Blueberry Sour Cream Ice Cream

Hold the phone. Sour cream. In ice cream? Absolutely. Just go with me on this one.

Adam and I both have a huge sweet tooth when it comes to sour candy. Okay, not just huge -- ginormous. Nerds, Sour Punch Straws, Sour Jolly Ranchers, Sour Gummy Worms... you name it, we love it. It is a rare occurrence to not find a bag of Sour Patch Kids or the like stashed around the kitchen. And I say "stashed" because I am most likely hiding it from Adam.

Needless to say, when there's a pint of blueberries around, we generally try to pick out the small little tart berries while the other person isn't looking.

Two years in a row I have insisted on going to pick my own blueberries. And two years in a row, I have missed it. This year, we caught the very tail end of the U-pick season, and ended up buying some already picked blueberries at the farm. Before we even left for the farm I already knew where those berries were going to end up. I was going to combine our two favorite summer treats -- blueberries and ice cream.

Typically, blueberries are found in sherbets or sorbets, not ice cream. Yet I kept going back to the infamous Strawberry Sour Cream Ice Cream from David Lebovitz I kept seeing around the web. "The sweet pairs with the tart from the sour cream so well!" So why can't the blueberry?

Tart with tart. Right up our alley. It's like sour candy meets ice cream. Can it get any better?

Blueberry Sour Cream Ice Cream

Adapted from: David Lebovitz , The Perfect Scoop

1 pound fresh blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vodka
1 cup sour cream
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Place the blueberries in a medium bowl. Using the back of a fork, smash the blueberries until juices are released (does not have to be completely pulverized). Stir in the sugar and vodka until the sugar starts to dissolve. Cover and let rest at room temperature for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Place the blueberry mixture, sour cream, heavy cream, and lemon juice in a food processor. Blend until mixture is almost smooth -- there will still be chunks of blueberry skins. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Transfer cream mixture to your ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Makes: about 1 1/4 quarts (10 1/2-cup servings)

So the ice cream may not be lip-puckering sour, but it definitely has a nice tartness to it. One I don't think you'd get without the sour cream. Just don't think of it as a taco topping when you're adding it in... it's a cream, with a tang. That's all. You'll thank me for it.

The texture may not be quite as creamy as some of the previous ice creams I've made, but it's still rich and fluffy, just the way ice cream should be.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 97g
Amount per serving
Calories 176	Calories from fat 83
% Daily Value
Total Fat 9.3g	14%
Saturated Fat 5.8g	29%
Cholesterol 27mg	9%
Sodium 17mg	1%
Total Carbs 21.3g	7%
Fiber 0.9g	4%
Sugars 15.0g
Protein 1.0g
Vitamin A 7%	Vitamin C 1%
Calcium 3%	Iron 0%

Spicy Ham & Cheese Crepes

Crepes have always been one of those fancy-pants things to me that I would only order in the restaurant. While they have a fairly similar cooking style to pancakes, I make a complete mess of those when I'm trying to flip them, and have you seen how thin crepes are? That's just asking for a disaster right there.

Yet, I've been seeing them pop up on lots and lots and lots of blogs. Could it really be as easy as everyone claims? There was no way.

Then my curiosity got the best of me. Naturally.

I had to try them. Especially when I saw the ooey-gooey cheesiness inside one over on Firefly Blog. That's right, the cheese sealed the deal. Raise your hand if you're surprised. I better not see any hands raised out there.

Spicy Ham and Cheese Crepes

Adapted from: Firefly Blog

4 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup water
2 cups all-purpose flour
Cooking Spray
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1 1/4 cups diced ham
2 banana peppers, sliced into rings, seeds removed

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, salt, and sugar. Once the salt and sugar are well incorporated, whisk in the flour 2-3 tablespoons at a time. Alternate the flour additions with milk, whisking until the batter is smooth before adding more flour. At this stage the batter should be runny, a little bit more than pancake batter. Add the water, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring to check the consistency of the batter between additions. The end batter should be fairly runny. If the batter is still thick, add an additional 1/2 cup water.

Heat a 10-inch frying pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, coat the pan with cooking spray. Add 1/4 cup batter to the center of the pan. Swirl the batter to distribute it evenly across the bottom of the pan. Cook for 1 minute on each side (a large spatula works well for flipping). The crepe is ready to flip when the top starts bubbling and the crepe moves easily side to side. If crepes are too dark, reduce the heat. Transfer finished crepes to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with remaining batter, re-spraying pan with cooking spray between each crepe.

