Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Strawberry Cream Bars

This is a fast dessert for a hot day.
I made this because it was HOT, HUMID, and I did NOT want to bake!


I've been focusing on using things up around the apartment since we...
BOUGHT A HOUSE!

I know! We just got married, and now...a house?
Yep, It's happening that fast.

I had a tub of low fat cool whip in the freezer, and some frozen strawberries.
I also had one pack of graham crackers leftover from last summer s'mores.



I put the frozen strawberries in a blender, and pureed them.
Then I mixed in the whipped topping.
Plop some on graham crackers, and top with another.
FREEZE!

That's it!


They keep for about two weeks, but wrap them in wax paper or foil after the initial freezing.

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Almond milk!

Things have been a whirlwind. Fancy and I got married, so I guess I can't call him Fancy anymore! It was a lot of fun. Pizza, mini-golf and family.





We got married on April fool's day, so we had some tricks in store. Fake cake, squirting bouquet, shock pen...

It was a lot of fun, and exactly the kind of day we wanted.

Shortly after that, Pat won tickets to see Iggy Pop and the Stooges in NYC.
We drove the 7 hours, crashed overnight in Jersey city and took the train in the next morning.

We got to see the Freedom Tower just days before it's completion.



The concert was amazing, and Pat even went on stage with Iggy!



We left the next morning and drove back.
So I wasn't feeling too ambitious on my next day off.

I decided to try something I'd been meaning to do.
DIY Almond milk! I really enjoy drinking it, but it's pretty expensive.
Doing it myself was cheaper, though not super cheap.
I bought almonds (and cashews) in bulk at my local grocery store and spent about $7 on the two bags.

The nuts need to be raw, not toasted or honey coated etc.

Soak 1 cup of raw nuts (almonds in this case) in two cups of water.
Let them set overnight, or at least 8 hours. I gave mine more like 12 hours.

Drain the water, and rinse them.
Put the soaked almonds in a blender, or vitamix or processor. Whatever you have that will chop these babies up into teeny bits!
Add two cups of water and any flavorings you'd like.
I added a pinch of cinnamon and cardamom.
Blend, blend, blend.

Use cheese cloth in a bowl and pour everything in.
Pull up the cheese cloth and squeeze gently to get the "milk" out, but keep the nuts in.

You can sprinkle the left over almond pulp into muffins, oatmeal, or on salad.

Celebrate with a gin and tonic!