Korean Shaved Ice Dessert: Bing-Soo (빙수)

It's Labor Day weekend! Usually this means the end of the summer- and everyone is trying to squeeze in the last of it! I'm celebrating the end of summer with a cool treat! This is a simple Korean dessert that you usually find at every Korean bakery during the summertime. It's a simple classic that never goes out of style!

The best part of this dessert is that it doesn't require measuring! You can really just choose whatever you think would taste good, and put it in there! It works best if you have an ice shaver or snowcone machine, but if you're able to crush the ice into small pieces, it should work too! I'm including a recipe that I used, but you're always able to change it to whatever suits you!

Bing-Soo (빙수)
Ice Cubes
Strawberries
Roasted Grain Powder (미숫가루)
Rice Cake Pieces (Mochi)
Green Tea Ice Cream
Sweetened Condensed Milk

1. Shave the ice using a shaver or snowcone machine. If this is not available, be sure you crush the ice to tiny pieces. 
2. Place the ice into the freezer while you get the rest ready. 
3. Slice strawberries. 
4. Scoop ice cream. 
5. Arrange strawberries, mochi, and ice cream onto the ice. 
6. Sprinkle roasted grain powder. 
7. Drizzle sweetened condensed milk over the dessert. 

This dessert is usually made with sweetened red bean paste also. I'm not a huge fan, so I decided to go without it this round. This dessert is totally up to your own interpretation, which allows you to express your own creativity! Post your creations on Facebook or Instagram and tag @deliciowhso!

Avocado Ice Cream

I've heard that your taste buds change every seven years or so. Avocados actually used to one of my least favorite foods. I couldn't stand them, and I would pick them out of everything. Now, I actually have grown to like avocados. 

My good friend, Cynthia, posted a recipe to my Facebook the other day that she wanted to try out together. She came over and we decided to give it a go! I adapted the recipe by Alton Brown just slightly to get the recipe below!

Avocado Ice Cream (Makes 1 quart)
2/3 cup Sugar
1.5 cup Milk
1 cup Heavy Cream
3 Avocados
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp Salt

1. Prepare your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. This may involve freezing a vessel for 24 hours.

2.Heat milk and sugar on the stove until it is completely dissolved. If it boils, set it aside to cool for at least 5 minutes. 

3. Place avocados, heavy cream, lemon juice, and salt into a blender and blend until well pureed. 

4. If you do not have a blender, use an electric mixer to cream avocados and slowly add the cream, lemon juice, and salt until it becomes smooth. 

5. Slowly blend the milk into the mixture and mix until smooth and incorporated. 

6. Place the mix into the fridge until cooled completely. 

7. Churn the mix in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. Remove from the ice cream machine when the mixture looks like soft serve. 

8. Place into a freezer-safe container and harden in the freezer for 3-5 hours. 

9. Allow the ice cream to thaw slightly before scooping into a frozen bowl and enjoying. 

This ice cream is delicious! It's smooth and tasty without being too sweet. It's got a slight earthiness to it that is really perfect for a hot summer day. Plus, avocados make it kind of healthy, right? 

Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream

Strawberry season is upon us! What better way to celebrate than with some delicious ice cream? This is a creamy, rich ice cream with a load of roasted strawberry goodness. The caramel notes from the strawberries makes this the perfect way to transition into summer!

Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream (Makes about 1 quart)
1 cup Milk
2 cups Heavy Cream
1/2 cup Sugar
1 pinch Salt
6 eggs
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 package Strawberries
1/4 cup Sugar

1. Prepare an ice cream base. Do this by placing milk, cream, sugar, and salt into a pot.
2. Whisk the eggs in a large, heat-proof bowl.
3. When the liquid in the pot comes to a boil, slowly whisk it into the eggs. Then, pour it back into the pot.
4. Whisk it on medium heat until the mixture thickens, and coats the back of a spoon.
5. Immediately pour it through a strainer into a clean bowl. Stir in vanilla.
6. Allow the mixture to cool.
7. Place strawberries and sugar into a casserole dish.
8. Roast in the oven at 350 degrees F until soft and mushy. Turn every 5 minutes or so to prevent burning.
9. Once the strawberries are done, allow to cool, mash with a fork, and then add into the ice cream base.
10. Prepare your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions and spin the ice cream to a soft-serve stage.
11. Place into a freezer safe, airtight container and allow to harden for at least 3 hours in the freezer.
12. Allow to thaw slightly before scooping into a frozen bowl  or cone and serving.
 