After your crepes are finished, line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, then coat generously with cooking spray. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place 2 tablespoons of cheddar and 2 tablespoons of mozzarella cheese in the center of each crepe. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 tablespoons diced ham. Top with 3-4 rings of banana peppers. Fold the top and bottom sides over the filling, then roll up like a burrito. Place in the prepared baking pan. Repeat with remaining filling and crepes until the baking pan is full (crepes will be touching). Sprinkle remaining cheese over top of crepes. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.

Makes: 12 crepes

And the results? Hand to forehead "duh" and "why did I not do this sooner?" moment. Okay, not at first. I might have set off at least two smoke detectors and had to open the door after the first one, but don't you worry, I got it figured out. I ended up having to take my stove all the way down to medium (from the original recipe's recommendation of "high") in order to get the color I was going for.

As for that flipping oh-my-goodness-we're-going-to-have-a-mess business? Yeah, easy-peasy. Even with a spatula. Unlike pancakes, these guys really do come off the pan and slide around when they're ready to go, and the tops are already setting, so there's no extra batter flying off all over the place. What? You mean that's not supposed to happen with pancakes?

Still not so certain about all this crepe makin'? Click here for Firefly Blog's step-by-step picture tutorial on how to make these.

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 158g
Amount per serving
Calories 275	Calories from fat 122
% Daily Value
Total Fat 13.6g	21%
Saturated Fat 7.7g	38%
Cholesterol 102mg	34%
Sodium 628mg	26%
Total Carbs 20.3g	7%
Fiber 1.2g	5%
Sugars 2.9g
Protein 17.1g
Vitamin A 21%	Vitamin C 43%
Calcium 33%	Iron 9%

Grilled Balsamic Flank Steak

Flank steak. Adam and I's arch nemesis in the kitchen.

You can count the number of times we have attempted making any kind of steak at home on one hand. Easily. It's 4.

And of those, how many times did we either overcook or massively under-cook (and spend forever trying to get it cooked to the right temperature) the steak? 4.

That might explain why we prefer to get steak elsewhere.

I must have been off in la-la land when picking this recipe out for dinner last week. Why on earth would I pick a steak recipe with our stellar track record, not to mention I'm not a huge steak person? Sometimes, things are meant to be.

It took a bit of patience, and lots of testing with the meat thermometer, but we finally got the steak in the golden 130-135 degree range. After pulling it off and letting it rest a few minutes came the final test. We cut into the steak with breaths held -- was it overdone? Was it still completely rare? Instead, we were presented with a perfectly pink and juicy center with a nice outside crust full of balsamic flavor. Steak - 4, Us - 1.

Grilled Balsamic Flank Steak

Adapted from: Cooking Light, May 2010

1/3 cup blasamic vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 teaspoons brown sugar
2 small cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 pounds flank steak, cut into 4 pieces
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

In a gallon-sized ziploc bag, combine balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and garlic. Add steak and seal bag. Flip bag several times to coat steak. Let steak marinate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, turning once. Meanwhile, pre-heat grill (to medium-high if using a gas grill).

Remove steak from ziploc and place on a plate. Sprinkle both sides of steak with salt and pepper. Set aside. Pour remaining marinade into a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Transfer steak from plate onto the grill once hot. Cook steak for 5 minutes on each side, basting with reduced marinade every few minutes, or until steak reaches an internal temperature between 130 and 135 degrees F. Remove steak from grill and allow to rest for 10 minutes prior to serving. Cut steak diagonally across the grain into thin slices.

Serves: 5

I wanted a little something else to go with the steak that wasn't my typical go-to bagged salad. I decided to make quinoa again, this time off the cuff with things from our fridge. Since the hubby actually had to debate going back for seconds versus a bowl of ice cream, I figured it must be pretty dang good. And if it's good, why then, I must share it with you! :)

Quinoa with Basil, Feta, and Roasted Red Peppers

In a medium saucepan, bring 2 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth and 1 cup rinsed and drained quinoa to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup crumbled feta, 2 tablespoons chopped basil, and 1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers. Drizzle with 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar and stir well to mix.

Serves: 10 as a side

Nutrition Facts - Balsamic Flank Steak
Serving Size 161g
Amount per serving
Calories 279	Calories from fat 102
% Daily Value
Total Fat 11.3g	17%
Saturated Fat 4.7g	24%
Cholesterol 75mg	25%
Sodium 485mg	20%
Total Carbs 3.0g	1%
Sugars 2.7g
Protein 37.9g
Vitamin A 0%	Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 2%	Iron 15%

Nutrition Facts - Quinoa
Serving Size 71g
Amount per serving
Calories 71	Calories from fat 16
% Daily Value
Total Fat 1.8g	3%
Saturated Fat 0.7g	3%
Cholesterol 3mg	1%
Sodium 168mg	7%
Total Carbs 10.9g	4%
Fiber 1.2g	5%
Protein 2.9g
Vitamin A 4%	Vitamin C 13%
Calcium 3%	Iron 4%

And in other news...

