It has seemed warmer than normal here this summer. Maybe it is because we had cold summers the past few years? I don’t know but of late it has been 80°+ nearly every day. The backyard is the place to be in the evening. It is shaded and often has a breeze coming up from the lake. Perfect for swinging in the hammock with my boys 🙂
I go through the garden and pick berries for everyone to enjoy –
And recently lots of squash is showing up! (That hammock is soooo comfy I might add!)
Some times I make the family ice cream. This time I had a lot of whole milk close to expiring, so I made an ice milk treat. Maybe it isn’t as rich as one made withe eggs or cream, it is still delicious in the shade! A pinch of sea salt and a little coffee and hello, who needs to run to the store? Not me!
Double Chocolate & Marshmallow Ice Cream
Ingredients:
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 packet Via instant coffee (or similar)
- Pinch sea salt
- 3 cups whole milk, cold
- ½ cup dark chocolate, finely chopped
- ½ cup decorating mini marshmallows (see notes)
Directions:
Depending on your ice cream maker, make sure it is ready to go. We keep our core frozen in the deep freezer, so I can grab it when the mood strikes. We use a Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Ice Cream Maker
Whisk ingredients through cold milk together, until cocoa powder is dissolved. Pour into ice cream maker as directed, freeze for about 30 minutes. In the last 5 minutes, add in chocolate chips and marshmallows. Immediately scrape into glass storage containers, freeze for about 3 hours to firm up.
Notes:
The mini marshmallows? This is something I buy at a restaurant supply store, in the espresso section. They are hard, tiny candies, not soft mini ones. Kraft does sell them now in shaker container in most grocery stores, but frankly I won’t buy that – it has artificial coloring added. The espresso ones do not. I happen to have it on hand, you can leave them out of course!
~Sarah
This looks delicious! What a perfect combo. And the berries look great – nothing like fresh berries from the yard!
I am loving the berries!
I have to admit we’ve gotten into the habit of buying pints every week right now – our kid won’t eat ice cream (I know!) and so the magic of making it is greatly diminished.
I agree it seems hotter this year. I think last year we had a record rainy and cold July. This year, we’ve had hardly any rain and it’s been in the 90s almost everyday, along with a couple of triple digit days. And I’m so jealous of your backyard – ours faces due west with almost zero shade and is too hot and dry for evenings. It’s great for weekend breakfasts though!
I made the mistake of going out mid-morning today…yech!!!!! Wow, it was hot out there – methinks my yard is so much nicer in the evening 😉
This looks insane Sarah! Seriously I absolutely love marshmallows and haven’t had any since going vegan! This sounds amazing!!
I had Dandies in May, at Vida Vegan, they are really, really good. Totally bad for you, but tasty 😉