School is out for a lot of students- and many of my friends are graduating! Congrats to everyone who has graduated/is graduating this year; hooray for the end of finals for current students; and keep on trekking on for those already in the working world... Let's all take a break with some delici-owh-so ice cream :)

And of course we can't forget about our mothers! I am extremely grateful for both my moms. My biological mom has been an essential part of my life, and influenced me greatly with my passion and excitement for food (both making and eating, haha). She's always there when I need, and supported me in my decisions. She makes the most delicious food in the world, and always fills it with her generous love. My stepmom hasn't known me all of my life, but she's been a really great role model, loving mother, and provider to me as well. She's got a big heart and loves me and Josh as her own, and I respect her so much for it :) Here's to being thankful and celebrating our mothers!

Raspberry and Honey Goat Cheese Ice Cream

This recipe is a mouthful. Jeni's ice cream shop opened up a location in Atlanta about a year ago. Since then, I've been a few times. One of the most remarkable flavors that Jeni's has is a goat cheese and cherry ice cream. It's an artisan ice cream with tangy goat cheese, roasted cherries, and a richness that can't be bought in a grocery store.

This recipe is a play on the Jeni's goat cheese and cherry. I took some raspberries and mascarpone cheese and added it to to this recipe. The raspberries are a perfect texture change from the smooth ice cream, and the jam is a great way to complement the honey goat cheese.

Raspberry and Honey Goat Cheese Ice Cream (Makes 2 quarts) Adapted from Jeni's
1.5 cups Milk
1 tbsp Corn Starch
1 cup Heavy Cream
1 oz Light Corn Syrup
1/3 cup Sugar
2 tsp Honey
1/4 tsp Salt
2 oz Honey Goat Cheese
2 oz Mascarpone Cheese
1 package Raspberries
2 tbsp Raspberry Jam

1. Prepare your ice cream machine as the instructions direct (for mine, I have to put the freezing vessel into the freezer overnight).
2. Make a slurry with 1/4 cup Milk and the corn starch. Whisk it together to combine.
3. In a medium sized pot, put the remaining milk, cream, corn syrup, sugar, honey, and salt.
4. Bring the pot ingredients to a boil. Allow to boil for about 4 minutes.
5. In a separate bowl, mix the goat cheese and mascarpone cheese together until well incorporated and smooth.
6. After the ingredients in the pot have boiled for 4 minutes, slowly pour the slurry of milk and corn starch into the pot while mixing with a rubber spatula.
7. On medium heat, allow the mixture to come back to a boil and cook for about a minute, stirring constantly. The mixture will be finished when the starchy flavor cooks out and the consistency becomes slightly thick.
8. Pour a little bit of the hot mixture into the cheese, mixing to incorporate. Repeat until the mixture is smooth, and all of the hot has been incorporated.
9. Cover the mixture with plastic wrap, so that it is touching the surface. Place the bowl into the fridge until the mixture has cooled completely.
10. When cooled completely, pour into your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions to churn.
11. When the ice cream is ready, it will look like soft serve. Prepare a container.
12. Mix in fresh raspberries after the ice cream has been spun, breaking them up slightly as you go. 
13. Place layers of ice cream and jam, so that when you scoop the ice cream you get a nice swirl-effect.
14. Freeze the ice cream for at least a couple hours before serving.
15. Allow to thaw slightly, for about 5 minutes, then scoop into a frozen bowl and share!

