Homemade Cinnamon Ice Cream

I admit it. Although there are things I like about summer, summer isn’t my favorite time of year. I’m not big on the heat, but one thing that I do love about summer is that it is the perfect time of year for homemade ice cream. I have fond memories growing up when our family would make homemade ice cream. There is nothing like a good creamy, freshly churned bowl of ice cream in the summer.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos of the actual ice cream because it is already gone. But, I will share my recipe for homemade cinnamon ice cream. This recipe is a modified version of the country style vanilla recipe my mom and dad passed down to me.

Ingredients (Note, this recipe is for a 4-quart ice cream maker):

4 eggs

4 cups whipping cream

2 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cinnamon extract

2-3 teaspoons cinnamon

Approximately 5 cups milk

Directions:

Beat eggs until foamy. Gradually add sugar and beat until thickened. Add whipping cream, salt, vanilla, cinnamon extract, and cinnamon and mix thoroughly.  Pour mixture into ice cream maker drum. Add milk until the fill line is reached. Freeze ice cream according to your ice cream maker’s directions. If your ice cream is not freezing properly, the texture may come out icy or slushy rather than creamy. And, although you can certainly eat the ice cream right away, it freezes better if you let it freeze for several hours (or overnight) before serving.

Cinnamon Fudge

I’ve found so many great ideas and recipes by browsing Pinterest, including several fudge recipes I’ve wanted to try. I like the idea of having something like fudge around the house because I can get a bite of something sweet and be satisfied without going overboard (it is too sweet for me to eat more than a bite or two). I finally gathered all the ingredients I needed to make this red velvet fudge. And, it was a disaster. Twice. I think part of the problem is that making traditional fudge requires a lot of attention, and well, sometimes, especially if my kids are around, that kind of attention to detail is lacking. So, I decided I’d give up on the red velvet fudge for now, and go back to a version of cappuccino fudge I made over the holidays last year (my husband and I modified the recipe from Annie’s Eats a bit). However, I don’t like coffee, so I left the coffee powder out, and was left with a yummy cinnamon fudge.

Cinnamon Fudge

• 1 jar of marshmallow cream (7 oz.)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 package of white chocolate chips
• 1/2 package of milk chocolate chips

Heat marshmallow cream, sugar, whipping cream, butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt over medium heat, stirring constantly. Bring the mixture to a boil, and boil for five minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and the white chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips into the mixture, and stir until smooth. Pour the mixture into a lined pan (with wax paper or foil), and place in the refrigerator for several hours. Once the fudge has set, cut into squares.

To make the cappuccino version of the fudge, reduce the amount of cinnamon to 1/4 teaspoon, and add 1 tablespoon of instant coffee powder.

Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake

One of the reasons fall is my favorite time of year is my love for pumpkin. I love pumpkin bread, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin pie, and, well, the list could go on! Last night I combined my love for pumpkin with my love for cream cheese desserts, and made a pumpkin spice cheesecake. I scanned many different recipes for pumpkin cheesecake, but I couldn't find one that fit completely with the quantity (and type) of ingredients I already had on hand, so I created my own recipe based on what I thought might work from looking at other recipes. My pumpkin spice cheesecake probably has a little more "spice" in it than most - but we love cinnamon around our house.

This cheesecake filling made enough for two cheesecakes - one with a crust (store bought graham cracker crust because I was in a hurry and it is easy) and one without a crust. We tasted the one without the crust, which is why there is not a picture of that one. :) However, I think if you made a true cheesecake (in a springform pan), this would be the perfect amount of filling for one cheesecake.

Ingredients

• 2 packages of cream cheese, softened
• 3 tablespoons of flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup pureed pumpkin (I only slightly considered using some of Ella's pureed baby food pumpkin before chickening out)
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 eggs

Mix cream cheese, flour, and sugar until well-combined. Add pumpkin, sour cream, and spices and mix well. Add eggs one at a time on low speed until they are just incorporated. Pour mixture into graham cracker crust (or pie pan if you are doing a crustless version).

Bake at 325° for approximately 45 minutes in crust, or 30 minutes without crust.

Add cool whip on top as an added touch!