I found a french vanilla flavoring at the store the other day, and I was writing an article for a local magazine on..ice cream.  I had all ready done the vanilla, but wondered…with some adjustments? What would triple french vanilla taste like?

Triple French Vanilla Ice Cream is NOT for the faint of heart

Triple French Vanilla.  Sensual, seductive, intense…almost chocolate in character…think of expensive ivory silk (peace silk, of course) and the way that it feels on a hot day when you slide on that luxurious silk robe after a fragrant bath.

And you can add things to it.  Jimmies, sauce, fruit, or…my personal favorite, (dirty-little-secret ) pretzels.

Marye's dirty-little-secret

This ice cream is my base for most other ice creams I make.  It is intensely rich and if you have trouble with fats you can switch the half and half for whole milk but don’t unless you absolutely have to.  This is so creamy, and silky, and amazing that you have to expience it once in awhile.  If you want to add chopped fruit or a fudge swirl do it just at the end of the freezing time.  It is important that you let it ripen in the freezer over night.  I know, but really the texture gets better and it doesn’t melt so quickly.  Trust me. Lick the dasher and stop whining.

(Wordpress refused to upload my last photo..I will try to get back later!)

Triple French Vanilla Ice Cream

• 3 cups half and half
• 3 cups heavy cream
• 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
• 2  3-inch vanilla beans, split
• 1 1/2  teaspoons pure Vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon French Vanilla flavoring
• 1 tablespoon bourbon (optional)
• 1/8 tsp salt

1. Heat the sugar, salt, vanilla beans, bourbon, and half and half in a heavy saucepan until it is very hot and bubbles form around the edge.  Do not let it boil.  Remove from heat, cover, and allow to cool completely.  Longer is better.  Overnight will yield the most vanilla flavor.
2. Remove beans.  Scrape the seeds and pulp back into the cream mixture, discard the shell.
3. Beat the  heavy cream until soft peaks form.  Add vanilla extracts.
4. Fold into half and half mixture carefully.
5. Freeze according to manufacturer’s directions.

Makes ½ gallon

images:maryeaudet

Post from: Baking Delights

Carrots are not often served cooked around here. Not because we don’t like them but because my kids will go through a five pound bag of organic carrots in about two days..so if I want to do carrots I better have them on the menu for the day I shop.

These do not have a heavy flavor..the aroma of the anise and vanilla are delicate and the flavor is more of a nuance than anything. Still, they have a nice complex flavor, not too sweet,  and are a good side to chicken or pork. Probably fish too, but we don’t eat fish much.

These are not particularly sweet.  I added a little sugar to enhance the sugars in the carrots but don’t think of these as being glazed, because they aren’t.

I did these in the microwave, but you could do them on top of the stove. Don’t cook too long, you want them to have a little texture.  I just peeled the carrots and left them whole, but of course you could slice or julienne, adjust the cooking time accordingly.

I garnished with a little chopped parley for the picture..but if I had chopped mint I would have used that.

These would also be cool with a combination of the purple, red, and orange carrots, with maybe some parsnips thrown in as well.

Anise & Vanilla Carrots

• 4 lbs carrots, peeled
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 star anise
• 2 inches of vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of salt
• coarsely ground pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter

Place the lemon juice, zest, sugar, butter, anise, vanilla bean (if using extract add it after the sauce is cooked) , salt and pepper in a microwave save casserole or in a pan if you are using the stove.  Bring to a boil and remove from heat.  Allow to steep for about five minutes.

Add the carrots and cover.  Steam until the carrots are just tender, about 8 minutes.  If you are using the stove top do not let them boil dry-add a little water if needed.  Stir once in awhile and bring the sauce up over the carrots as they cook.

If you used vanilla extract add it just before serving.

Serves 8

Image:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I wanted to do something a little different to go with lunch the other day. Usually scones are a breakfast item here, I just don’t think of them for lunch. But with a salad and some Brie these are a great way to round out a light meal.

They are sweet from the glaze. The vanilla mellows out the lavender to make a great taste combination. A few months ago I read about a technique where you grated cold butter into scones and biscuits to give a more tender product. This really does make a difference and I have been doing them this way with good results. The scones can be made any size you like..I wanted them to be small and dainty. Sometimes I just need to make girlie foods to balance out all the testosterone in the house!

