Bailey's Caramel Shake

It's been a rough week.

Yes, it's only Tuesday-- but it still feels like a week best remedied by a combination of Bailey's and calories.  I don't have any specific measurements for this recipe mainly because people have such varying tastes for their milkshakes.  Some people like them thicker, some like them thinner.  Some prefer more chocolate, some less.  Some people prefer just a faint flavor of the liquor, some might choose to empty out their bottle.  No comment on where we fell on that scale!  This was such a nice treat that although simple, I still felt the need to blog about it!  As we head into some (hopefully) warm spring and summer weather, this shake is the perfect cap on a long day.

Bailey's Caramel Shake
2-3 scoops of vanilla ice cream
milk (amount depending on how thick you want your shake-- it's always easier to add more)
chocolate syrup
Bailey's Caramel to taste

Raspberry Smoothie

My son recently discovered milkshakes. The kid wants them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. . . with just a few in-between! I can't say I blame him. If it weren't for the fact that you would be rolling me out of my house, I'd probably join him in his quest! Knowing this isn't exactly the healthiest option, I wanted to come up with a way to still satisfy his sweet tooth while giving him a bit more nutritional of a choice. If seeds bother you, you will want to either puree your berries and strain them first, or come up with a different fruit option for your smoothie. I am anxious to make a strawberry-banana smoothie next. I think that would be a hit as well! It couldn't be any easier to throw this together and would be a great "on the go" option for early morning work or school days.

Raspberry Smoothie
1 cup frozen red raspberries (or alternate fruit)
1 cup apple juice
8 ounces vanilla yogurt
1/2 tablespoon honey

Pour ingredients into a blender. Cover and blend until smooth.

Strawberry Frozen Yogurt

My two-year-old has officially inherited his parents' love for ice cream! :) It has been so warm out the last few weeks that he has been asking for it fairly regularly. I decided that I needed to come up with something at least a little healthier as an option. I've made many different varieties of ice cream and sorbet in my ice cream maker, but this was my first experiment with frozen yogurt and I was really pleased with the results. I looked at a few different recipes that came with the Cuisinart machine, then played with the ingredients to get a flavor and texture that I liked. This was nice and creamy and was certainly refreshing on a hot afternoon.

Strawberry Frozen Yogurt
2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
12 ounces fresh strawberries
1-2 teaspoons vanilla

In a medium bowl, mix together the yogurt, sugar, and milk until the sugar is fully dissolved. In the meantime, remove the stems from the strawberries and place them in a food processor. Puree depending on how you prefer your yogurt. (I like mine with some chunks of fresh berries in it. If you prefer a smooth yogurt, puree until completely broken down. You can also strain the seeds at this point if you do not want them in your yogurt.) Add the strawberry puree and vanilla to your yogurt mixture. Mix well. Pour into your ice cream maker and freeze according to directions.

Raspberry Sorbet

I'm so excited that the weather is finally warming up! I was looking for a nice cold dessert to make to celebrate the heat and thought immediately about the strawberry sorbet I had made a bit ago. I had some raspberries in the freezer and decided that I would play with them to come up with a new variation. I normally would prefer to use fresh fruit to cook with, but when making sorbet I have found that the frozen fruit more than cuts the total prep time in half! I would much rather use that time playing with my little ones. :) The texture of this sorbet is so smooth and it is sweet enough to satisfy my cravings without compromising my diet! I'd highly recommend it and plan to play with other fruits through the coming months.

Raspberry Sorbet

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup light corn syrup

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 bag frozen raspberries

In a small saucepan, combine the water and sugar and boil until the sugar is completely dissolved (making a simple syrup). Set aside. In a food processor, process the frozen raspberries until completely pureed. Add the corn syrup, simple syrup, and lime juice. Pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer directions.

Source: Adapted from Cuisinart

Strawberry Sorbet

As I attempt to lose some of my baby weight from this pregnancy, I am looking for some healthier alternatives to have around the house. My little boy has been working with quite a sweet tooth lately, so I decided that this would be the perfect time to experiment with a sorbet in my ice cream machine. (Another huge thank you to Carrie! She bought us the ice cream maker as an engagement gift and we use it all the time! We love it!)

The recipe I chose incorporated a few different time periods where it was necessary to let the ingredients cool completely before continuing. I was starting this sorbet a little later than I had originally planned, so I was a little weary about how long it was going to take. To speed things up a bit, I used a bag of Dole frozen whole strawberries in place of the fresh ones that were listed. (This is also a much more feasible winter option from a cost perspective.) Using the frozen berries sped up the process quite a bit. They still broke down nicely in the food processor, only leaving a few pieces of berries. The recipe called for using a mesh strainer to strain out the berry puree, but I skipped this part. I personally liked the idea of a few berry pieces in the sorbet. The texture of the finished product was very smooth and I think I would definitely take these shortcuts again in the future.

Strawberry Sorbet

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 quart fresh strawberries, stems removed, quartered
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Bring the sugar and the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce the heat and simmer, without stirring, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Transfer to a bowl and let cool completely. Combine the strawberries and the lemon juice in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Pulse to chop the strawberries, about 15-20 times, then process until the strawberries are completely pureed (about 1-2 minutes). Press the strawberry mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Combine the strawberry mixture with the sugar mixture and the corn syrup. Chill for 1 hour. Freeze according to your ice cream maker directions.

Source: Cuisinart