Frozen Yogurt

I like a good frozen yogurt as much as I do a good ice cream, and luckily I recently found, and slightly modified, a good recipe. You need some kind of ice cream maker to make this, but it generally takes much less time than any ice cream recipe I've made, either in prep time, or freezing.
This is not a low fat recipe. Substituting in low-fat ingredients will cause large ice crystals to form, which are poor for the texture of the frozen yogurt.
Enjoy!

Frozen Vanilla Yogurt

3 Cups Unflavored Whole Milk Yogurt
1 Cup Half and Half
2/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract (or put 2 Tablespoons Vanilla Sugar in the measuring cup before measuring out the sugar),

Mix all ingredients together and follow the instructions for your ice cream maker to freeze to a creamy texture.

Crunchy Cinnamon Almonds

I took my family to the Dickens Fair at the Cow Palace in Daly City for the first time this year, which I heartily recommend. I called it "The Christmas Renaissance Fair", which it resembles in its cosplay aspects. You can get in some shopping, watch fun stage plays, and eat food you don't find just anywhere, such as meat pies, or bangers and mash.
One thing we all enjoyed were freshly roasted Crunchy Cinnamon Almonds, served hot in a paper cone. If course I wanted to find a recipe for it, and I did at "The Chunky Chef".
Altogether now: and then I modified it...
Here's my version:

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 Cup packed brown sugar
1/2 Cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp powdered ginger
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
1 egg white
3 Cups raw almonds

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil, and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Mix together dry ingredients and set aside. Combine vanilla and egg white, and then whip to a froth using a wire whip or hand mixer. Mix in almonds, thoroughly coating them with the egg mixture, and then add the dry ingredients and stir to coat thoroughly. Turn out the mixture into the cookie sheet and spread out into a single layer. Bake for one hour, stirring them every 15 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before attempting to eat them. Store in an airtight container for up to a month.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Folks-
This is a standard chocolate chip cookie recipe with just a couple of subtle changes. Melting the butter, instead of using softened butter, is my dad's contribution. I also often use vanilla sugar thrown into the measuring cup before measuring out the white sugar. Tip: I use a 2-cup measuring cup most of the time. First I pack-in the brown sugar, then I finish by adding white sugar until it reaches the 1-1/2 Cup level. That gives you the most accurate measure of sugar for your cookies!

Ingredients
1 Cup (2 sticks) melted butter
3/4 Cup packed brown sugar
3/4 Cup granulated white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or 2 tsp vanilla sugar
2 large eggs
2-1/4 Cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 Cups chocolate chips
Optional: 1 Cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Beat together butter, sugars, and vanilla extract until creamy. Add eggs and beat well. Add all other ingredients except chocolate chips and nuts and mix well. Mix in chocolate chips
From into 1-2 inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 9-12 minutes. Allow to cool for 2 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.
Note: It's easy to use a mellon-baller to form these. They can be frozen for up to six months, and baked straight from the freezer.

Pumpkin Juice

Yes, another two recipes in one day.

A couple of years ago, my family visited Universal Studios Florida, and visited the then new Diagon Alley, and older Hogsmeade sections of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Besides the food at The Three Broomsticks, our favorite drink was (no, not Butterbeer, even the kids found that too sweet) Pumpkin Juice. It's served all over the Harry Potter section of the park, and only there. In fact, you can't find the standard Pepsi products there. Everything in those sections of the park reinforce the theme, but are exclusive to those areas. Unlike Bertie Botts Every Flavored Beans, you can't get many of the foods sold there at places like Honeyduke's, outside the park.
That means you have to make them.
I found a recipe for the cold and refreshing Pumpkin Juice online at the now-inactive but archived foodie site, The Disney Diner. I've made it for several years, but found her recipe unnecessarily complicated, and have streamlined it, removing one ingredient and changing the proportions of one ingredient at the kids request. Here's the version for fixing it by the batch:

Ingredients:
1 can frozen apple juice concentrate
2-1/2 cans of water
1/2 cup of canned pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pour apple juice and water into blender pitcher. Add canned pumpkin, vanilla and cinnamon. Blend on high until well incorporated. Pour into glasses and serve cold.

To make this as a frozen mix for quick fixing it:
1-15oz can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Mix all ingredients together thoroughly. Measure out in 1/2 Cup quantities, put into small plastic containers or freezer bags, and freeze them. To make pumpkin juice, in a blender add together pumpkin juice mix, one can of frozen concentrated Apple juice, and 2-1/2 cans of water, and blend until thoroughly combined. Serve cold.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

A few months ago I found myself with quite a few vanilla beans. This usually happens in the holiday seasons when Costco is selling them in 10-packs. I decided it was time to learn how to make Vanilla Extract. It turned out to be easy. One of the advantages of making it yourself is not having additional preservatives, sugar, or other chemicals.
To make it at home, you need a tightly-closing bottle that holds about a cup of liquid, and is clean without other scents.

