Further Frozen Failure

Despite what you might infer from the title of this post, I don't necessarily consider this attempt a failure--I simply enjoy alliteration. Nonetheless, it is most certainly not a successful attempt either, except in the sense that it gives me more ammunition with which to go back next time and try to build upon my previous attempts. Which, of course, is the whole point of my documenting these instances, so I suppose it was a total success; just not quite what I had hoped for.

Allow me to explain. As I mentioned in my previous frozen project, I have not had great success with my relatively new ice cream maker attachment for The KitchenAid. The KitchenAid itself is, of course, fantastic, and has become a staple of most anything I produce, allowing me to remain my lazy self while still enjoying the fruits of much labor. However, all of my attempts at ice cream thus far (particularly those based on corn starch, i.e., the ones that are practical to make, as I don't keep a dozen egg yolks lying around most of the time) have resulted in delicious chunks of very solid ice that resist the infiltration of a spoon with impressive tenacity. My repeated experiments have given me some insight into this phenomenon, but I am still undecided as to whether I should blame my freezer or my ice cream making technique; consequently, I must continue attempting until I find something that works right.

This attempt was no different, as I took an existing recipe (stolen this time from The Kitchn) and tweaked it to help compensate for my previous experiences. This tweaking, as you'll see, did indeed help, but not as much as I would have hoped.

Lemon Ice Cream
(As stolen from the folks at The Kitchen)

Ingredients
1.5oz Cream cheese
3 1/4c Half and half
1tbsp Corn starch
1/3c Sugar
1/4c Brown sugar
1.5tbsp Corn syrup
1/4tsp Salt
1/2tsp Vanilla extract
1tbsp Vodka
1 Lemon

Procedure
1) Place the cream cheese in the mixer bowl and process until it is softened and resembles something like cake icing.

This softening helps produce a smoother cream later on.

2) In a bowl or cup, mix 2tbsp of the half and half with the corn starch. Ensure that no clumps of starch remain undissolved and set aside.

3) Place the remaining half and half in a skillet or saucepan and set over medium heat. Mix in the sugars and corn syrup and bring to a boil. Simmer just until the sugar and syrup are completely dissolved; this shouldn't take more than a minute or so.

Stirring gently will prevent a skin from forming on the top; not necessary, but I prefer to do so.

4) Remove the mixture from the heat and whisk in the corn starch mixture. Return it to the heat and bring back up to a boil, stirring continously to prevent boiling over. Boil for about a minute and then turn off the heat.

5) Pour the hot mixture into the bowl with the whipped cream cheese and stir with a spatula to ensure that the cream cheese is scraped off the bottom and sides of the bowl. Add the salt, vodka, and zest from the lemon and set the entire mixture in the refrigerator to chill for at least 8 hours.

Note: Placing a cover of plastic wrap pressed against the top of the mixture will prevent a skin from forming on the top.

6) When the mixture has chilled, add the vanilla and the juice from the lemon to the mixture and stir thoroughly. Pour into your ice cream maker (making sure to start the churner first!) and proceed with whatever the maker's instructions say.

From this image, I don't think I let it churn long enough; that may be specific to my mixer.

7) When the process is finished, scoop the ice cream into a sealable container and place in the freezer to cure for at least 4 hours.

This picture is deceptive; the surface is actually very stiff. Oddly enough, it has a similar texture to that of over-solidified ice cream. Imagine that.

Lessons Learned
I added the vodka to the recipe in hopes of keeping it softer, as the alcohol would inhibit the freezing process. This did work, in that compared to my previous attempts, it was slightly more pliable when I took a chisel and hammer to it. That said, it wasn't enough; next time I think I'll bump up the mixer speed (to incorporate more air) and add an additional tablespoon of vodka to see if the combination helps. However, I'll probably try a different recipe, as I actually wasn't blown away by this one. The lemon zest came out far too stringy (as it is wont to do) and gets stuck in my teeth. I think lemon ice cream works best as a side to a different dessert, which makes sense, as the Kitchn folks were having it alongside wedding cake. Having the ice cream straight up seems to lack balance; it needs something sweet to even it out.

All Wrapped Up

Fajitas: Not the most photogenic of meals.

Given my recent lethargy in regards to new spur-of-the-moment creations, I have lately taken to prepping a single large dish at the beginning of the week and then eating it for the following five days until the weekend strikes and I have time to repeat the process. This one-week-meal concept can be seen in my recent lasagna post as well as an unposted (but upcoming, someday) tuna casserole one. Several friends of mine (well, one, generally ;) often remark upon this process wondering how I could possibly eat the same dish all week long (in some cases for two meals a day) and not get bored of it, and my usual response is to grunt noncommittally and continue daydreaming about corn pie. However, I figure this post presents me with a decent opportunity to expand upon my usual eloquence.

