Cowboy Caviar

Recipe from Culinary Hill

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 (15 ounce) can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (11 ounce) can super sweet corn, drained (see notes)
1 red onion, diced
1 cup diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1 cup chopped cilantro (1 bunch)

DIRECTIONS

In a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, sugar, white wine vinegar, chili powder, cumin and salt.

Add tomatoes, black-eyed peas, black beans, corn, onion, bell peppers and cilantro. Mix to combine.

Cover and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight to let the flavors marry. Serve chilled with chips.

Lilliana and I went to the store one Saturday to purchase some strawberries to make strawberry ice cream. Next to the strawberries was some samples of what looked pretty dang gross, but it had a corn chip, so we decided to try it. And then our love for Cowboy Caviar was born. We paid the outrageous price of $2.69 for a cup of it, and then shoveled into our mouths as fast as we could, because other family members would try it, and would also fall in love. Today when I went to the grocery store, they did not have any of that delicious Cowboy Caviar, so I found a recipe, and hot dang, I am gonna live off of this stuff!

Midnight Cookies 'n' Cream Ice Cream

Inspired by Chocolate Midnight Cookies
by Häagen-Dasz in Downtown Disney
Recipe Adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams

INGREDIENTS
1 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate (100% cacoa)
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 cup evaporated milk
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
5 ounces crushed Oreo Cookies

DIRECTIONS
Combine 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a small bowl to make a smooth slurry.
Chop the chocolate and place it in a medium bowl.
Fill a large bowl with ice and water.
Combine the remaining milk, cream, evaporated milk, sugar, and corn syrup in a 4-quart saucepan, and bring to a rolling boil over medium-high heat. Add the cocoa, whisking until it is incorporated, and continue to boil for 4 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and gradually whisk in the cornstarch slurry. Bring the mixture back to a boil over medium-high heat and cook, stirring with a heatproof spatula, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the chocolate. Add the salt and whisk until the chocolate is melted.
Pour the mixture into a 1-gallon resealable plastic freezer bag and submerge the sealed bag in the ice bath. Let stand, adding more ice as necessary, until the mixture is chilled through, about 30 minutes.
Pour the ice cream base into the ice cream maker and process until thick and creamy per the machine’s instructions.
Gently stir in crushed Oreo Cookies, place in a quart sized container, topped with parchment paper before regular lid, and then freeze for a minimum of 3 hours in the freezer.
Scoop, and serve to all your favorite people.

The first time I took my niece, Peggy, to Disneyland, all she wanted for a snack, all day, was ice cream. And I just kept forgetting to take her to get some- there are waaaay better things to eat in the land of happiness than ice cream. So after our first day, while walking through Downtown Disney on our way back to the room, she noticed the Häagen-Dasz and reminded me that all she wanted was ice cream. So we made that quick pit stop. She was kind of being a butthead, didn't know what she wanted, so I chose for her. And I chose the first ice cream that I saw an advertisement for and that is what she got. She kind of pouted a little bit, and then she got the ice cream. And good heck, was it good! So, as I was making ice cream this last week, my facebook kept popping up that a year ago I was in Disneyland. Which made me crave this ice cream, so I made it happen! This is seriously SO good! You should definitely make it today!

Cherry Chocolate Truffle Ice Cream

Adapted from Recipe Diaries

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup chocolate chips

2 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 15 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk

1 1/2 cups of fresh cherries, pitted and quartered

DIRECTIONS

In a microwave safe bowl, mix chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream. Microwave for three 30 second increments, stirring between sessions until chocolate chips have melted, and you have a thick chocolate ganache. Set aside to cool, then crumble.

In a large, chilled bowl, beat with a hand mixer remaining two cups of heavy whipping cream until soft peaks have formed. Add vanilla extract, and continue to beat until stiff peaks have formed. Gently fold in sweetened condensed milk, cherries, and cooled chocolate ganache crumbles.

Freeze in quart sized container of your choice for a minimum of 4 hours, and then serve away!

So, I have never been a fan of cherries that aren't cooked or processed to heck. Maraschino Cherries, Cherry Pie, Cherry Flavor… those are my jam. Regular cherries? Not so much. Then add in the fact that I HATE chocolate chunks/chips/whatever in ice cream, and it makes you wonder why on earth I would ever make a Cherry-Garcia-esque copy cat slash cheater recipe for ice cream. Well, the answer is: we had a bunch of cherries, and I had some heavy cream I needed to get rid of. I decided to make a chocolate ganache to replace the chocolate chunks, because I didn't want to risk breaking my teeth. I am an ice cream chewer. My Grandma Alice really enjoyed this recipe, and I hope that you all will too!