Cookie dough ice pops!

he world famous Florida sunshine is at its best right now, temperatures soaring every day, school closed for summer and an overactive hyper kiddo with an attention span of not more than 7 minutes. Enough things to keep me sweating, no pun intended. These days I am always on the look out for some fun project for her to get busy with. Today was the day to make these pops and FIFI the monster sock puppet! LOL.
She just turned five, a very curious, sensitive and observant girl all geared to start her kindergarten very soon. She questions everything, tries to find a reason behind anything that happens or does not happen around her. She doesn't like to be told what to do (yes she is our drama queen) and believe it or not already has developed a great sense of humor. Like this one time she asked me "mommy what kind of car does Mickey mouse's wife drive?".. "a cute pink car", I said. "No! A mini van" she screamed giggling :)) She is learning to write cursive and she LOVES math (much to my relief lol)

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Mango Coconut Ice-cream

ango is undoubtedly the king of summer fruits for me. Now summer is not my most favorite of seasons but there are a few things that make the memories of summer good. Be it the long vacation away from school, being allowed to just go out and play, visiting grandparents, all the pampering, several of these things that I often talk about in my posts. These along with a lot of fun and cool food and fruits and berries - jamun, lassi, a million varieties of kulfi, soda pops, ice-chuski and the list goes on. The mango definitely figures in there somewhere as well. For some strange reason these things are what I think of first when I think of summer (of course followed by the reminder of the scorching Indian sun that I used to hate). Any conversation on food and summer is incomplete with mango featuring in it. Especially with its versatility, the mango is a fruit well loved in my family. Eat it raw, just peel it, chop it up, mix in a little salt and red chilli powder and tantalize your taste buds, or roast it, pulp it and make a nice cool drink with it or chop it up and cook with brown sugar to make a nice sweet and sour chutney... and then the 'achaar' of course, pickle it if you can't think of anything else to do with it. When in ripe form it of course can be had as a fruit but its pulp is also used to flavor many dishes.
Ice-cream is one such dish. It can be made using different kinds of mangoes however the pulp of Alphonso works the best. Use a sweet, ripe and a non-fibrous mango for best results. This time around I wanted to try the classic combo of coconut with mango to give it a nice tropical twist.The best part with this recipe is that it is extremely easy to put together without the need of an ice-cream machine.

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Gulkand-Pista Kulfi/Rose petal jam Indian ice-cream

s the mercury climbs and the sun becomes more relentless, it is beginning to remind me of summers in India. The carefree school days, long summer holidays, visiting grandpa's place- I am sure each one of us must have some fond memories of summer like these. Summer also reminds us of our favorite food ice-cream :).The popular variation of which in India is called Kulfi. I have some fond memories of those summer evenings. I remember whenever we used to go out to eat chaat and panipuri (which was very often) we had to have kulfi otherwise the whole outing used to be incomplete. 

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Strawberry Basil Sorbet

othing screams summer more than this refreshingly delicious strawberry basil sorbet! A sweet and refreshing summer time treat. Luscious plump strawberries so aptly represent the spring and summer in my opinion. Nature at its prime, vibrant and full while the strawberries are gorgeously plump, red, sweet and juicy, a delightful treat for the eyes and taste buds alike. The bright sunshine, the blooms and the flowers make you feel good and admire nature and so is the sight of the red strawberries which are to be seen everywhere. My shopping baskets get filled with the bright reds every time I visit the stores – they are irresistible (and also very cheap lol:)) And so as you have guessed I have been making a lot of things with these beauties lately. Basil is my most favorite herb after of course cilantro. I have a big beautiful basil plant in my little kitchen garden that entices me with its sweet aroma every time I pass by. After making strawberry basil lemonade I thought of taking the combo and making a sorbet out of it. An exotic combination of sweet strawberries and fragrant basil intensifies the flavors of this sorbet. It is a delight with fresh flavors and we could not but fall in love with this one.
Sorbet is a frozen dessert made from sweetened water flavored with iced fruit (typically juice or puree), chocolate, wine, and/or liqueur. The origin of sorbet is variously explained as either a Roman invention, or a Middle Eastern sharbet, made of sweetened fruit juice and water. The term sherbet or charbet is derived from Turkish: şerbat/şerbet, “sorbet”, from the Persian sharbat, which in turn comes from the Arabic sarrbāt meaning “drink(s)” or “juice.” Sorbet is sometimes served between courses as a way to cleanse the palate before the main course. (Wiki)
Ice cream is based on dairy products whipped to make it light. Sorbet has neither dairy nor air. It is fruity- dense and slushy.

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Strawberry Ice-Cream

uscious plump strawberries so aptly represent the spring and summer in my opinion. Nature at its prime, vibrant and full while the strawberries are gorgeously plump, red, sweet and juicy, a delightful treat for the eyes and taste buds alike. The bright sunshine, the blooms and the flowers make you feel good and admire nature and so is the sight of the red strawberries which are to be seen everywhere. My shopping baskets get filled with the bright reds every time I visit the stores – they are irresistible (and also very cheap lol:)) And so as you have guessed I have been making a lot of things with these beauties lately and this is the first in the series - a stunning pink and delightfully yummy strawberry ice-cream.
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Mango nut ice-cream

Making a good ice-cream is typically considered a very difficult task. I know because I have been there. I always thought good ice-cream can never be made at home or at least not without an ice-cream machine. But when I made Kulfi a few times, I figured why not try making ice-cream at home. I am glad I tried because I know this is a keeper recipe and will be a regular in our household. I had some mango puree left after making the mango lassi, also my brother and hubby are crazy for mango flavored anything, so I made mango ice-cream. I also added a few cashew nuts as we like the nutty taste in our ice-cream.This recipe is so easy that you will be amazed by the result, no churning, no ice-cream machine, no long list of ingredients. If that interests you read on :)

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