5 pouches of Darjeeling Sungma Summer Tea to 5 winners. All you have to do to be entered to win...is follow @AdagioTeas  and @kathygori on Twitter and leave me a comment here about it. The Contest is open now and we'll announce the winners on July 7th...so if you'd like to try this amazing tea, and get creative with it..let me know!

Of Figs and Goats. Sonoma Style Roasted Fig and Goat Cheese Ice Cream.

   The one thing we have plenty of this time of year here in Sonoma are figs. They're one of my two favorite fruits, (cherries are a close second) and they're everywhere, and I do mean everywhere. They're there for the gleaning at roadsides, and in backyards where there are such an abundance that people are just happy to have you come and take them off their hands. I like to think of them as a sweet version of zucchini. Except with figs, no one seems to leave a basket of them on the doorstep then ring the bell and run away. I wish they did.

   One of the first things we did after we bought our new house was plant fruit trees, of course a fig tree was the first tree in the ground. I went to the nursery looking for a Black Mission Fig tree. I had some delusional idea that figs came in two colors and two varieties, black and green, boy was I wrong. I only found out how wrong I was a couple of weeks ago. The night before the earthquake we went to a dinner at Sondra Bernsteins Pop Up venue Suite D. It was a Kale and Ping Pong Dinner. I thought it was going to be a meal of various kale dishes, and yes there was kale, but the kale Sondra meant was a young winemaker named Kale Anderson and it was the name of his winery Kale Wines.

   At the dinner we were seated next to  Peter and Gwen Jacobsen of Jacobsen Orchards in Yountville  among the restaurants they supply are the French Laundry, and boy do they know figs. They broughjt a wide variety to the dinner and quickly educated me as to what I'd bought. It turned out that the wierdly colored yellow and green striped figs I had growing in my backyard weren't sick, or mutants, they were Panache Striped Tiger Figs. That particular variety Gwen told me were especially delicious. I went home with new respect for my tree and a determination to get another one.

My fig tree however didn't put out enough figs this first year to really make anything out of, so I went to my favorite source, our friend Bruce Needleman's Fig Tree.  Needleman's fig tree is behind Needleman's store and he's perfectly happy to let me pillage it every year.

   So now that we're settled in the house, I'm back behind the stove and ready to put all this new equipment of mine to work. Casting around for the perfect thing to make in the new kitchen on a hot September afternoon (94 degrees) I turned to the other thing we've got plenty of here in Sonoma. Goats. Goat cheese to be exact. Laura Chenel's is about a mile and a half from our new house so I went and got some fresh goat cheese with the idea of making a simple goat cheese ice cream. As I drove past Needleman's fig tree I thought, hmmmm maybe some roasted figs in that goat cheese ice cream....the game was afoot.
 

Roasted Fig and Goat Cheese Ice Cream

Here's What You Need:

2 cups fresh whipping cream
12 fresh figs
1 cup of milk
3/4 cup sugar
5 oz of fresh goat cheese
2 Tbs of olive oil

Here's What To Do:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Wash and dry the figs carefully.

Cut the stems off and cut an X shape in the top.

Place the figs in an oven-proof baking dish and drizzle them with 2 Tbs of olive oil. I used California Olive Ranch Arbequina variety which has a great fruity bite, perfect for figs, and or ice cream.

Pop the figs into the oven to roast for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile mix together the sugar...

...2 cups of whipping cream...

...and 1 cup of milk.

Stir the mixture together well and place the pot on the stove at a low heat.

When the milk /cream mixture starts to steam but not boil, take the pan of the heat and add in 5 oz of fresh goat cheese.

Stir the goat cheese in until it's melted and blended.

Pour the mixture into a container and set it aside.

Take the roasted figs out of the oven. Let them cool a bit them put them into a blender or food processor to puree.

Stir the pureed fig mixture into the ice cream blend.

