The Better No Machine Ice Cream

    

 

For the longest time I have refrained from making ice cream since I lack the storage space for an ice cream machine. I often look longingly at ice cream recipes on Tastespotting and pass the ice cream appliances in Bed Bath & Beyond while shedding a lone silent tear. For the sake of storage (and my wallet), I have to be ruthless when deciding whether or not to make any kind of purchase for our kitchen, and I know an ice cream machine just wouldn't see enough use.

 

Then I started thinking how people have been making ice cream far before Kitchen-Aid or CuisineArt stepped in to help with the job. The process is a bit more tedious, but in the end you'll end up with a delicious ice cream and guess what? The $70 you would have spent buying an ice cream machine will still be in your pocket. 

 

This recipe calls for a bucket ton of egg yolks! Maybe it seemed a bit excessive to me since I tripled the recipe-- if I was going to do this by hand I wanted to have a lot of ice cream to show for my efforts. But anyway, you'll have the makings of a beautifully creamy custard before it goes into the freezer. 

 

In fact I made so much ice cream that normal mixing bowls for the ice bath wouldn't work. I had to get a little creative and use a soup pot and a dutch oven.

The vanilla ice cream recipe cake from David Lebovitz's blog. Oh how I love that man! What I would give to be his best friend that he bakes for. I'm sure he has a sparkling personality, but if I'm totally honest I just want to take his food and return home to eat and watch Netflix. Does that make me a bad person? Oh, it does? *Shrugs with indifference*

When my vanilla ice cream was at soft serve consistency I added some cherries that I soaked in sugar, lemon juice and whiskey (cherry recipe to come later). Summer is winding down at an alarming rate so make your ice cream before the chilly season comes around. But then again, does it really matter what season it is when it comes to ice cream? Answer: hell no!

The Better Martha Works In the Garden...Sort Of

For me summer is kind of like the annoying cousin that you see at the yearly family get together; fun and entertaining the first hour or so, but by the end of the evening you are counting down the hours until he leaves. Aside from the delicious fruit and not having to go to class, summer pretty much offers me nothing. I guess I can only say this as a native Californian who experiences warm weather year round, but honestly I just want to go back to sweater weather.

{Old water fountain used as a flower bed}

My parents, however, love the grueling heat since they are from Jamaica. On the weekends my dad isn't working they spend countless hours gardening and making multiple runs to Home Depot. I've always been the type who prefers getting glue and glitter under my nails rather than dirt. Today I just looked on, snapped pictures, then retreated to our air conditioned house as they strategically planted flowers in the front yard. 

{Backyard flower}

{The surgery performing, video game playing, gardening hands of my parental unit}

The Better Warm Weather Music Playlist

When signing up to live in Los Angeles, unbearable traffic is part of the deal. Although this trait of LA living has made me tardy on a number of occasions, in the summer months a few extra minutes tagged on to my ETA is no biggie. There is nothing like opening the sun roof, rolling down the windows and awkwardly car dancing to alleviate some of the bumper to bumper stress. If you're on the 101 and see me bopping my head, be sure to honk and wave hello!

Super Duper Love... Joss Stone
Carried Away... Passion Pit
Doses & Mimosas...Cherub
L.A. Story... Sammy Adams
Money Party... Kat Dahlia
Son of a Preacher Man... Dusty Springfield
Hit the Road Jack...Jenee Olstead
Wild Young Hearts...Noisettes
From Now On... The Features
Young Folks...Peter Bjorn And John
We'll Be Alright... Travie McCoy
The Stoop... Little Jackie
Simple Life...Casey Abrams
Life Happens...Brandon & Leah

Happy August everyone!

The Better Shrimp Bowl With Mango Black Bean Salsa

When I first decided to be a pescatarian, I thought I'd be overwhelmed with longing for steak and chicken fingers, but the transition has been surprisingly easy (as long as I never have to drive by In-N-Out). My number one love is shrimp; it takes 5 minutes to cook on the stovetop and it's super versatile. Recently I made a dish of brown rice, sautéed shrimp, and a black bean mango salsa. It's super yummy and perfect for the summer time! Thanks for the idea Kristen.