Vanilla Extract

5-Whole Vanilla Beans
1-Cup (approximate) Vodka or Bourbon

Split the vanilla beans lengthwise, leaving about an inch at the end uncut. Place the beans into the bottle. Fill the bottle with the vodka or bourbon. Seal the bottle tightly and place it in a cool, dark place for six weeks, shaking the bottle twice a week or so to mix it up.

That's it. If you top off the bottle as you use it, it can last quite a bit longer than you might expect.

Old Time Fudge

Folks-

The computer was on, so I figured I should power out another Zap 190 recipe. This one I intend to try soon, only I want to try it using whipping cream instead of milk. If I try it, I'll post the results!

-Edly

Old Time Fudge
P. Jones

Ingredients:
2 Cups Sugar
¾ Cup Milk
2 Squares (2 Oz) Unsweetened Chocolate, broken up
1 Teaspoon Light Corn Syrup
2 Tablespoons Butter or Margarine
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
½ Cup Coarsely Chopped Nuts (optional)

Line a 9x5x3” loaf pan with foil, extending foil over the edges of the pan. Butter the foil; set pan aside. Butter the sides of a heavy 2-quart saucepan. In the saucepan combine the sugar, milk, chocolate, and corn syrup. Cook over medium-high heat to boiling, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar. Avoid splashing the mixture on the sides of the pan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until a thermometer reads 234 degrees (soft-ball.) The mixture should boil at a moderate, steady rate over the entire surface. Remove the saucepan from heat. Add butter and vanilla but do not stir! Cool without stirring to lukewarm (118 degrees.) Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until fudge is just beginning to thicken; add nuts if desired. Continue to beat until the fudge is very thick, and just begins to lose its gloss. Quickly turn the fudge onto the prepared pan. While warm, score it into 1” squares. When the candy is firm, use the foil to lift it out of the pan; cut candy into squares. Store tightly covered.

Crumb Cake

Folks-

I wanted to power out another recipe or two while I still have my Zap 190 cookbook out. This one is my mom's crumb cake and crumb cake topping recipes. They are very good together, and I just may fix them tomorrow. We'll just have to see...

-Edly

Updated 1/12/2022:

I decided to make this tonight due to having a whole lot of milk on hand (it takes over a quart!) So, I decided to make some changes to the recipe. I used coconut oil instead of margarine or shortening, and half of the 2 teaspoons of vanilla without changing the flavor of the pudding just by changing the order of adding ingredients. I've updated the recipe below.

Crumb Cake
E. Perl

Ingredients:

3 Cups Flour

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Margarine, Shortening or coconut oil
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Salt

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Cup to 1-1/2 Cups Milk (approximately)

Mix together flour and sugar and cut in margarine, shortening, or coconut oil (I recommend blending shortening with the coconut oil to keep it from being overwhelming) until crumbly. Save one cup of the crumbs for later. Add the baking powder and salt, then add the milk and vanilla extract and mix until it is the consistency of drop biscuit batter. Spread the batter into a greased cake pan and top with the saved crumbs from earlier. Cook at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until done in the middle.

Crumb Cake Topping

E. Perl

Ingredients:

1 Cup Sugar

5 Tablespoons Flour

4 Cups Milk

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Mix together all ingredients except vanilla extract in a pot. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring vigorously and continuously all the way to the bottom to prevent it from burning (warning! It wants to burn! Like really wants to burn!) until it starts to thicken to the consistency of pudding (at about 200 degrees F.) Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract, and then serve warm on a slice of the crumb cake.

Melisse's Candied Walnuts

Folks-

I have a few minutes, and the Holidays are coming up, so I wanted to post the recipe for my grandmother's candied walnuts. It's not hard to make them if you have a candy thermometer, and have some candy making experience.

Here it is!

Melisse's Candied Walnuts

Ingredients:

½ Cup Granulated Sugar

1 Cup Brown Sugar

½ Cup Sour Cream

1 Teaspoon Vanilla

3 Cups Walnut Halves

Combine sugars and sour cream in a saucepan. Cook to soft-ball stage and then add the vanilla. Beat until mixture begins to thicken. Add walnut halves and stir until they are well coated. Turn mixture onto a greased platter and separate. Cool to room temperature.

Peanut Butter Granola

Folks-
Holy cats! Another post? What am I thinking?
Today I'm posting a recipe I found at Food.com. I modified it, as usual (the original recipe used margarine instead of olive oil, called for added salt, used 3 cups of oatmeal instead of 2, omitted the bran, and included none of the optional seeds or nuts. So, yeah, I've played with this recipe a lot.) My middle child loves this!
My favorite version is posted below. I usually use an Unsalted creamy natural peanut butter without saturated fats or sugar. I've also used maple syrup instead of the honey with some success. If you want to add dried fruit, I recommend adding it after it is cooling off.
Here it is! My variation of the Hillbilly Housewife Peanut Butter Granola Recipe:



Peanut Butter Granola

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Peanut Butter
1/3 Cup Honey
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 Cups Oatmeal
1 Cup Unprocessed Bran

Optional:
1/2 Cup Sliced Almonds
1/2 Cup Raw Shelled Pumpkin Seeds
and/or
1/2 Cup Raw Unsalted Shelled Sunflower Seeds

Heat together olive oil, honey, and peanut butter for about 30 seconds in a microwave. Mix together and add vanilla extract. Add bran and oatmeal and toss to coat completely. Spread on a cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 5 minutes. Stir and add optional ingredients, spread onto the sheet and bake another 5 minutes. Cool and store in a tightly sealed container. Note: watch it closely while baking since it will burn easily at the edges.

