How to Make Homemade Ice Cream Without a Machine

I love to cook. And during the school year, we wind up going out to eat a lot because of our busy schedules. So when summer vacation arrives, I get the urge to try out all of those recipes I haven’t had time to experiment with the rest of the year.

Yesterday, it was homemade ice cream. I was determined to figure out how to make it even though we don’t have an ice cream maker.

First I started with buying the ingredients. For the first batch, I used this recipe:

Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream

Ingredients:

• 1 Can Sweetened, Condensed Milk
• 2 Cups Whipping Cream, Whipped
• 1/3 Cup Chocolate Syrup
• 1 Gallon Sized Ziploc Bag
• 1 Quart Sized Ziploc Bag
• 6 Tablespoons Rock Salt
• Ice

Directions:

Mix sweetened, condensed milk together with chocolate syrup.
Whip the whipping cream and then fold it in.
Place into quart sized Ziploc bag.
Place ice and salt in gallon sized bag.
Place smaller bag inside larger bag.
Shake for at least 10 minutes.

At this point, we got tired of shaking, so I put it into the freezer, taking it out every 30 minutes to shake it. We had some left over, so I put the rest into a plastic box - with the ice and salt in a larger sized plastic box. It was much easier to scoop out.

When ice cream is freezing, ice crystals form. The mixture of shaking the ingredients along with the salt, prevent these crystals from forming.

I also wanted to make a vegan version, so I took 1 2/3 cup of coconut milk along with 1/3 cup of Agave Nectar, and 2 tablespoons of Unsweetened Cocoa, mixed it all together, and then followed the rest of the process.

While that was all freezing, my daughter and I worked on her sock doll business. You can order one if you like at Sock Doll Surprise.

Finished with dolls, we went back and checked on the ice cream. The dairy version was oh, so creamy and delicious. The vegan version has not yet been tasted. I will keep you posted.

Truth or Fiction (Reality Check)

Just how many activities can I juggle?

I often tell my kids that I don’t have octopus arms --and I need to remind myself of that now.

It’s been a bad habit of mine, scattering my energies. There are just so many cool things to learn about in life. I want to take it all in! But that’s how I got to where I am today, which is … **ahem** … not an expert in any one subject.

Instead, I know a little about a lot of things.

So as I monitor myself and my natural tendencies, I may be cutting things out here and there (or at least cutting down on them). For now though, I am going to step beyond what I’ve just promised myself and write a long overdue blog post.

You all know how much I love the subject of perception.

At my daughter’s volleyball game the other day, her team was having a little trouble. The ball would fly into the middle of all four girls, and they would all dash over to it, and then stop, letting (or expecting) one of the other girls get it. Since they were all doing it though, the ball would continue onwards to the ground.

A lady sitting next to me said, “They’re afraid of crashing into each other.”

Then another lady, a relative of someone on the opposing team, commented, “They just don’t want the ball.”

Each woman re-stated their belief and then the subject was dropped.

So really, what were those girls doing?

Only they know.

Or do they?

While they might be able to state what they were doing, those impulses may have stemmed from something or somewhere else, even something they are not aware of (for instance, muscle memory from an old injury?).

While I sit and listen to people upholding the righteousness of their opinions, I will be taking it all in and wondering what the reality … um … really is.

Does anyone really know?

Did You Ever Have One of Those Dreams?

Last night, I tossed and turned for hours. I’d had coffee at two o’clock in the afternoon and it had me literally buzzing. I kept imagining Speed Racer driving his race car through my veins in his final victory race, complete with flips and spins. Yet his race went on for hours.

The end of October up until now has been chaos filled. My family has fallen sick like dominoes that pop back up and then fall back down again. Enough.

So last night I wasn’t feeling very happy. I was thinking that my dad would come to me in my dream as he usually does when I’m having a hard time. But when I finally did fall asleep, I did not dream about Dad.

I had a dream about random friends from all throughout my life. I was ecstatic to see them all. One friend came to say, “I’m leaving now." I hugged her tight and sobbed.

Then another friend I haven’t talked to in 18 or so years told me that he would be in room 514, and to come by to say hello. I got sidetracked on my way there by more friends, all along the way hugging me and giving me positive energy.

Finally, another man-an acquaintance, really-came to me and told me that some people he knew were judging him and he didn’t know if he could take them being in his life anymore. I advised him to emotionally distance himself from them, but he said that was impossible because he worked with them. I then told him that all people are in our lives to teach us lessons, and those who give us the strongest feelings-or conflicts-are there to teach us the most valuable ones. He liked my thinking.

As soon as our conversation was finished, I startled awake. Speed Racer was at it again, his car refueled and ready for more laps. I lay there thinking of what I could write about if only I could pull myself out from under the warmth of my blankets.

Letters. Yes, that’s it, letters. What would I say to these people in my life? My mind traced down the list of people who have left their impression on me, going over in my mind what I would write to them.

Remember. I will remember in the morning, I thought as I finally dozed back to sleep.

Yet when I awoke, the moment had been lost. Somewhere in the middle of the night I wasn’t afraid to tell these people how much I loved them. I wasn’t afraid of rejection. But by morning the letters I had composed in my mind to the friends in my life had been drowned out by ego and fear.

And why didn’t Dad come to me, I wondered. Why did I dream about my friends?

Because Dad is no longer here on the earthly plane and he was directing me to those other people who are so important to me.

So now, my friends, I may not be able to tell you all directly. Some of you I don’t even talk to anymore.

I love you. And thank you for being my friend.