  

 

 

The Better Way to Roast Corn (aka I'm Too Lazy To Use a Grill)

I'm a big fan of grilled anything. Fish, meat, veggies, whatever it is if it has been on a grill chances are I'll happily eat it. It's only natural since I live in a state where everyday is grilling weather. I'm just not a fan of the clean up that comes with cooking outdoors. Lazy  Crafty me figured out a way to charr my vegetables on my stovetop. The corn was great but even greater was not having to do any scrubbing.

 

The Better Granola and Summer Resolution

In attempts to lower my sugar intake, I chose to make my own granola. Apparently store bought granola is riddled with sugar and all sorts of stuff I shouldn't be putting into my body. Making it from scratch not only allows me to know every ingredient that goes in, but it also gives me control over how much sugar is used. It's so yummy and simple; I can't believe I haven't done this earlier. 

 

{main ingredients}

This summer I promised myself I would try to live a healthier lifestyle overall. I'm no longer bogged down with papers and endless pages of reading, so there really is no excuse for late night chicken fingers. The first step was a major shopping trip to Costco for a fridge (and freezer) full of fruits and vegetables. 

The Better Martha Is Back with Big News

This past week has been utterly exhausting. Between studying for finals, packing up my dorm, and traveling, I've barely been able to sit down and catch my breath. Although I have a busy summer planned, I'm so glad to be going back to sunny California; the long east coast winter has been too much for me to handle. But on a separate note I have some crazy exciting news to share with you all! 

 

Image via Google Images

This coming fall I'm not returning to Connecticut for school. I have decided to change things up and am headed to New York City! I'm officially a Barnard woman! The big city is defiantly a huge change. There is so much for me to learn, and I have never been so excited! But before it's time for me to fly to NYC in the fall, I have a summer of great posts planned. Happy summer everyone!

The Better Watermelon Slushie

  
{These photos were taken literally less than 1 minute apart; it's that good}

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

Juice of 1 lemon 

4 pounds of diced, seedless watermelon

1 cup of simple syrup

4 cups ice

DIRECTIONS

1. Place watermelon in blender and liquify

2. Pour in simple syrup* and lemon juice

3. Either add ice to blender for a slushy consistency or pour mixture over ice cubes

*To make simple syrup place 4 cups of sugar and 1.5 cups of water in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves.

The Better Berry Lemonade

I am a firm believer that when life gives you lemons (or any fruit for that matter) you head to the kitchen make a lemon debutant cake, a lemon pound cake, lemon bars, and a batch of lemonade. Life has not handed me any lemons as of late, so I went to smart and final and bought two large bags. Usually while listening to my favorite podcast I will zest and juice the lemons then put everything in the freezer for future use.

 

RECIPE

INGRDIENTS

*½ cup berry puree

½ cup lemon juice

**½ cup simple syrup

4 cups sparkling water (still works too)

DIRECTIONS

1. In a heat proof bowl mix simple syrup and berry puree

2. Microwave syrup-berry mixture on high for 4 minutes

3. Remove from microwave and whisk vigorously

4. Strain mixture through a fine mesh sieve

5. In a pitcher mix syrup-berry mixture, lemon juice, and water

6. Serve over ice

*To make berry puree blend your favorite berries (fresh or frozen) until smooth. If using frozen berries thaw and first before adding to blender.

** To make simple syrup place 4 cups of sugar and 1½ cups water in saucepan. Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves

The Better Source of Electrolytes

I would like the world to know that I was in love with coconut water far before the media started hyping it up and before Rihanna started plastering her face all over those little cartons. For as long as I can remember, my father has used a machete or a cleaver knife to cut them open in our garage. Honestly, I'm shocked he still has all his fingers.

