Saccharine Thoughts

Apparently decision-making skills are not the only things to develop in the 25th year. Whether this is due the ripening of my grown-up taste buds or a decline in my dietary discrimination, I have come across several food that I have never cared for that I now want all. the. time.

With the Texas Summer 2010 now in full effect, I have been on a major ice cream kick. I admit this without a drop of shame for my waistline, because when it's reaching the mid-90s on a daily basis down here in Austin nothing sounds better than something cold and creamy. Ice cream has always been one of my favorite indulgences, and it is quickly becoming one of my absolute favorite things to make. So many flavors! So many options! Toppings, toppings, toppings! Thus, you'll understand the utter appreciation I hold for my original Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker. Or, held . Until I saw this. You can go ahead and color me green... and blue... and orange with ice cream maker envy while I continue to spin my ice cream in my plain white maker. This moment trumps the moment I found an avocado green Kitchenaide, shortly after receiving my white one.

Tonight kicked off what promises to be a very busy and friend-filled weekend for me, and what better way to get started than with good food? Good food consisted of grilled pizzas, an idea stolen from A Good Appetite : 1 c warm water (110 to 115 F) 2 1/2 t active dry yeast 1/2 t sugar 4 T olive oil 3 1/4 c all-purpose flour, plus more if needed 2 t kosher salt Combine the water, yeast & sugar in a bowl & stir until mixed. Let sit 5 minutes until it gets foamy. Stir in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil. Mix the flour & salt together in a large bowl. Add the yeast mixture & stir until the dough forms a ball. Turn out onto a floured surface & knead until smooth & elastic, about 5 minutes. The dough should be slightly sticky, not dry. If more flour is needed, add it in 1 tablespoon at a time. Coat the inside of a large bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Put the dough in the bowl & turn to coat with oil. Cover & let rise until doubled about 1 hour...

I promise I don't have a fixation with bacon. No, really. I'm actually a vegetarian. Sort of, part-time, etc... I DO, however, have friends with pork problems, and I just facilitate their habits :) Just for Kim, here is the candied bacon ice cream from David Lebovitz 's archives. For the candied bacon: 5 strips bacon ~2 tablespoons light brown sugar Preheat the oven to 400F (200C). Lay the strips of bacon on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or aluminum foil, shiny side down. Sprinkle 1-2 teaspoons of brown sugar evenly over each strip of bacon. Bake for about half an hour. Midway during baking, flip the bacon strips over and drag them through the melted sugar. Remove from oven and cool the strips on a wire rack. Once crisp and cool, chop into little pieces - I used a food processor here. At this point in the process, you'll want to beware of adorable bacon burglars . Just a head's up. For the ice cream custard: 3 tablespoons salted butter ¾ cup ...

Foodie Fridays is my attempt at establishing some sort of structure within my blog; each week I'll be sharing something I've made, and most likely the corresponding recipe. Hopefully it will be delicious. Last week I had 2 opportunities to take a twist on my go-to chocolate cake recipe. This recipe rocks; I've added cofffee, Kahlua, Grand Marnier, chipotle & cinnamon and now peanut butter and bacon and it has yet to do me wrong. Yes, peanut butter and bacon. No, not in the same batch. The peanut butter beauties above were in payment to a friend for dogsitting while I was away reveling it up at the Ren Faire . The dark chocolate bacon cupcakes were made for Jason's 34th birthday on Thursday. They were a great finish to the mountain of barbecue we had at Kreutz's Market in Lockhart. Here is my go-to recipe. For the first batch I added a dollop of peanut butter in the middle of each cupcake before baking, and garnished with the mini peanut butter cups from Central...