Put the fig goat cheese ice cream blend into the fridge to chill for a few hours. You want it cold before putting it into a ice cream machine. I usually let mine it out a bit to come to room temperature before I put it in the fridge. Another alternative it to set the bowl into an ice water bath to give it a flash chill.
In a few hours when the ice cream mixture has chilled down, stir it up again as the cheese will have congealed a bit, and put it into your ice cream machine.

Let it churn for about 25 minutes. Bingo, ice cream!

   This is a very rich creamy dessert, figgy with a mild goat cheese flavor. All one needs is a scoop, as a little goes a long way. The combo of goat cheese and olive oil roasted figs satisfy any dessert craving. I'm thinking of pairing it with a savory shortbread, which brings me to what I'm up to next, an adult fig newton. I can't stay away from Needleman's fig tree and unless he buys a shot gun and that Lab of his grows some balls, I'm going to keep cooking with his figs. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

July 4th Specials. Recipes For a Cookout

   As I sit here planning my July 4th menu, trying to figure out what will make my life a little bit easier, and the holiday a lot more enjoyable, I started flipping through my recipes looking for the ones have been crowd pleasers and also either make-ahead, or fairly easy to do. A few really stood out and so I'm sharing those for your weekend holiday celebrating .

   First up, 15 Minute Sweet Pickles. These are simple bread and butter pickles that can be made in 15 minutes in the microwave, for real. They're always on my table for July 4th and will make anyone look like the pickle Queen or King. Astound your family and friends.

   Of course what would the 4th be without Strawberry Shortcake

I usually make these shortcakes ahead and take them to our friend Mr. X's house for fireworks viewing. I assemble them there in just a few minutes. These travel well.

   If you're serving vanilla ice cream or perhaps want a different sort of topping for shortcakes, check out  Pickled Strawberries a twist on the usual strawberries in balsamic vinegar. Serve them on ice cream, or over whipped ricotta.

Speaking of strawberries, there's always good old fashioned Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

Serve it in a bowl, or make a chocolate ice cream sandwich.

And while on the subject of strawberries and cheesecake, one could go all the way and just make a Strawberry Cheesecake

This one is light and made with eggs and ricotta cheese, and 1/3 of a cup of flour, or if you're gluten free just use gluten free flour.

On the savory side, instead of baked beans my favorite side dish, or even main dish for vegetarian friends are these Indian Black Eyed Peas.

I'll be making these ahead today (they cook up very quickly if using frozen black eyed peas) and letting the flavors mellow overnight.

In the side dish salad department I'm always looking for coleslaw alternatives, so here are a few.
Tomato,Cucumber, and Coconut Salad all raw and easy to do.

Since I'm going raw here, a couple more salads for the Paleo crew.
An absolutely uncooked Carrot, Beet, and Pistachio Salad

Here's a Beet Salad that can be made a ahead and served cold or at room temperature. Tasty.

Make a pot of rice tonight and whip this  Cold Rice Salad up tomorrow.

Or you might try this "No Cook" Carrot Slaw

For the traditionalist who wants a change, here's an Indian Style Potato Salad

Another fast and easy different side dish is this Radish and Peanut Salad

I'm already planning to serve this  Indian Spiced Corn to my guests tomorrow.

If you like your corn in a cool salad here's a make ahead one of Corn and Coconut

Swinging back to the sweet side here are some ice creams.
For the vegans Fast Vegan Chocolate

And 5 Minute Chcolate Cherry Ice Cream that can be made vegan by swapping out the dairy yogurt for soy or some other non dairy.

For regular traditional ice cream there's Vanilla Chelan Cherry Ice Cream with Valrhona Chocolate Pearls

Blueberry Buttermillk Ice Cream

If you don't have an Ice Cream Machine try Indian Kulfi

There's also Orange Blossom and Pistachio

For those who might be looking for a Non-Alcoholic Celebration a Virgin Cocktail that won't get anyone in trouble. The Virgin G & T

And finally, what would the 4th be without Watermelon? You try it in a Watermelon Mousse

   So there they are some thing you might like to try for your weekend celebrations or anytime during the Summer Cookout season. Have a safe and sane (but of course not too sane) 4th, catch you on the flipside.  Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

Made for Each Other. Chocolate Olive Oil Ice Cream.

