Things I'm loving...

Kinfolk Magazine, a gorgeous new publication that features the work of some of my favorite bloggers. It’s simple, uncontrived and incredibly beautiful.

This popsicle mold. Is that not the most perfect popsicle shape?



And this Paletas book to go with it.




This pressed leaf ring. Prettiest ring I’ve ever seen.

Gorgeous blogs, some new to me, others old favorites.

Always With Butter



Photisserie



Green Kitchen Stories



Food In Jars





Okra, one of my favorite summer foods. If you cut it into strips, dip it in egg, then in a mixture of breadcrumbs & paprika (and a little salt & pepper), then bake it at 400 for about 15 minutes, you get a delightfully crunchy snack, and a little bit healthier than the normal deep fried preparation.

This article on “The Beer Archaeologist”




The most perfect tablecloth ever? I think so.


So tell me, what’s caught your eye lately?

Black Tea & Blackberry Sorbet

Down the winding gravel road that leads to my home there’s a large spray of wild blackberry bushes. They are brambly things, completely overgrown, not taken care of by anyone in particular, free for the taking.



Each year we do lots of blackberry picking. Sometimes it’s all of us, a family affair, other times not. This time around it was my sister & I, and two of our sweet dogs. They followed us there and sniffed around a bit before seeing a deer and running off after it. Sarah & I walked to the patch around dusk, as it’s far too hot in the middle of the day, even with the fading light we were sweating up a storm, but despite that and getting all scratched up from the briars, it’s totally worth it! Fresh berries! For free!



I wanted to try something new with them this year, I was originally going to make a plain blackberry sorbet, but then I thought of this. We’re combining two of my favorite things, berries and sweet tea! It’s oh so good, super refreshing and so perfect for summer. I can already see this becoming a staple for these hot months.



The vodka used here is to keep the sorbet from freezing into a solid mass. It keeps is scoopable! Also, sometimes tea gets bitter if it’s steeped too long. taste yours, if it is, add a pinch of baking soda!



Black Tea-Blackberry Sorbet

2 cups water
2 regular tea bags
1 cup sugar
3 cups fresh or frozen blackberries, if frozen, let thaw completely
1 tbs vodka
2 tbs lemon juice

Bring water to a rolling boil. Remove from heat, add tea bags and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Remove tea bags, add sugar and heat until the sugar dissolves. Allow to cool completely.

Puree blackberries in a food processor, then push through mesh sieve to remove seeds. Add vodka and lemon juice. Add to tea, then pour back through sieve.

Process the mixture in an ice cream maker, according to manufacturers instructions.

Peach Blueberry Pie

Today is a fantastic day. Do you know why? It’s a Pie Party! A few food bloggers were chatting on twitter and somehow this happened. Pretty awesome, right?



I love pie, but I only make it a couple of times of year, In fact, I’m pretty sure the the last one I made was exactly a year ago. I should do it more, because though mine taste good, they always, always fall apart! I haven’t figured out why yet, but I’m working on it. (albeit very slowly. ;)

I went all-American this time around, for Independence day. Peaches & blueberries. Perfect for enjoying while watching fireworks.



Peach Blueberry Pie

Pie Crust:
From Martha Stewart

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.

With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

Filling:
5 peaches, peeled and sliced
3 cups blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
juice of 1/2 lemon

1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll one disc of dough into a 12-inch round, 1/8-inch thick. Fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Set aside in the refrigerator.

In a large bowl, combine peaches, blueberries, sugar, flour, and lemon juice, toss to combine. Pour into pie plate, mounding in the center. Roll second disc of dough into a 12-inch round, 1/8 inch thick. Wet edges of the crust in the plate, then lay dough on top, pressing at edges to seal. Cut vents into top crust. Place in refrigerator for 30 minutes.


Remove pie from refrigerator. Brush crust with egg wash, then sprinkle with sugar. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes, until crust is browned at edges. Turn oven down to 350, bake for another 40-50 minutes.

Enjoy!

Ice Cream without a machine + Chocolate Almond Milkshakes!

While I was in Atlanta for Blogher Food, Elissa, Lauren, Tessa, Kamran and I ate at the restaurant Yeah! Burger. Twice. Needless to say, it’s pretty dang good. They have hands down, the best turkey burger I have ever tasted.

Along with the really good turkey burger, they also have excellent shakes. The peach flavor is amazing, but the one that really stuck out to me was the chocolate almond. It’s a basic chocolate shake, but with almond butter mixed in. I wasn’t sure if I’d like it, but I LOVED it.



Since I don’t have a Yeah! Burger right down the street, I decided to recreate it at home. You could just use store bought chocolate ice cream, but homemade is so much better. This recipe I used is from David Lebovitz, ice cream genius. It’s the most creamy, rich chocolate ice cream ever. The best part? I didn’t use an ice cream maker! I have one of those huge, vintage wannabe ice cream makers, which is terribly loud and requires a massive amount of ice and rock salt. I hate lugging it out, so I googled “how to make ice cream without a machine” and landed on this page, also from David Lebovitz. Head over there for the method!

If you want to make ice cream without a machine, the key is to use a custard base, not one of those recipes for super quick, no cook ice cream, which are always too icy and not at all creamy. It takes more work, lots of stirring and cooling, but in the end it is so worth it.



The milkshake part is much easier than the ice cream part! Just dollop a few spoonfuls of almond butter into a glass, add ice cream, a little milk, and stir. The ratios are completely up to you. Want it super almondy? Add more almond butter. Want it really thick? Add less milk. I also like to stir in some very finely chopped lightly salted almonds and top it with shaved semi sweet chocolate.

Seriously y’all. Try this out. Both the shake and the ice cream! It’s the perfect way to ring in summer.



Chocolate Ice Cream
from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

2 cups heavy cream

3 tbsp unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

5 oz bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup sugar

pinch of salt

5 large egg yolks

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Warm 1 cup of cream with cocoa powder in medium saucepan, whisking to thoroughly blend the cocoa. Bring to boil then reduce heat and gently simmer for 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate until smooth. Stir in remaining cup of cream.

Pour mixture into a large bowl, scraping the saucepan as much as possible. Set mesh strainer atop the bowl. Warm milk, sugar, and salt in the same saucepan. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed yolks back into the saucepan. Stir mixture constantly over medium heat making sure the scrape the bottom and corners, until the mixture thickens and reaches custard consistency.

Pour custard through strainer and stir it into the chocolate until smooth, then stir in the vanilla. Continue to stir over ice bath until cool. Refrigerate the mixture to cool thoroughly and then freeze it in your ice cream machine per the manufacturer’s instructions, or follow the instructions here. Yields 1 quart.