Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Roobis and Vanilla Ice Cream

This first recipe, I have to admit is not all my own. But every inspired recipe had to come from somewhere didn’t it? Whoever invented brownies with cookie dough icing did not create cookie dough and brownies (but I have to admit, that is pretty genius!).  They simply combined two favourite recipes together and voila! Ultimately gross deliciousness!
I was excited to make this as I had wanted to make it for a while and luckily I got a surprise gift (a pretty baby blue ice cream maker) from Santa for Christmas.
This recipe is adapted from an Issue of Better Homes and Gardens (whichever one... who knows!) to suit my flavours. 
I had trouble naming this recipe. Theo original recipe calls it a sherbet, however I associate sherbet with fizz, and this dessert most certainly does not tickle my tongue. I then looked for the definition of each ice cream and gelato. This made naming the recipe difficult. The taste has a texture similar to gelato and is rich in flavour. The recipe however is most similar to that for a sorbet. I decided to call it an ice cream however as that is what it is, ice and cream. Why does everything have to be so difficult?
Anyway, it doesn’t matter what you call it. The taste is absolutely delicious and refreshing. If you’ve never had roobis tea before, I highly recommend trying it. In this ice cream, the flavour of the tea is delicate, with hints of coffee and hazelnut. Paired with the vanilla, it is absolutely beautiful. You can however, use any tea you prefer to use. Green tea perhaps? Chai? Oolong? Have a go and enjoy!
Roobis Tea and Vanilla Ice Cream
2 ½ cups of water
1 cup of sugar
¼ cup roobis tea leaves
½ cup boiling water
300ml thickened cream
½ cup sour cream

Put the water in a medium pan with the sugar and stir until all the sugar is dissolved, bring to the boil and let it simmer for 15 – 20 minutes (you are just looking to get a sugar water not a syrup) and let it cool

Meanwhile, put the tea in a jug with the hot water and let it steep for 7 – 15 minutes, depending on how strong of a flavour you are wanting, strain and let it cool

As you are waiting for the liquids to cool, beat the cream (by hand or electric mixers) until thickened, add the sour cream and beat together

Add the COOLED sugar water and tea and beat until thickened

Pour into your ice cream maker and proceed as you would for any other ice cream recipe (alternatively pour mixture into a loaf tin and beat every 1 – 2 hours until smooth)

Remove the ice cream and place in the fridge 5 minutes before serving and enjoy!

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

a bit of an introduction...

Hello fellow bloggers,

My name is Liney and welcome to my blog. For my first post, before I get to sharing my culinary interests and personal achievements and thoughts (without trying to sound too predictable) I thought it would be best for me to explain why I have chosen to create this blog, and what having this blog means to me.

Like most, it started a few years back when my tastebuds and interests were changing. For me it became an obsession. I would look at books, tag recipes but would never cook anything. I feared failure, was afraid people would not want to eat what I had cooked and most of all, was terrified of the calories. Now, after years of collecting recipes, a large heavy folder sits on my bookshelf just waiting to be opened, used and devoured.

To explain how I managed to motivate myself to create this blog, I need to explain about one of the most inspiring books I have read to date. Five Wishes, by Gay Hendricks, tells the story of one man who was asked one question which changed his life forever. The question, (to be asked while on your death bed) “Was your life a complete success?” and if not, what are the things that you would have wished would have happened to make it a success?

To tell the truth, if I was dying right now there are so many things I wished I could have done (and it’s not just because of my young age). But as I am not dying (and hopefully won’t be for another hundred years or so...) I still have a whole future ahead of me where I can practice my five wishes and make them come true.

I imagined five things which I would like to achieve in my life time, and why my life is not a success and I am going to share them with you here. This way, anyone who chooses to follow me can help me along the way as I use this blog to make my five wishes come true.

The main reason why my life was not a total success is because I didn’t allow myself to trust people with my thoughts without fear of judgment. I never allowed people to get to know the real me, not even my closet friends and family.

My life was also not a complete success because:
-          I never broke free of my eating disorder; it still remains a part of me. The appearance on the outside hides the anger, frustration and confusion on the inside.
-          I always have doubts whether what I did was the right thing and never allowed myself to take the risks and opportunities that came across.
-          I never appreciated my parents and didn’t do the right things such as taking care of their mental and physical health and telling them I love them everyday
-          I didn’t share with the world my personal feelings, thoughts, inspirations and stories.

To lighten the mood here, let me introduce myself. I am seventeen years old, living in Australia and will be finishing my final year of high school in 2011. I don’t know what I what to become when I grow up, but right now its bordering becoming a food writer, some form of a psychologist or an anthropologist, in which I would study the history of food. Earlier this year I was determined to become a cheese maker.

As mentioned above in my five wishes, I used to have an eating disorder and borderline... still do. But I am determined to make 2011 and Ed free year. As I write this, I have just demolished two sweet slices of coconut cheesecake from my current favourite cookbook, Rose’s Heavenly Cakes, by Rose Levy Beranbaum.

I like to ride my bike, have on and off baking highs, love Korean food and eating raw garlic, enjoy writing children’s books and just to pep myself up a tad, won $10,000 of kitchen appliances and a trip to Sydney to perform live on stage this year (2010) in a national baking competition.

The title of my blog, “Splendid Spills” was inspired by my favourite word from Anne of Green Gables, Splendid, of course. I feel that in the kitchen anything can be amazing unless it is oatmeal cooked in water, that is just uninspiring and the most tasteless thing ever.

Any who, that was a bit of a long introduction, hopefully it was interesting. I am looking forward to hearing from anyone.

Liney (which of course, is not my real name!)