Ice Cream!

I don't normally eat Ice Cream because I get tummy aches, but I have found pure (expensive) or clean (vegan)  or homemade is usually fine in small doses. My hubby loves the stuff and since my goal in life is to make him happy 24/7, ( because a happy hubby is a happy life)

I bought the Ice Cream attachment for my kitchen aid mixer...how flipping cool is that?

I watched lots of YouTube videos on using it and getting recipes collected.
I decided to try a very easy recipe my first go round with it:
I chose Patricia's gelato recipe from ButterYum, find her here : www.butteryum.blogspot.com

Rich Dark Chocolate Gelato (Cioccolato Scuro e Ricco Gelato)

3 cups whole milk, divided 1 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder 2 tablespoons cornstarch pinch of fine salt 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together 1 cup of milk, sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder, and salt; set aside.  In a large heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat, bring the remaining 2 cups of milk just below the boiling point (bubbles will appear around the edges of the pan).  Add the cocoa mixture to the hot milk and continue to heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens (about 10 minutes).  Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.  Allow mixture to cool, then transfer to an airtight container and chill overnight.  Process in your ice cream maker following the manufacturer's instructions.  Transfer to an airtight container and store in the freezer.  Soften at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.  Makes 1 quart.  Base can be made up to 5 days before processing in an ice cream machine.  Thank you Patricia for an easy and delicious recipe!

Wow it was amazing!! And delicious and I did not get a tummy ache!
Here is my churner at work:

I like that this recipe made just 24 oz of gelato, a nice little portion for me and hubby to snack on! That container is about 6 inches long and 3 inches high.

The whole process of making ice cream at home is kinda long, you have to freeze the bowl for 24 hours, ( I just keep it in the freezer all the time) then you cook the ingredients and put in a mason jar and chill over night, or I just kept shaking it and setting it in the freezer and checking on it, once the ingredients were really cold, 40* I was able to add to the freezer bowl, turn the mixer on and it stirs for 20 minutes on low. After it turns to thick creamy ice cream put it in air tight container and put back in freezer until really cold maybe 2 hours...but then you have it....your own homemade ice cream that is rich and delicious and not filled with chemicals!
I am going to make vanilla bean next, then a butter pecan! YUM!!

Whirlwind Weekend!

My sister came to town, then my son and his wife showed up too....we had fun running around town and doing all kinds of stuff!

We learned to solder from Tanya BeadandNeedle, we took a beading class at Colleen's Beadmetaler
We had a little pool time and fish tacos, then played a game of Obey the cards (qualf) hilarious game, you must try it out!!!

Went clothes shopping....and finished the trip with cheesecake from the cheesecake factory tuesday night!

We missed out on bingo and the fancy movie theater, there is always next time!

Bead class

Chrsity and I going to the show!

Love the music and show!

Soldering around rocks!

Napoli pendant front

soldered pendant back

Great show at the LVH

 

Old rockers that can still rock it out!

My outfit (JLo's short/skirt) and a sheer blouse with hearts on it! love it!!

The Lone Ranger

I saw this movie this weekend...I loved it - but then I love everything Johnny Depp is in! I remember 21 jumpstreet back in the late 80's. You knew he was going to be great! Also, just bought the Rolling Stone issue with JD on cover and read his interview on the plane home from San Diego, makes you love him even more...what a cool guy with a great attitude.

GO SEE THE LONE RANGER, he did not act like jack sparrow, he acted like Tonto from the old black and white Lone Ranger shows, I remember those, my mom watched them....Tonto was always shaking his head and being sarcastic with LR, and also getting LR out of trouble! It was a hoot!! Johnny did a great job bringing him to life! And Silver (LR's Horse) was the same way with LR....so funny!



Silver steals the show! Loved him!

 

 



Town and Country Resort San Diego

I just spent 4 days at the T&C Resort in San Diego, Wow, Great place!

I recommend only if you are attending a convention though, or go when no convention is scheduled.

Since it has a convention center connected to it, some of the convention goers get loud and rowdy at night and makes sleeping difficult, but if you are one of the convention goers and have tuckered yourself out scrapbooking all day then no problem, you will be dog tired and fall right out!

