When the weather outside is frightful...make ice-cream!

::Happy sighs::

Sometimes you just have to sigh a happy sigh. Especially when you've just completed (let's see...August, September, October, November, December...) FIVE long months of school!

I wish I could tell you I'm majoring in culinary arts, but I guess you don't have to be an ice-cream connossieour (<~ or a great speller) to enjoy the art of ice-cream making...or eating for that matter.

So, have I even been THINKING about ice-cream at all in those passed five months? To get down to the ice and salt, when you have your nose stuck in a book for nearly 10+ hours a day, or you are wolfing down a cafeteria lunch before your next lecture, or you're taking notes on Ferdinand de Saussure's semiology, thoughts of ice-cream and recipes fall quietly as snow to the lowest end of the totem pole along with shopping for Christmas presents.

Yet, a Christmas tradition my family has tried to keep each year is to make each other at least one gift. I started mulling over all the cheap gifts I could make that would be received with joy but end up in the Goodwill pile by the beginning of next year (okay, that's not entirely true, but it makes me cringe to see a gawky homemade Christmas present I made...every day...for the next 365 days).

I've begun thinking of gifts I could make that would put a smile on each family member's face...a gift that would brighten their day, that would melt their hearts when the frozen Iowa landscape dips to -20 degrees beneath a plethora of twinkling white snow. As a college student, what gift could I give that would not require me to cut off my hair?

...sweet! You're really good at that. Yeah, it is ICE-CREAM!

So, reader, here's the scoop--unless you go by the name of Dad, Mom, Nate, Louis or Melissa. If you do you will have to cease reading or close your eyes 'cause Little Sister is watching you! :)


Are you still reading this?


Okay. Good. The coast is clear.


My idea is to whip up 1/2 a quart of ice-cream for each family member and write a silly poem about why I think the flavor fits their personality. Like, Green Tea ice-cream could represent my brother who is strong and yet calming. Or choosing a butterscotch flavor for my mom could signify how she makes everyday a treat! I'm still working on it.

Potential obstacles include:

a. a very noisy ice-cream maker--how can I keep this a secret when even the neighbors complain? Hmm...making ice-cream at night. Now there's an idea.
b. Christmas is next week!
c. I need to purchase ice-cream containers, because I don't want to use tupperware.

Nothing's impossible. And I think this is a realistic goal. Therefore, the search is on! I'll keep you posted as I try to beat the clock...

In the meantime, good morning! And if I don't see you, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, and Happy Hanukkah!