   When it comes to hooking friends up, I confess I suck. I am the world's worst matchmaker. Had I been in the Garden of Eden introducing people, we'd be a planet of snakes. It doesn't matter, young or old, gay or straight, if I tell you I have your perfect Special Someone, you have my permission to ignore me. In fact just freaking run because I don't know what the hell I'm doing. I'm just talking about romance here. As far as introducing people who I think might really get along in business or personally, I got that. As long as there's no candlelit dinners involved, I'm good. I also love it when people introduce me to people they know who are doing fun and interesting stuff.

   A couple of months ago my friend Chip told me he had someone he thought I ought to meet. Her name is Anne McKibben and she's the founder of  CocoaPlanet. How could I be living in this small, small, town with someone who makes such killer chocolate and not know it???? Beats me. That's fixed now. Anne's great and her chocolate is amazing, and from the moment I tasted it I just wanted to do something special with it. A couple of weeks ago I got my chance.

   While doing my dinner in honor of St. Martins' Press publication of the Essential James Beard Cookbook, I was introduced to California Olive Ranch Olive Oil. The minute I tried the Arbequina oil, I had a matchmaking idea. What would happen if I put this olive oil together with Anne's Chocolate Olive chocolate? After stepping into a cold shower and slapping myself around for a few minutes: "No Kathy, bad Kathy, leave that nice olive oil and chocolate  alone. What did they ever do to you?" However, I just couldn't get the idea out of my head. So, yeah I did it. I introduced them.

They're such a cute couple and together they'd have such a beautiful baby.

Chocolate Olive Oil Ice Cream

Here's What You Need:

6 egg yolks
1 and 1/3 cups of milk
A pinch of salt
1/2 cup of sugar
1 cup of whipping cream
1/2 cup of Arbequina olive oil
4 oz of CocoaPlanet Chocolate Olive Chocolate
Large crystal sea salt

Here's What To Do: 

Chop 4 ozs of chocolate into chunks and set them aside.

Mix the milk, sugar and salt together in a pot.

In a separate bowl whisk the egg yolks and set them aside.

Pour the cream into a large bowl and set a strainer on top of the bowl. Set it aside.
Heat the milk, sugar, and salt mixture until it's warm.

When the milk sugar and salt mixture is warm, pour it into the bowl of egg yolks. Pour it in slowly and keep whisking. You don't want a bowl of scrambled eggs.
Pour the egg yolk, milk, sugar, and salt mixture back into the pot.

Keep the heat on medium and keep stirring the mixture until you have a thickened sort of custard.
Remember to scrape around the bottom of the pot too so nothing burns.        
When it coats the spoon or spatula, it's ready.
Pour the custard mixture through the strainer and into the cream.
Add in the chunked chocolate and stir it  into the mixture.

Blend the olive oil into the custard thoroughly. Whisk it hard, so that it's combined thoroughly.

Then set the bowl in an ice bath and whisk everything well until it's cooled.

Set the bowl in the fridge for a few hours or even over night to chill thoroughly, then pour it into an ice cream machine. 25 minutes later you've got ice cream.

  The smooth chocolate blended well with the fruity olive oil and it was instant love. I sprinkled a bit of chunky sea salt on top of each serving, because olive oil was always served with a bit of that at my house growing up, and who doesn't love a bit of salt on ones' chocolate?

It had to work.

It did. I was relieved to have put two things together that were most defintely still speaking to me at the end of it all.

   I'd like to thanks the good people at California Olive Ranch and CocoaPlanet for helping me make this love connection happen. I'm most definitely making this recipe again, this time I'm working on a three way between the chocolate, the  olive oil, and an ingredient yet to be named. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori