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!

Pineapple Angel Food Cake with Maraschino Cherry-Cream Cheese Frosting

INGREDIENTS
cake:

1 box angel food cake mix
1 20-oz can crushed pineapple

frosting:

2 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup maraschino cherry juice

2 1/2 cups confectioners sugar

DIRECTIONS

cake:

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Combine angel food cake mix with can of crushed pineapple by hand. Chuck into a 13x9 inch pan and bake for 30 minutes. Then remove from oven, and cool on rack until it comes to room temperature.

frosting:

Mix the cream cheese with the maraschino cherry juice, until the cream cheese isn't in giant chunks. Add confectioner's sugar until it your desire consistency.

Frost cake, then enjoy!

I am obsessed with maraschino cherries. It's kind of ridiculous just how much I love them. So my mother purchased a 9 lb 6 oz container of them for me. Annnnd I have downed half of them, mostly by myself. SOOOOO when I made some pineapple angel food cake, and realized I didn't have any coconut or canned frosting, I decided to be a big girl and make my own frosting- and that I was going to jazz it up with maraschino cherry juice! I am SO glad that I did!