Georgia has had some really warm weather lately (I turned on my AC for the first time this year!). I can't help but crave some ice cream with the weather change (and to make me feel better about my pollen allergies). This ice cream is perfect for spring and doesn't take long to make!

Green Tea Cookies

Green Tea is one of my all-time favorite flavors. I love anything green tea flavored. If you've kept up with the blog, you know that it's been a while since I've put up a new green tea recipe.

These cookies are sweet, soft, chewy, and decadent! The white chocolate adds a richness to the matcha flavor. The green tea cookies are perfect for making ice cream sandwiches. They stay chewy, and are easy to bite into. I paired it with green tea ice cream. I have a recipe that you can find (here). If you're not feeling like breaking out the ice cream machine, vanilla ice cream also goes extremely well with these cookies.

Green Tea Cookies (Makes 24 cookies)
6 oz Butter
1 cup Sugar
1 1/2 tbsp Green Tea Powder
2 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup White Chocolate Chips
1 1/2 cup Flour
1/4 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Cream soft butter, sugar, and green tea powder together until the color is light, and the texture is airy.
3. Add the eggs and vanilla gradually, scraping the bowl between additions.
4. Add the white chocolate chips to the batter and mix until they are incorporated.
5. Add the dry ingredients at once, and mix on low speed until the batter comes together.
6. Scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl, and allow to mix to evenly incorporate the ingredients.
7. On a parchment or foil lined baking sheet, scoop about 1.5 tbsp portions of batter about 3-4 inches apart. It may not look like much, but the cookies will spread a lot.
6. Bake for about 10 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. They will poof up and look soft in the center. The cookie will settle as it cools.
7. Remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are golden. Allow to cool completely.
8. If you are using them for an ice cream sandwich, place in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Then, scoop a small portion of ice cream onto the cookie.
9. Sandwich the cookie and return to the freezer for about 10 minutes.This is to let the ice cream firm up.

You can store the ice cream sandwiches in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks. If you are planning to eat them later, thaw the sandwich for about 3-5 minutes, just to let the cookie warm up a little.

The cookies I made came out to be about 3 inches in diameter. It makes a perfect snack to satisfy a sweet tooth!

Moscato and Red Grape Sorbet

I turned 21 this weekend (finally legal) ! I enjoyed the night spent with some of my closest friends :) I was able to make many great memories of the day.  A big thanks to Cynthia aka @icook247 for the picture <3

I got a bottle of moscato wine as a birthday gift, and figured it would go to good use in a blog post! This sorbet is simple, with only 4 ingredients! It boasts the sweetness of grapes with a subtle wine flavor that adds depth and complexity.

Moscato and Red Grape Sorbet (Makes about 10 oz of sorbet)
12 oz Seedless Red Grapes
1.2 oz Sugar
1.2 oz Water
1.5 oz Moscato Wine

1. Combine grapes, sugar, and water in a small pot.
2. Cook the grapes until tender on medium heat, about 20 minutes.
3. Remove the pot from heat and pour the contents through a fine sieve.
4. Take the grapes from the strainer and put into a food processor or blender.
5. Puree the grapes, and pour back into the sieve.
6. Use a spoon or spatula to push the puree through the sieve. Once all the moisture is removed, discard the remaining grape pulp and skin.
7. Add the moscato wine and cool completely in the fridge.
8. Once cold, spin the sorbet in an ice cream machine, according to the manufacturer's instructions. This may require you to place a base in the freezer for at least 24 hours. I like to keep my base in the freezer just in case I spontaneously make ice cream.
9. Once the sorbet is frozen, pour into an airtight container and place into the freezer to harden for at least 3 hours.
10. Serve in chilled glasses or bowls.

This sorbet would also go great in a glass of champagne. It would create a great fruity flavor to accompany dry champagne. It's a refreshing treat perfect for summertime! Cheers!!!