Bites of My Life

A busy week, but well worth it. When I was younger, I used to kind of like to be bored. I would spend hours on end watching TV wasting away summer days (My mom is probably dying that I'm admitting this). Now I can't sit still for more than 30 minutes. Even if I'm watching TV, I'm usually also blogging, online shopping, instagramming or something else to multitask my time. When I'm on a walk I have to listen to music or a podcast, when I'm cooking I usually have the TV on or a Netflix show playing on my computer. I blame part of this on my generation of always having to be stimulated, but I also blame myself. 

I can't stand to be bored now. I think this is more a good thing though. All of this is coming back to how I had a busy week last week. It was full of family dinners, work events and parties, but ended with a weekend at the lake with some of my best friends. As I've gotten older I've realized I'll take being busy over being bored any day. Are you a bored or busy person?

-Barre3 in the Park is easily one of my favorite summer activities and a perfect start to the week!
-The week was full of work events, but when food is involved I find it hard to call it work. 
-Seeing this pic again from last week's recipe for Vanilla Bean Ice Cream has me seriously drooling.
-Crafted up lavender oatmeal and can't stop thinking about it. 
-Welcome to OKC 21C! Loved getting a peek at my city's swanky new hotel and restaurant. 
-I'm a sucker for party hors d'oeuvres. I made a few too many trips to the charcuterie board... 
-5 years later and we are all back at the lake together!
-High school lives on.
-Turmeric and cumin roasted cauliflower. Flavor game strong. Recipe on my insta.

Annie

Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

I feel like I've been a little pushy with all of my "perfect" or "go-to" recipes recently. Like my Perfect Green Smoothie, and Basic Granola, and Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies. 

I'm sorry.  Actually I'm not sorry. Why wouldn't you want a great and trusted recipe? I've been busy recently so cooking has been slim, but what I have been making are classic recipes I'm excited to be mastering. That's where this "go-to" homemade ice cream recipe comes in. Here I go again...

You can buy some pretty good ice cream in the store these days, but nothing compares to homemade ice cream. I remember when I was really little always having homemade ice cream with our dessert at summer family gatherings. We used to have one of those big wooden makers you had to crank and use the ice cream salt, that then turned into an updated pink plastic version from Sam's, which has now turned into a countertop Cuisinart machine that does everything for you in about 25 minutes. The nostalgia may be lost from not have to put some elbow grease into it, but the taste of homemade ice cream really takes you there!

Homemade ice cream has to made at least once over the summer. Now that I have this delicious vanilla bean recipe, I know it is going to be made more than once. This just means I am also going to be making a lot of cobblers, pies, grilled fruit for it to be eaten with. 

Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
makes 1 quart adapted form Serendipity Sundaes

Ingredients:
2 cups milk
1 vanilla bean, 
3 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:
Slice your vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Using the back of your knife remove the caviar. Place the vanilla bean caviar and the pod in a sauce pan with the milk over medium heat. Bring to a soft boil, stirring often. After it has come to a boil, reduce to a simmer. While simmering, beat together the egg yolks and sugar in a heat-safe bowl for 3-5 minutes until pale yellow, light and fluffy.

Now you are going to temper the eggs. This is where you will slowly add the warm milk to the eggs to make sure you don't coddle them. First, remove the vanilla bean pod from the pot. Pour half of the warm milk to the egg sugar mixture, stirring quickly to incorporate. Then add the warm egg mixture back into the sauce pan of warm milk, stirring to combine. Still over low heat, stir for about 5-10 minutes until it coats the back of a wooden spoon. Take off the heat and add the heavy cream. 

Place the cream mixture into a clean bowl and place in the freezer for 25 minutes to chill. After it has chilled take it out of the freezer and stir in the vanilla extract. Pour the cream mixture into your ice cream maker and churn according to your machines directions. I have this machine so my ice cream churns for 25-30 minutes. 

Place in a plastic quart container and freeze for at least 3 hours. Overnight is best. *These containers are perfect for ice cream!