Truth be told, I certainly do get bored with the same meal all the time. Ideally, I would love to prep several large dishes over the course of a weekend, freeze some of the results, and then coast through a month off of a single weekend's worth of work. I do think it's safe to say that I would not get tired of this process so long as I had a relatively large pool of big (and freezeable) dishes to draw from due to the simple fact that leftovers are, to me, one of the greatest creations for lazy people all over the world. The idea that I can go the store and pick up ~$10 worth of ingredients and have the resulting meal last me seven sittings is something I draw a great deal of happiness from, as it appeals to both my lazy and frugal sides. I suppose one thing that helps keep these meals fresh over the course of a week is the memory of the number appearing on the cash register and winding up lower than the average cost of a single meal at a restaurant.

Of course, the catch-22 in this brilliant plan is the very fact that it stems from laziness, which tends to prevent one from spending an entire weekend prepping several dishes to be enjoyed over the course of a month. Indeed, it is often more than I can muster to put together a single dish, let alone several. As such, it is somewhat rare that I manage to freeze anything, and instead I wind up eating the same thing day in and day out. Boring, yes. Expensive? No, and that's probably worth its weight in boredom at this point.

Chicken Fajitas
(Method for preparing chicken stolen from Shari)

Ingredients
4 Chicken breasts*
1 tbsp Flour
1 tbsp Corn starch
2 tbsp Seasoning**
2 Medium onions
2 Bell peppers (whatever type you prefer)
1 Bunch green onions
3 Cloves of garlic
4 tbsp Butter
1/4c Soy Sauce
1/4c Hoisin Sauce
A crapton of cheese
Sour cream as desired

*Any cut of chicken will do, of course. I just happened to have breasts on hand.
**I didn't have taco seasoning on hand, so I mixed up some of my own: 1tsp onion powder, 1tsp garlic powder, 1tsp cayenne pepper, 1tsp chili powder, 1tsp ground cumin, and 1tsp some random steak seasoning that I wanted to get rid of. The steak seasoning had salt, so I omitted it from the mix; otherwise, add salt in there too.

Procedure
1) Slice the chicken into thin strips.

Note my bag of seasoning waiting at the top.

2) Toss the seasoning into a bag and mix with the chicken until all the pieces appear to be coated. Set the bag aside to absorb the seasoning for an hour or so (longer wouldn't hurt!).

Sexy? No. Delicious? We'll see!

Note: I don't recommend refrigerating the chicken, as I feel it gets a quicker sear and a better consistency from sitting at room temperature. Don't worry; it's sealed up, and even if some bacteria work their way in there, our seasonings contain natural antibacterial agents that will take care of things. Try to relax; you're so uptight!

3) While waiting for the chicken to finish soaking, chop your veggies to their desired consistency. I minced the garlic, chopped the onions into half-circles, and sliced the peppers into strips.

4) Heat the butter in the wok on high heat until it starts smoking (actual smoking, no wispy nonsense). Throw the chicken in there and allow the heat to come back up.

5) When the chicken starts to fry (you can tell from the bubbles boiling up in the butter on the edges), stir gradually to ensure that all the meat gets evenly cooked. More or less. At this point, add the garlic as well.

Notice the lovely browning we get on the portions of the chicken covering the pan. We want that everywhere!

6) When the chicken is cooked, scoop it out with a slotted spoon and set it in a bowl to relax for a bit.

7) Add the bell peppers and regular onions to the remaining sauce in the wok and stir fry in the same manner. If necessary, add a little more oil or butter.

Cooking the veggies in the residual chicken juice brings the flavors in the dish together nicely.

8) When the onions become translucent, add the soy and hoisin sauces and stir to coat.

9) Remove from heat and pour the entire mix into the bowl with the chicken. Add the green onions and stir to combine.

Ok, so hoisin and soy sauces aren't exactly Mexican flavors... but they taste good!

10) Wrap in a tortilla laced with sour cream and the aforementioned crapton of cheese and you're all set!

Lessons Learned
This is a fairly simple recipe; even I managed to not screw it up. However, this did teach me that I actually like yellow bell peppers, which leaves only green ones on my hate list. They brought a great sweetness to the spice from the seasoning mix, which turned out just about perfect (although somewhat heavy on the cumin--next time, cardamom or coriander perhaps?).