Fruit Leather Recipe

Today, I tried something new.  I made fruit leather using apricots.  Last week, I got a big box of apricots at Costco.  I wasn't sure of how I'd finish them all, so I started to think of ideas and came across the idea to make something similar to a Fruit Roll-up. 

First, I took the apricots out of the fridge, and left them on my kitchen counter for a few days until they were ripe.  This ensured that they really tasted like apricots, and were sweet.

I diced up around 2.5 cups of pitted apricots.  I placed them in a pan on the stove with about 3/4 cup of of raw sugar, and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice. 

Once the sugar melted, I let the mixture cool a little before putting it into the blender.

I pureed the apricot mixture in the blender.  Then, I poured it out onto a cookie sheet covered with plastic wrap.

I placed the cookie sheet in the oven on 200 degrees for around 6 hours, propping the door open just slightly with a wooden spoon.
When the leather is finished, it will be dry and no longer sticky.  After it dries, you can cut it into strips and store in an airtight container.  I left the plastic wrap on the back of each piece, so that it doesn't end up sticking together in the box.

Rich Chocolate Icecream

Today, I made up a batch of chocolate ice-cream.  It's my first try, but it came out nicely, so I wanted to share.  I completely changed the original recipe I used as reference, so this is my own recipe.

Ingredients:
2.5 ounces of semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
2.5 ounces of milk chocolate, finely chopped
2.5 cups heavy cream
1.5 cups milk (I only had 1%, so that's what I used, but I'd recommend whole milk ideally)
1/2 C + 1/6 C of raw sugar
2 Tablespoons of pure vanilla extract
2.5 ounces white chocolate chips, whole
1/2 C walnuts, broken into large pieces

Finely chop the semisweet and milk chocolate together in a food processor.

Combine cream, milk, and chocolate in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook until mixture almost boils and chocolate is melted. Reduce heat to low.

Add in sugar and vanilla extract. Cook over low heat until slightly thickened and mixture coats the back of a spoon.

Allow to cool on counter for around 20 minutes. Allow to cool in fridge for 30 minutes. Then, allow to cool in freezer for 30 minutes.

Stir gently and pour into frozen ice-cream maker freezer bowl.  I use a Cuisinart ice-cream maker.  Turn the machine ON and let mix until mixture thickens, about 30 minutes.

Add white chocolate chips and walnut pieces and continue to mix for 5 additional minutes.

Transfer ice-cream to an airtight container and place in freezer until firm, about 2 hours.

Here's a photo. Happy eating!