Cobbler and homemade ice cream, there is nothing better!

Annie

Bites of My Life

Yesterday evening after finishing up Sunday dinner at my parents, I had such a feel good moment come over me. I blasted Van Morrison, put the sunroof down, and took the extra long way back to my house as I watched the sun set. It truly feels like summer now. The mornings and evenings are warm and sunny. The days seem longer and summer food/activities/vibes are all streaming in. Gosh summer is good. I wrote a few times about my winter slump. I love me some cold weather, but there is nothing like the arrival of summer to lift your spirits. Summer spirits for the win!

-Has anyone tried Rocksbox? I've been doing it for the past month and I'm loving it! Read more about it here, and use my code annietuckerxoxo to get your first box free (normally a $19 value).
-My week usually always starts green as a way to recuperate from the weekend. Mornings are even more fun with my new nutri ninja I was gifted for my birthday! Kicks my 7 year old magic bullet's butt.
-On a podcast grind. Here are my faves, what are yours?
-Dinner this week looked like this: turkey meatballs with zucchini noodles and ramp pesto that mom and dad made.
-A massive London Fog and a change of scenery helped get through a rainy Wednesday. 
-Spent my Thursday evening getting schooled in hand lettering. I've been doodling ever since.
-#NationalDonutDay.
-My roommate is an engaged lady! 
-So so special having all my best friends in town to celebrate our Mads girl's engagement! We even got our Londoner to jump the pond for the weekend! 
-Successfully finished The Hills all the way through for about the 10th time. 
-Give me all the navy home decor. Dreaming of the day I have a pocket book that can afford this style.
-Looks like/tastes like summer! Peach cobbler and homemade vanilla bean ice cream.

Annie

My Current Obsession: Podcasts

Are you a podcast listener? I used to think it was so grandma to listen to a podcast, it seemed so book-on-tape. My thoughts have changed and I recently jumped on the podcast bandwagon. I was a serious Serial listener when it first came out, but had never really gotten into podcasts besides then. When Molly and I met up a few months ago she mentioned how she would be passing the time of her leg of the trip by listening to podcasts. I had a Spotify playlist loaded up, but podcasts? Hmmm. Being inspired by anything Molly does, I researched top podcasts and got my iPhone ready to go for my road trip.

Podcasts are still a little book-on-tapish, but far more intriguing. Since working again, music hasn't been fueling me. I need something more motivating. I love listening to them during my commute, while at work, and I especially love them while going on walks. It's crazy how they can help pass the time.

Podcasts I'm currently listening to...

Blissful Bites Podcast - In this podcast Nicole Culver of Blissful Eats interviews food entrepreneurs and female bloggers. I'm so inspired by the startup stories from people such as Jessica Merchant of How Sweet Eats and Samantha of Emmy's Organics!

The Edible Happy Hour - This is a local podcast just started by some of my favorite foodies. It is a roundtable discussion about food, drinks and local fare. 

Mystery Show - In this lighthearted podcast, Starlee Kine solves funny but curious mysteries. I won't giveaway much so we can keep it a mystery, but trust me, it's just a fun one!

Bon Appétit Podcast- Commentated by Andrew Rapoport, the editor-in-chief of Bon Appétit, this podcast interviews, chefs, foodies, and writers alike. They have guests such as Ina Garten, Bobby Flay and David Chang. 100% obsessed.

Podcasts I'm excited to listen to...

Being Boss - For creatives and entrepreneurs. One of the hosts, Kathleen, is a local okie!

Lady Lovin' - Co-hosted by my Laguna Beach favorite Lo Bosworth, she joins besties Jilly Hendrix and Greta Titleman to talk about the basic realness of life. 

Burnt Toast by Food52 - For those who never stop wondering about food.

Lady Gang - A celebrity driven podcast that is supposed to be a hilarious telling of what it is like to live in Hollywood. 

Any other podcasts favorites I should know about?

Annie