We had 3 conventions going on: Bot.com (think transformers and nerdy geeky people with action figures to buy and sell) Then we had a scooter convention (think vespa riders all decked out in leathers) and then we had Scrapbook Expo (think women with enough paper, tape runner, cutters to rule the world). So all in all not too rowdy of a bunch.

The grounds are fabulous...

You check in on one end and they golf cart you to the other end where the rooms are, from there you walk back and forth to wonderful restaurants and the convention center. Stroll along the pool areas and gift shops, during the day they set up BBQ stations and deli stations to feed you.

Here are some pics I took:

Rose bushes everywhere!

Little alcoves to sit and rest, birds were using the houses,
Yeah, I would live there to if I could!

Fountains, this is the Lion Fountain!

After touring the grounds, it was time to get scrapping!

Christy and Mary

Mary and Me

I can't wait to go back next year!!

My Balcony- Room 1202

The view from my balcony

Busy Work!

We are adding more shade structures to the backyard, we are tired of chasing down our umbrellas when the desert winds pick up!
I paint the boards and hubby puts it together!

The posts are being anchored and set!

Then we add the boards, I will have to paint about 80 boards!

More boards!

 

Here is how the structures turn out,
we built these a couple years ago to line the back wall.

 I did manage to sneak away to take a class at Colleen's: www.beadmeataler.blogspot.com

You take a fork and sculpt it into a fabulous necklace!

Then you wire wrap a bead on and call it done!
Time to Eat! I just love how mine turned out!

First day of summer!

We all know by now that this is my favorite day of the year!

This is summer!

I get to wear sandals, tank top and shorts 24/7! Even at 11:00 at night! I love that, no more bundling up in sweatshirts and sweaters, like when I lived in California.

Love this outfit and I can wear it all night!

Out here in the desert it gets hot and stays hot! I think my best feeling in the world is when you go in a restaurant to have dinner and then you leave and you walk out the door expecting it to be cold because it is now night time, and then it hits you - the warmth of the heated desert night.
Oh heavenly bliss, I don't think there is anything better.

Just my opinion...

Oh, found this on pinterest, Love it!

I'm going to be getting a new tattoo in July when my son and his wife and my sister come to visit. It's our little ritual, go get tattooed!

I want an anchor with the Pisces fish swimming around the center rod, then a circle of small anchors around the large anchor, each to represent the cruises I have been on, I only get 4 to start, I have been on four cruises so far, but after each cruise I can add another anchor to the circle....yeah, something like that!

This one is cool, my kind of quote!

Baseball, Wine and Friends!

I had a fun weekend visiting my friend Mary.
She lives in a beautiful home in some canyons. Each morning we walked the dogs through the beautiful countryside.
I was there to take in my first Wine Club Adventure and an Angel Baseball game.

With ten people tasting, you had to have 40 wine glasses ready, plus some food, Mary made a lasagne, she puts black olives in her lasagne, it's a Jersey thing, but it gave it a rustic flavor that was great! She also made some zucchini boats filled with a spicy black bean filling, I will be making that for my sister when she visits! Delicious!
The other couples brought appitizers, one couple brought brussel sprouts with bacon pieces, YUM!

The bottles and glasses at the end of it all!

The wine that night was Shiraz, it had to be from Napa/Sonoma country for this tasting.
I was so nervous I forgot to take notes, so I don't remember the names!

Actually my favorite wine was the wine Chris and Mary served on Friday night, a luscious Pinot Noir from Melville winery in Santa Barbara. But the Shiraz's were good and they go great with the bold spicy foods that were served. Hopefully I did not make a complete fool of myself with my lack of wine knowledge, everyone was so nice to this little wine newbie.

Love Angel Stadium!

Sunday we headed off to the baseball game, nothing like a little more wine (a cheap chardonnay), peanuts, and a hot dog at the good ol' ballpark! Chris had won some great seats in a raffle and we enjoyed a great game even though the Angels lost....it got pretty exciting at the end!

I would like to thank Chris and Mary and John (Mary's Brother) for a great weekend of wine, food and friendship! I had a wonderful time!