Allowing the scones to set for 20 minutes before placing them in the oven helps the gluten to relax and the scones to be tender.

You can mix the dry ingredients together and keep it in a container so you can make scones when ever you want just by grating in the butter. Make your own scone mix! With a little organization even the busiest among us can eat well..and really, we should. Why wait until you are having company to make all the special foods? Treat your family to your skills and make them feel special.

Lavender and Vanilla Mini Scones

3 1/2 c flour

2 tbs baking powder

1/2 c unsalted butter

1/2 c sugar

1 1/3 c half and half

2 tsp vanilla

2 tbs food grade lavender buds

Mix the dry ingredients, except lavender, together. you can seal the mixture in a food container and have it on hand for scone mix if you like.

Cut in butter, or grate it into the dry ingredients. Add lavender buds and stir to mix in evenly. Add vanilla and milk and mix until you have a soft dough that holds together.

Roll out gently to about 3/4 inch thickness and cut out with small biscuit cutter. Place on baking sheet and allow to stand for 20 minutes. During this time preheat oven to 400F.

Bake for 12 minutes or until done.

Remove from oven.

While scones are still hot spoon on a glaze made from:

1/2 c melted butter

1 tsp vanilla

enough confectioners sugar to make a thick glaze.

Sprinkle with lavender buds to garnish.

Makes about 24.

These freeze well, and are great for once a month cooking or making ahead.

Images:Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

Chai Spice Snowballs (and you thought the Mexican Wedding cookies were good)

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Vanilla -Rose Crackles  …..just …wow. Crispy-tender-chewy.

See you tomorrow for Blogsurfing!

Images: Marye Audet

Content: Marye Audet for Baking Delights 

Post from: Baking Delights

These cookies are a fantastic addition to tea, or coffee in the afternoon.  In fact, they are great for an after school snack. They are light, buttery, crumbly and everything I think shortbread should be.  I like them better than Lorna Doones and trust me, that is BIG.

They go together pretty fast, and they also freeze well if securely wrapped.  Be careful about what else is in the freezer, though, they can pick up off flavors due to the delicacy of the cookie.

I like to sprinkle sugar crystals on mine before baking..something like Sugar in the Raw works great due to the large size crystals. And the rustic flavor of the Sugar in the Raw goes especially well with these cookies.

The trick to making the best shortbread cookies is to make sure you don’t over mix  the dough. You don’t want to develop the gluten.

Sorry- yellow light from eco-friendly spiral bulbs…at least you know I am green, right?

The Best Maple Shortbread Cookies 

1 1/2 c flour

1/2 c cake flour

1 c powdered sugar

1 c unsalted butter

1 tsp maple flavor

1 tsp vanilla flavor

1/4 c sugar in the raw for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 13×9x2 inch pan,

Combine flour, cake flour, powdered sugar, butter and flavorings. Mix at low speed until it forms a soft dough.

Turn the dough into the pan and press it evenly to fill the pan. Sprinkle with the Sugar in the Raw and press in gently.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden.  Cool slightly, cut in desired sized bars, and finish cooling.

My desired size in ONE but some people get as many as 32

Image:(c)MaryeAudet

Content:Marye Audet for Baking Delights 

Post from: Baking Delights

Yesterday I tested a yellow cake recipe for Cooks Illustrated. I did not care for it nearly as much as I like this one, which is a good thing because I can’t post the test recipes anyway. By the way, anyone can test recipes for them and it is fun! They often have a link when they are looking for new testers. It isn’t compensated of course but how cool is it to say that you have tested a recipe that you are reading in their magazine?

Classic Yellow Cake

1/2 cup butter
1-1/4 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1-1/4 cups buttermilk
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoons baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F . Grease and flour two 9″ round pans. Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.

Frosting

1/2 cup butter
4 (1 ounce) squares bittersweet chocolate
1 pound confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup cream

Melt chocolate and butter in the microwave, or in the top of a double boiler. In a large bowl, combine confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and 1/2 cup of the cream. Blend in the melted chocolate mixture. Add remaining cream, a little at a time, until desired consistency is achieved. Let stand until spreadable . Frosting will thicken as it cools.

Post from: Baking Delights