There is nothing more refreshing when the California heat reaches the hundreds than cold, fresh coconut water--a light nutty flavor with the perfect hint of sweetness. OMG. Perfection!

And for the health nuts (pun intended) who must have another reason for consuming something other than the pure delicious factor, coconuts are a really good source of electrolytes and potassium. My dad said so, and he's a doctor. So there.

The Better 4th of July Fashion

The 4th of July is near and that means parties and backyard BBQs a plenty. Any get-together where the guests color coordinate will rank highly on my list, plus there is usually a barbecue. And fire works. I like fireworks. Luckily I have outgrown the unattractive habit of smearing grease on my white pants to clean my hands, but for those of you who haven't, there are some non-white options as well.  

1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.10.11.12

The Better Corn Dog Bite

I will just come out and admit it, I have a serious fear of frying foods. When you think about it, it's not that irrational, I mean a big pot of hot oil just waiting to burn your face off with one wrong splatter? Can you really call me crazy? But it's funny how a serious craving for corn dogs was all I needed to get over the possibility of third degree burns. Huh...

Luckily the creation of this deliciousness did not result in the trip to the the burn unit, but after eating a few too many, the chances of me needing to see a cardiologist have increased exponentially. 

 

The recipe I used was taken from the wonderful blog A Cozy Kitchen.
However, instead of dropping the battered hot dogs into the oil, I recommend you keep them on wooden skewers. I found this to be a better method because it allows me to keep them rotating and completely submerged so  they cook evenly. 

For the sake of my waist line I'm very thankful that frying food is so inconvenient. As soon as I popped a mini corn dog in my mouth, I thought something along the lines of "HOLY MOLY THIS IS DELICOUS!" and then thoughts of what else I could deep fry came to mind: french toast, battered cheese, eggplant... oh the endless possibilities. On the downside my entire house now smells like a McDonald's kitchen.

Summer is right around the corner, and of course, that means plenty of unnecessary parties (my favorite kind). Left on the skewer, these would be fantastic for guests to dip in their condiment of choice. 

The Better Graduation Reflections

This year, the beginning of the summer is a bit of a landmark for my family. My parents are having their 30th anniversary, my brother having graduated medical school is officially a doctor, and I'm saying farewell to the small prep school that I have attended for the last 14 years. After watching my father (an alum of the school) hand my brother his diploma, it got me thinking that it would only be a few short weeks before I' be getting my diploma.

Granted it is just high school, and I don't have to deal with the stress of knowing that lives will be in my hands...but still, it was a big awakening. All of this made me realize there are so many things I want to bake, do, see, and read while I'm still footloose, fancy free, and not bound to textbooks in the library. I refuse to let this summer pass only to realize that I have spent most of my days in the house. So here it is, my official Before I Go To College: Summer of 2012 Bucket List.

THINGS TO BAKE

1. Cinnamon Brown Butter Breakfast Puffs (Pictured above. Image via Smitten Kitchen)

2. Naan Bread

3. Homemade Twix Bar

4. Tiramisu (Pictured above. Image via 17 and Baking)

5. Jamaican Hard Dough Bread (This one is especially for my Jamaican parents who have been begging me to make it.)

THINGS TO DO

1. Run on the beach

2. West Coast Swing dance classes

3. Cake decorting class  (Image above via Glorious Treats)

4. Food photography/ styling class

5. Complete my tee shirt rug (Pictured above.)
6. Organize all pictures and computer files

THINGS TO SEE

1. Napa vineyards

2. Broadway show at Pantages Theatre

3. Snow White and the Huntsman

4. Chelsea Lately Live Show (Pictured above. Image via Google Images)

5. Cirque du Soleil

THINGS TO  READ

1. Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book1)

2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

3. An Abundance of Katherines (Pictured above. Image via Google Images)

4. Pandemonium

5. Uglies

I'd love to hear about all the activities on your bucket list.