Runs with Spatulas has moved! The new link is now a simple: www.runs-with-spatulas.com. No more silly little "blogspot" in there anymore (although if you want to add it, feel free, it will re-direct you back here).

If you currently subscribe to Runs with Spatulas through a blog reader (such as Google Reader) you can re-subscribe by clicking on the orange rss button to the right under Follow, or your reader should automatically be re-directed to the new feed.

As for those of you who subscribe by email, I'll let you know tomorrow if you need to re-subscribe or not. Still working out the kinks on that one.

Everything else should still be the same. Except for my search bar, which is acting kind of funky. Don't worry, I'm working on it.


Aside from that big-gigantic-news, what's for dinner this week? My week looks a little like this:

I'm so very excited for some Pad Thai tonight.

Oh! And I'm also super excited to try my hand at some pickle-makin'.

3 days cannot come fast enough!

Hunan Chicken

I have to admit -- sometimes, Chinese take-out scares me.

When ordering Chinese, I typically tend to gravitate towards chicken or vegetarian dishes. On the rare occasion, I opt for beef. Clearly, I'm not going to be ordering seafood anytime soon.

I don't know why I keep going back to chicken. 9 times out of 10 it's fatty and gristly, and really just not all that great. Yeah, I'm that kid that gets skeeved out when biting into a piece of cartilage or huge chunk of fat. Gross. I just gave myself the heebie-jeebies thinking about it.

Aside from the obvious remedy to the situation (go find a different Chinese place!), there's really only one other way to get around this problem and still eat chicken. Make it myself.

I am not the world's greatest by any stretch when it comes to mixing and matching Asian ingredients. Actually, I'm pretty bad. I tend to leave out things like fish sauce or oyster sauce simply due to their nature of being made from seafood, even though they add subtle yet important nuances to dishes. So when I came across this dish over on Curry and Comfort I jumped on it.

Hunan Chicken

Adapted from: Curry and Comfort

5 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
2 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced into thin strips
1 tablespoon garlic chili paste (such as sambal oelek)
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup cooking sherry
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
4 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 (15 ounce) can baby corn
2 carrots, chopped
4 ounces snow peas

In a small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, and black pepper until smooth. Place chicken strips in a glass bowl. Pour soy sauce slurry over chicken, tossing to coat. Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the hunan sauce. In a medium bowl, whisk together remaining soy sauce, garlic chili paste, and next 6 ingredients (through oyster sauce). Set aside.

In another small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon cornstarch and water to form a slurry. Set aside.

Once the chicken has finished marinating, heat oil in a wok (or large pan) over high heat. Once hot, add the chicken with marinade, and stir fry for 2-3 minutes, or until the outside of the chicken turn white. Add the garlic and ginger; cook for 1-2 more minutes. Pour in the hunan sauce, tossing to coat the chicken, and continue to cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in the baby corn, carrots, and snow peas. Cook for and additional 1-2 minutes, or until the vegetables are heated through. Remove from heat and serve over hot rice.

Serves: 6

Now, I can't guarantee you the authenticity of this dish, but I can guarantee that it's going to be pretty tasty. And minus some MSG and chewy, fatty chicken. Win.

This dish is also a great pantry meal -- all I needed from the store was a can of baby corn and some carrots. So feel free to switch up those veggies to fit what you have hiding out in your produce drawer (broccoli and mushrooms would also be great in this). You can also substitute an equal amount of hoisin sauce for the Worcestershire sauce, which is what the original recipe called for. I just happened to miss the unopened jar of it sitting in my pantry. Sigh, why am I not surprised?

Nutrition Facts*
Serving Size 225g
Amount per serving
Calories 287	Calories from fat 102
% Daily Value
Total Fat 11.3g	17%
Saturated Fat 2.3g	11%
Cholesterol 48mg	16%
Sodium 959mg	40%
Total Carbs 24.0g	8%
Fiber 3.3g	13%
Sugars 6.8g
Protein 21.7g
Vitamin A 75%	Vitamin C 26%
Calcium 3%	Iron 11%

*Nutrition facts do not include rice

Blueberry Lemonade Soda

It's National Blueberry Month. And I have missed it. Seriously?

Well, I haven't missed it completely... I have hoarded pints and pints of blueberries in my house specifically for my eating pleasure. But as for actually making anything with them? Zip. Zero. Zilch.

