Makes You Strong

This is so going to be tried this summer at the beach house: Guinness ice cream.

1 cup water

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

1 1/2 cups evaporated milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup Guinness stout

In a heavy saucepan whisk together the water and the cornstarch and simmer the mixture over moderate heat, whisking, for 2 minutes. Add the milks, the salt, and the sugar, heat the mixture over moderately low heat, whisking, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the sugar is dissolved, and remove the pan from the heat. Let the mixture cool completely, stir in the Guinness, and freeze the mixture in an ice-cream freezer according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Makes about 1 quart

If we add this to the Guinness ginger cake Julia makes (from Grammercy Tavern's cookbook), we'll have a whole Guinness dessert tray.

[via A Small Victory, via Instapundit]

Mom's Cheesecake

While we're debating the true nature of cheesecake, here's the cheesecake my mom makes:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup melted butter

1/2 cup sugar

Mix together. Press to bottom and sides of springform pan. Chill for 1 hour.

3 x 8 oz. packages of cream cheese at room temperature mixed with 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

Add 4 egg yolks, beat until creamy, mix in 2 teaspoons vanilla. Beat 4 egg whites until stiff, but not dry.

Fold egg whites into cheese mixture, pour over crumbs and bake 1.5 hours at 225 degrees.

Refrigerate.

Try it – I guarantee you'll like it.

This make me feel better...

Jacob Levy at the Volokh Conspiracy makes me feel better about my caffeine addiction. I've never done the math like he has, but while I'm sure I drink to much, I'm also pretty sure it's not as severe as his:

8 am. Triple espresso. 300 mg.
8:30 am. Breve latte with an extra shot (i.e. a triple espresso with steamed half-and-half). 300 mg.
10:45 am. Diet Coke. 45 mg.
12 noon. 1 cup brewed coffee. c. 100 mg.
2:30 pm. Diet Coke. 45 mg.
3:30 pm. Dan suggests we take a quick break from office hours and get a snack. He gets a Toll House brownie bar. I get another triple espresso. 300 mg.
With dinner: Diet Dr. Pepper. 41 mg.
Total: 1131 mg.

Yeesh.