MY FIRST "BUILDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" POST FOR JUNE 2ND

I AM PARTICIPATING IN THE "BUIDING OUR HOMES TOGETHER" SERIES OVER AT PRAIRIE FLOWER FARM. THIS WILL BE A SERIES THAT I WILL BE PARTICIPATING IN EVERY WEDNESDAY .

Hi everyone :) :) :) How has your week been going so far? Mine has been really good. It has also been really quiet. Okay, so this is really cool.  My friend Linda over at Prairie Flower Farm is starting a new Wednesday series called "Building Our Homes Together".  Click on the link to visit the page and find out more details.

My dream is for my home to be such a haven of hospitality, that anyone who comes through the door will be feel encouraged, joy, happiness. I would love for people to feel encouragement, love and joy when they leave my home. Also, I would love for that joy to be carried to wherever they may call home :) :) My foundation is reading my Bible every day. I also am working on the practical part of taking the time/effort to brighten up the place in which I live. 

Here is my entry for today. One of my goals  in keeping a "home" is making all my meals at home. Now, I live in an apartment. However, any residence can feel like a castle, if you take the time to make it so.  Today I made another batch of  "avocado ice cream". Yes, I said AVOCADO :) :) :) You can find the recipe on page 14 of the June/July issue of "Mary Jane's Farm" magazine.

"AVOCADO ICE CREAM"

Add the following ingredients:

ADD ONE LARGE AVOCADO, PEELED AND DICED.

NOTE:  I used two small Hass avocadoes.  The avocadoes available in the grocery store are not very big. They are small, in my opinion. So I just used two "small" avocadoes. It worked out nicely. Make sure the avocadoes are soft before you dice them. It makes all the difference, especially when you begin to puree the avocado.

NEXT ADD ONE CUP OF HALF AND HALF.

I used a mason jar, since it had the half-cup increments marked on the side of the jar. My glass measuring cup was used later for the lemon juice.

ALSO ADD TWO-THIRDS CUP (2/3 CUP) OF POWDERED SUGAR.

The recipe calls for powdered sugar.  That is what I used. The measuring cup in the photo is a 1/3 cup. You'll need two of those to equal 2/3 cup of powdered sugar. You can probably use agave syrup or honey instead. However, you'll need to adjust the ratio accordingly. I'm not sure how to adjust that.  You'll need to look that up on-line. If I find something, I'll update my post :)

ALSO ADD 1/3 CUP OF FRESH-SQUEEZED LEMON JUICE AND 1/2 TEASPOON OF LEMON ZEST.

 I don't have measuring spoons, so I use a coffee spoon for a teaspoon. That is the one you see pictured in the photo. A soup spoon works well as a tablespoon. In this case, for the lemon zest, I used the peel from an ORGANIC lemon for the zest and the juice. It's really up to you, what you feel like using :) :)

AFTER YOU HAVE ADDED THE AVOCADO,  HALF AND HALF, POWDERED SUGAR, LEMON ZEST AND LEMON JUICE, PUREE EVERYTHING IN A FOOD PROCESSOR UNTIL SMOOTH.

I purchased a mini food processor at a yardsale for $2. I was so excited to use it for the first time. It turned out to be a dud. Maybe I couldn't figure it out? Nope. I plugged it into the outlet and nada. My sweet dad came to the rescue. He suggested I use the hand-held mixer. Let me tell you something. It worked FABULOUS :) :) We actually "fought" over who would get to "mix/puree" the avocado mixture.  It was so much fun, worked great, and only cost us a little bit of time :) :) The avocado pureed wonderfully with all the other ingredients.

ONCE ALL THE INGREDIENTS HAVE BEEN PUREED/MIXED TOGETHER, POUR INTO A CONTAINER. PLACE A TIGHT-FITTING LID ON TOP. PLACE IN THE FREEZER FOR FOUR HOURS OR UNTIL SET.  WHEN YOU ARE READY TO EAT IT, LET IT SIT AT ROOM TEMPERATURE FOR 15 MINUTES BEFORE SERVING.

Okay, this is great. Since the avocado was much softer this time, it pureed so easily. Also notice that it is actually a bit greener than the last batch that I made.  Now the last time I made this, I had to let the ice cream sit in the freezer overnight for it to fully set. The actual time needed to set will vary , depending on the type of freezer that you have in your home. I will let mine sit in the freezer overnight.

THIS IS THE FINISHED PRODUCT - SUPER DELICIOUS AVOCADO ICE CREAM. I EVEN PICKED A REALLY NICE DESSERT DISH AND PLATE WITH PINK FLOWERS AND GREEN LEAVES. DO YOU NOTICE THAT THE GREEN LEAVES ON THE CHINA MATCHES THE COLOR OF THE ICE CREAM? THAT IS BEAUTIFUL.

I let the ice cream sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before I served it. Next time, I'll let it sit a bit longer. My soup spoon served as an ice cream scooper today.  Oh, the ice cream tasted DIVINE.  It tasted so heavenly.   The hand-held mixer really made a difference in the texture and the color. The avocado ice cream came out greener than my first batch. 

If you try making this ice cream, let me know and maybe leave a link to your blog, so that I can see it :) :) I had some ice cream after lunch :) :) Yum. Yum. It will be necessary to have a little more after dinner, too.

This is what's on my mind today :) :) I'm also participating in Rhonda's "On my mind.." series over at Down to Earth. Check it out. There are so many lovely blogs to visit and inspiration to be found ;) :)

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)

AVOCADO ICE CREAM

Hi everyone, I seem to be on an experimental-cooking frenzy lately.  That's okay. It is been well worth it, and very tasty too. As many of you many know, I subscribe to MaryJane's Farm magazine.  This magazine, and all other things related to MaryJane's Farm is lots of fun. I'm even a member of the Farmgirl Sisterhood. My member number is #2176 to be exact.  In any case, the June/July issue of MaryJanesFarm magazine arrived in my mailbox a few days ago. A I was "oohing and ahing"  over all the great recipes, craft projects etc, I stumbled upon this fabulous recipe. It's for avocado ice cream. yes, you heard me right, avocado ice cream. I've never eaten avocadoes before, so this was something I absolutely had to try. Mine turned out like this:

THIS IS MY VERY FIRST BATCH OF AVOCADO ICE CREAM. I DIDN'T HAVE A FOOD PROCESSOR. SO I HAD TO TRY AND PUREE IT MY HAND USING  A FORK AND A POTATO MASHER. IT DIDN'T WORK OUT TERRIBLY WELL. MY ICE CREAM WAS MORE LIKE AVOCADO CHIP. HOWEVER, IN SPITE OF THAT, IT STILL TASTED VERY, VERY HEAVENLY .

Here is the recipe, if you'd like to try it for yourself. It tastes like the best lemon ice cream, even though it has avocado in it. You do not taste the avocado at all.  It makes about three cups of ice cream:

Ingredients:
* 1 large avocado, peeled and diced
* 1 cup half-and-half
* 2/3 cup powdered sugar
*1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
* 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

First, combine ALL the ingredients in a blender. Puree until it is completely smooth.

Second, pour the mixture into a 2-quart baking dish.

Third,  cover and freeze it till firm, about four hours. (my freezer it took much longer than that, so you  may have to freeze it overnight)

Fourth, before serving, let stand at room te mperature for 15 minutes. Use an ice-cream or watermelon scoop to serve. The magazine suggests topping it with fresh fruit or mango salsa.

That's the news from Oregon today. Love and hugs, Heather :)