Time to change that.

As soon as I saw this recipe over at Eat Live Run I knew I had to make. Like now. I even braved 90+ degrees in a car with almost no A/C to go and buy a juicer. Just for this. Really.

Every time I think of flavored lemonade I automatically think of strawberry or raspberry. But blueberry? Genius!

Tart on sour made sweet with simple syrup. One word.

WON.DER.FUL

Absolutely perfect for those sweltering summer days.

Or add a splash of vodka for a little adult treat to help cool down those sticky, humid nights. Either way, you can't go wrong.

Blueberry Lemonade Soda

Adapted from: Eat Live Run

3/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 cup fresh lemon juice, about 9 lemons
1/2 cup blueberry juice (such as Ocean Spray)
3 cups soda water

In a small saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a simmer. Stir until sugar has dissolved, then remove from heat. Allow simple syrup to come to room temperature, then chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

Meanwhile, juice lemons. Pour juice into a pitcher through a strainer to remove any seeds and pulp. Mix in blueberry juice and simple syrup. When ready to serve, mix together juice and soda water in a 1:1 ratio in a glass, stirring well.

Makes: 6 8-ounce servings

If you're not into the whole soda thing, you can also substitute sparkling water or just regular water instead. It will still be delicious.

Now go crank out some lemon juice, pull up a chair on the patio, kick back, and relax with a tall glass. Just don't forget the citronella candle. Or a fan.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 118	Calories from fat 0
% Daily Value
Total Fat 0.0g	0%
Saturated Fat 0.0g	0%
Cholesterol 0mg	0%
Sodium 3	0%
Total Carbs 31.1g	10%
Fiber 0.1mg	0%
Sugars 28.3g
Protein 0.1g
Vitamin A 0%	Vitamin C 31%
Calcium 0%	Iron 0%

Gemelli Salad with Asparagus, Pistachios, and Lemon-Thyme Vinaigrette

Summer is almost gone. I can't believe it. I swear it was still June 5 minutes ago.

What happened to lazy days spent out by the pool? Nevermind the fact that sunburns like to find me instead of tans.

Or roasting marshmallows over a fire? i.e. catching them on fire and crazily hopping about and waving your flaming ball of marshmallow around while simultaneously trying to blow it out.

Or outdoor barbecues with friends? You know, the kind where it's a 253 degrees out and you end up being that sweaty kid and go home smelling like you sat in front of the grill the entire time.

Ah, good times, summer. It's a good thing I didn't make a summer bucket list, as I've seen from so many other people. I would have racked up a big ol' goose-egg under the accomplished section.

Even though summer is running away from us, and fast, it's not quite over yet. So for those of you who also can't believe it's the end of July, pull up a chair and have a big helping of summer-in-a-bowl for dinner. (Okay, if it was truly summer-in-a-bowl, it'd be ice cream, but seeing as we can't have that for dinner -- at least not every night, this is a great substitute.)

Gemelli Salad with Asparagus, Pistachios, and Lemon-Thyme Vinaigrette

Adapted from: Cooking Light, May 2011

8 ounces uncooked gemelli
1 cup asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch slices
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, divided
2 tablespoons lemon zest (about 1 lemon), divided
1 tablespoon shallots, minced
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup shelled pistachios, chopped
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated

Bring a large pot filled with water to a boil over high heat. Cook pasta according to package directions. Add the sliced asparagus to the pasta pot during the last 4 minutes. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon thyme, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, shallots, white wine vinegar, and garlic. Stir well. Slowly add in the olive oil, whisking constantly. Whisk in salt and pepper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, gently toss together the pasta with asparagus, pistachios, 1 tablespoon thyme, and 1 tablespoon lemon zest. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the pasta, continuing to toss to coat. Top each serving with Parmesan.

Serves: 4

The lemon and asparagus are what truly seals the deal for making this a "summer" dish. The bright and fresh flavor from the lemon mixes with the crunch from the asparagus and the nuttiness from the pistachios bringing flavor to the table that you just can't get in the winter months. Even though it's what I would consider a lighter pasta dish, it's still heavy enough to fill you up and keep you going while chasing around those fireflies in the backyard.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 398	Calories from fat 181
% Daily Value
Total Fat 20.1g	31%
Saturated Fat 3.6g	18%
Cholesterol 6mg	2%
Sodium 402mg	17%
Total Carbs 46.3g	15%
Fiber 3.5g	14%
Sugars 1.9g
Protein 10.9g
Vitamin A 7%	Vitamin C 12%
Calcium 12%	Iron 25%