Recipe: Coconut Key Lime Pie Ice Cream

As many of you know, I am allergic to dairy. And we're talking straight up serious allergy - swollen throat, constricted airways...none of this lactose intolerant stuff. I'm hard core that way.

All delicious foods in life have a dairy base: cheese, ice cream, whipped cream, any cream based sauce. I love ice cream and always have. But my throat says otherwise. So sad for Laura. To satisfy my ice cream love, I have explored the world of coconut ice cream and have tried to find/create a great recipe for coconut ice cream. And I think this one's a winner.

You start with a delicious base of coconut and lime - which on it's own tastes fantastic. For a dash of fun flair, I attempted to swirl in ribbons of lime curd, but the final result ended less ribbony and more pockety with bursts of lime curd here and there (which I thought actually thought made it more exciting).

Ingredients

Coconut Lime Ice Cream Base

• 2 cans full fat unsweetened coconut milk (I prefer the Taste of Thai Organic kind)
• Juice and zest from 2 limes
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water

Key Lime Curd

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons lime zest
• 1 egg, beaten and set aside

Instructions

1. First focus on the ice cream base. Combine all ingredients in a sauce pan and heat on medium heat, slowly stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved.
   
   


2. Once dissolved, pour in to a bowl, cover and chill in refrigerator for 4 hours, or until completely chilled. 


3. Combine sugar, butter, lime juice and zest in a double boiler (or do what I did and set a pyrex bowl inside a sauce pan filled halfway with water)
   
   
   
   
   
4. Slowly stir over medium-high heat until the butter is melts and mixture becomes syrup-like


5. Mix a tablespoon of the lime syrup into the egg and blend.


6. Reduce the stove heat to medium and  slowly whisk the egg mixture into the lime syrup


7. Heat and stir the mixture in double boiler for 20 minutes, or until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon.


8. Pour the mixture into a bowl, cover, and chill in refrigerator


9. When the ice cream base is chilled, freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.


10. Once the ice cream is finished, the lime curd should also be chilled. Spoon curd into pastry bag. Use the pastry bag (or ziploc with snipped corner) to pipe ribbons of curd and fold the lime curd into the ice cream.


11. Scoop ice cream and top with extra lime zest and toasted coconut if desired. Enjoy.

It is so delicious that I literally have to talk myself out of eating the entire batch. It's so flavorful and tropical at the same time, it's the perfect cool treat on a hot summer day.  Try it out and let me know what you think!

Fourth of July part two: Texas Rangers vs. Seattle Mariners

Scott and I love going to baseball games. The sun, the sunflower seeds and roasted peanuts, the cheering and the comebacks--we're both fans. I'll be honest, I am not a big sports enthusiast, but I do get swept in the excitement and the atmosphere when I physically attend a game.

We decided that a tradition we will do our best to uphold over the years is to attend a baseball game on the Fourth of July and end the night watching fireworks. Hopefully this is something that we can keep up even when we have kids. But can you think of a better way to celebrate America than by watching America's favorite pastime? I don't think so.

Well there we were, decked out head to toe in our Rangers gear, which is conveniently red, white, and blue. The Rangers played Seattle that day, crazy huh? I had an internal struggle on who I was really supporting - my home team or my new team. But since I was never really loyal before, I guess it doesn't really matter, especially now that I have a Texas Rangers hat.

The game was great. Couldn't be better. The Rangers and the Mariners battled it for a couple innings. The score was 2-3. In the bottom of the 7th inning, the Rangers scored 3 runs taking the lead. What a great comeback. And then they continued to defend it until the 9th. Such a great game. And if I, a girl who doesn't understand too much about sports, am saying that, it must be true!

The game ended with a fireworks show, which was pretty good. And it was so comfortable sitting in an actual seat then on the cold, wet grass. Scott and I agreed that it was one of the better shows we have seen. Maybe not absolute best, but it was up there.

All around, a great day, a great game, a great holiday. And we're proud to live in this great country.

Fourth of July part one: Dallas Farmers Market

Scott and I luckily (and gratefully!) had the Fourth of July off of work. So we spent the day celebrating America in style. We first started off in style by sleeping in, of course! After which we lazed around and after getting ready for the day, donned in red, white, and blue, we made our way to the Dallas Farmers Market.

While there, we sampled fruit, vegetables, and prepared foods from various local vendors. I was a sucker for the nectarines and peaches. I tried a sample from every vendor that was offering! One of the vendors was selling roasted sweet corn - one of my favorites! And the sweet corn was topped with butter, mayo, and cheese. I know it sounds gross (especially if you're not a mayo fan, like me) but its actually really tasty.

Oh man. I love the market. I love sweet corn. What a great start to a great day off!