TWD: Chewy Chunky Blondies and Chocolate Ganache Ice Cream

I still am here and I still am baking:

and sewing, too

sometimes AT THE SAME TIME:

 (note box o' cupcakes at top left)

though in a rather slapdash, haphazard fashion.  Let the record show that I did indeed make the TWD blondies from two weeks ago, and all I have to say about those is YES PLEASE.

I felt sort of extravagant making them when I still had 2/3 of a very good cake in the fridge, but I made them anyway and said banana cake was neglected and forgotten.  It still takes up space forlorn and neglected in my fridge. 

I did not make last week's gingered carrot cookies, because 1) ew, and 2) wut? and 3) come on--it was my birthday that week!  I made vanilla buttermilk cupcakes instead.  Much more appropriate.

I just made this week's selection, a chocolate ganache ice cream.  I am finishing up a yellow plum sorbet I made for my birthday, so I kind of rode the fence. I like ice cream, don't get me wrong, but I have a Very Bad Habit of forgetting that I have any about the house, and never eating it.  I just don't ever really crave the stuff.  This ice cream was kinda fussy, too.  But I think I like it. 

First, we had to make a chocolate ganache.  Easy enough except I only had 2 ounces of chocolate on hand so I ran out and got a bar of Lindt.  This didn't give me 6 ounces;  it gave me 5.5.  Terrified of jacking up the ganache (it wasn't until later that I realized it wasn't a true 1:1 ganache anyways)  I cut the recipe by 1/4.  My cream had a "Sell by!" date of July 11, but considering that there is also a recipe for sour cream ice cream in the book, too, and considering that I TOTALLY did not feel like going out for more, I went with it.  It tasted fine.

Then I made the "custard,"  which I remembered this time is very thin, and mixed it in with the ganache and put it to chill overnight.

This morning, I fired up Ol'Red and got ready to pour in the custard.  Except there wasn't going to be any pouring.

There could be spooning, and scraping, and cursing, and coaxing, but no pouring.  The custard was really thick.  Like the spoon stood up in it thick.  I somehow got it all in and let it go for about 18 minutes.  I espied a package of almonds sitting limply in a corner looking delinquent, so I put them to work and dumped them in, because everything is better with almonds in it. 

I have the hardest time getting my ice cream to freeze evenly in my Cuisinart.  The mix on the walls and bottom freezes very hard, but in this case little happened to the bulk of the recipe, which was in the center.  Anyone figured out a workaround for this?  I just gave up when it seemed lighter and colder and put it in a container for freezing.

I tried some later in the afternoon.  It is very smooth and very rich and velvety, like frozen chocolate mousse.  I like it!  It's a little much for every day, but I wouldn't mind making it for company.

*notice*  I am trying my darnedest to stay on schedule but posting might be come a bit intermittent over the next few weeks, 'cuz I am moving.  As I so often do.

Thanks this week go to Katrina at Baking and Boys for picking the recipe!  Good choice, good lady.