"Just Like Starbucks" Vanilla Scones

Folks-
I've been experimenting with this recipe for a couple of weeks now since I first found it online until my kids firmly approve of the results. I now think that I can publish it without embarrassment. I found it online at 5forks.com, and one other place, but I like the 5forks version more. When I've made them, they come out a bit moister than the Vanilla Bean Mini Scones they sell at Starbucks. As you know by now, I like modifying the recipes I post here. I have made this one using both the Vanilla Extract called for in the recipe, as well as the Vanilla Sugar I taught you how to make in an earlier post. I prefer using the Vanilla Sugar in this recipe. Also, I have found that there is very little difference in flavor using salted butter instead of unsalted butter.
So, tested in Edly's kitchen, here is the 5forks version of the "Just Like Starbucks" Vanilla Scones (with my slight modifications, as usual):

Ingredients:
Scones:
2 Cups all purpose flour
2 Teaspoons baking powder
1/2 Teaspoon baking soda
1/2 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Cup sugar
5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces
1 Cup of full-fat sour cream
1 Large egg yolk
2 Teaspoons vanilla extract (or 2 Teaspoons vanilla sugar replacing 2 teaspoons regular sugar.)

Glaze:
1 1/2 Cups powdered sugar
1/4 Teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 Teaspoon salt
Milk as needed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Whisk together dry ingredients. Using any method you prefer, cut the cold butter into the dry ingredients until the flour resembles coarse meal (I would recommend using a food processor if you have one, otherwise make sure the butter is cut into very small pieces.) In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream, egg yolk, and, if you are using it, the vanilla extract, until blended. Add just enough of the wet mixture to the flour-butter mixture for it to hold together and stir with a fork until the dough forms a cohesive ball. Use a spatula to get the dry bits fully integrated. (It may not seem like there is enough liquid at first, but the dough will eventually come together.) Split the dough into two equally sized balls and pat them into disks about 1 inch in height, and cut each disk into 8 equal triangular pieces. Place the pieces onto ungreased baking sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown on top. While the scones are baking, prepare the glaze by putting the sugar into a separate bowl, then adding the vanilla extract and milk one teaspoon at a time while stirring with a fork. Once the glaze has become slightly runny, it is ready. When the scones are done, take them out of the oven and immediately spread the glaze over them using a pastry brush. This will give the glaze a more even and shinier coating than just drizzling.

Easy Ice Cream

Folks-
I made this for the first time today, varying the recipe that I found on a British website. I found following their directions exactly caused the ice cream base to be much too sweet (probably due to differences in measurements.)
You do need an ice cream freezer to make this.

Ingredients:
1 Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 1/2 Cups Milk
1/2 Cup Whipping Cream
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/4 Teaspoon Salt (added 6/16/2011)
Optional (for Chocolate): 4 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

Mix all ingredients together and put into the ice cream freezer and freeze according to directions.
*Edited 6/16/2011: When making this tonight I put in about a quarter teaspoon salt and this improved the flavor. This may now be the best ice cream recipe I've ever tried. At least that's what my kids say!

A baking tip: Vanilla Sugar

Folks-
This post is going to be more a cooking tip than a recipe. I found out about this a couple of years ago. You can create a nearly perpetual flow of vanilla flavoring if you’re willing to go through a bit of work and wait a while, but considering the cost of real vanilla extract, it’s definitely worth it.

The flavoring is actually not a vanilla extract, it’s vanilla sugar. It will work well in virtually any recipe that you use that includes both vanilla and sugar. It may take some experimentation on your part to get the substitution correct, but the basic substitution is this:

Remove the same amount of sugar from the recipe as your recipe calls for vanilla (i.e. If the recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of vanilla, remove 1 teaspoon of sugar from the recipe) and include the same amount of vanilla sugar.

Now, how is this useful? Like I said, you can create a nearly endless supply of it. I’ll include a recipe that uses it soon.

There is one drawback to making vanilla sugar: Once prepared, you have to wait about a month before harvesting any of it.

Here’s how you do it:

You need one pound of sugar, one vanilla bean, and an airtight container. Slit the vanilla bean down it’s length, and then cut it into one inch pieces. Mix the pieces of vanilla bean into the sugar, and place it in the airtight container. Store it in a cool, dry place (like a pantry.) Now, wait one month.

Now, once the flavor/scent of the vanilla has infused the sugar, simply replace any vanilla sugar you use with regular sugar as you use it. There is no need to wait another month after replacing reasonable amounts of vanilla sugar (say, less than about a quarter cup.) But you should replace it pretty much as you use it. If you do this, your supply can last as much as 10 years. Not bad, huh?