we all scream for...

                    Image from ulterior epicure under a creative commons license.

I'm still sick, which means I've accomplished nothing but feeling sorry for myself these past few days.  I have, however, contemplated a number of things that I've been meaning to do.  Like make ice cream.  It's a delightful 32 degree winter day here, 20 degrees with the windchill, but my dreaming of icy desserts knows no seasonal bounds.

A few weeks ago, I picked up a Cuisinart ice cream maker, new with its wrapping, directions, and an extra freezer bowl, at my favorite local thrift shop.  I'd been obsessed with getting one since last summer, when a friend's aunt took some mint from my garden back home with her to Chicago to make mint ice cream.  Still, knowing my track record for domestic project follow-through, I couldn't bear dropping actual money on one.  So, $10 at the Mission Thrift seemed reasonable.

Here are a few of the recipes I'm planning to try first:

Strawberry Basil - I made a strawberry basil sauce to go over ice cream and pound cake a few years ago and now I just can't get enough of this combination.  Really, you should try it.

Dark Chocolate Orange - Another of my favorite flavor duos.  I was just talking with someone the other day about how much we loved those chocolate oranges with the little separate wedges.  Yum!

Peach - My granddad made this every summer in his little wooden barrel ice cream maker.  I can still remember how fresh and peachy it was. Sadly, I don't have his recipe and there are so many out there in interweb recipe land.  I narrowed it down to this one though; I like the addition of almond extract.   Peaches soaked in Amaretto and then lightly grilled is another of my favorite summertime treats.

Mint Chocolate -  One of my all-time favorite ice cream flavors.  Think I'll get this recipe from the afore-mentioned aunt.  It only seems fitting.