Tag: homemade

Rhubarb-Strawberry Ice Cream

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Yield: 2 Quarts

I love homemade ice cream. It doesn’t have any added thickeners or stablizers and the taste of fresh ingredients shine through. Many of my homemade ice-cream recipes start with a basic vanilla ice cream and then mix in flavors. Rhubarb-Strawberry sauce as an add-in gives this ice-cream a sweet and tart taste.

I use whole milk and real heavy cream to keep the butter fat high. A combination of vanilla extract and vanilla bean add a boost of flavor and make this ice cream subtley complex. Then I add in some Rhubarb Strawberry Sauce. It’s that simple

I use an ice cream maker to churn the ice-cream. Any ice-cream maker will work, or there are a number of videos on YouTube to follow if you don’t have an ice-cream maker.

Ingredients

Base:
1 Cup Whole Milk
2 Cups Heavy Cream
3/4 Cup Sugar
1/8 teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Bean Paste*

Add In:
1 Cup Rhubarb Strawberry Sauce, refrigerated

*If not available, you can either scrape the seeds from the inside of a vanilla bean, or double the vanilla extract in place of the vanilla bean paste.

Instructions

  1. Combine milk, cream, sugar, salt and both types of vanilla into a large mixing bowl; preferrably one with a lid. Whisk until sugar and salt combines into the liquids.
  2. Chili for 2-6 hours or overnight. Just before placing in ice-cream maker, stir in the Rhubarb Strawberry Sauce.
  3. Place ingredients into an ice-cream maker and follow manufacturers directions, or use alternate churning method.
  4. Can serve immediately, or freeze for firmer ice-cream.
  5. To store: Place ice-cream in a freezer-safe container and keep in the freeezer.

Notes:

  1. In a hurry? Place the mixture in the freezer for 1/2 hour and then move to the refrigerator for 1/2 hour.
  2. Other fruit sauces or mashed fruits in simple syrups can be used in place of the Rhubarb Strawberry Sauce.

Homemade Meatballs

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This recipe is for a big batch of meatballs, intended to be prepped ahead and frozen for use in dishes such as traditional spaghetti and meatballs, meatball soups, meatball sandwiches, appetizer meatballs, etc.

Yield: 80 meatballs if formed into balls using approximately 2 tablespoons of meatball mixture. I typically use a cookie scoop to measure so I get uniform meatballs. Meatballs can be made larger or smaller to your preference. I like mine to be 2 tablespoon size as they reduce slightly when cooked and make the perfect 1-2 bite meatball. This recipe can also be reduced to 1/4 the amounts listed to make approximately 20 meatballs for a single meal and used immediately.

This recipe has very basic seasoning and is neutral so that flavors so the meatballs can marry with a variety of sauces and soup bases. This allows for versatile use of these meatballs in a variety of dishes.

Ingredients

20 oz. Ground Pork
32 oz. Ground Beef
4 Tablespoons Olive Oil
15 oz. Ricotta Cheese
1 Cup Dry Bread Crumbs 
4 Eggs, beaten
1 Cup Parmesan Cheese
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Pepper
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder
2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley

Instructions

  1. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly to combine and evenly distribute seasonings.
  3. Using a measuring spoon or scoop, measure meat mixture into the preferred size meatball.
  4. Place meatballs in uniform rows on the parchment paper until you fill baking sheets. Keep going until you run out of meat mixture. You can place the meatballs very close to each other, but do not let them touch.
  5. Cover meatballs lightly with plastic wrap and place baking sheets in freezer for 2 hours until meatballs are frozen.
  6. Remove meatballs from freezer and package using zip-top freezer bags.
  7. Return bags to the freezer until ready to use.
  8. For use in other dishes, thaw meatballs and then cook according to the recipe direction by oven baking, pan frying or dropping into soup broth. I typically put 2 dozen into a 1 gallon bag. They lay flat in the freezer and stack nicely.

Notes

  • Place 24 to 30 meatballs into a 1 gallon zip-top freezer bag and store them in the freezer flat. By freezing before putting in bags, the meatballs will not stick together when added to the freezer bags. The desired amount of meatballs can be removed individually. The remainder can be left in the resealed bag in the freezer.
  • Other herbs and seasonings can be added as desired.
  • If using a seasoned bread crumb, you may need to reduce the salt in the recipe.