The Kitchn Archive: May 2017

I remember the very first time I took my ice cream maker for a spin. I was giddy with excitement at the prospect of finally making my favorite dessert from scratch. I ever-so-carefully heated, whisked, and stirred the base. I chilled it, just the way the recipe called for, and then I hit a roadblock that completely derailed my ice cream dreams (at least for that day). There was one simple step that I completely overlooked: I forgot to put the ice cream bowl in the freezer ahead of time.

At its most basic, a really good milkshake can be whirled together with nothing more than some good ice cream and milk. That’s the simple version I sipped and savored for years. Then I was introduced to an upgrade that changed everything. With the help of one inexpensive pantry ingredient, I was blending together the best milkshakes of my life. Here’s how you can do it too. All that stands between you and the best milkshake of your life is powdered milk.

If your nearest and dearest are gathering to toast your birthday with a cocktail party, go ahead and make the evening a little sweeter with boozy cupcakes. With boozy cupcakes you get the cake your birthday celebration deserves, with inspiration from your favorite cocktail. And as for topping off these sweet treats, you can leave that assortment of colored sprinkles right where they are — we have five fun ways to garnish boozy cupcakes just like a cocktail.

I know fruit smoothies can be plenty sweet on their own, but I like a little something more. My sweetener of choice is dates. They add the extra sweetness I crave along with subtle notes of rich caramel, and I feel good knowing I’m satisfying my sweet tooth with something wholesome. These dried fruits have also changed the way I make smoothies. When I toss dates into my smoothies, there’s always one thing I do first to guarantee the smoothest drink possible. Can you guess what it is?

The party problem: You want to make s’mores, but you don’t have a grill or a fire pit. The party trick: Use a terra-cotta planter to toast all the marshmallows. Some might argue that s’mores are the best part of any backyard barbecue. There’s just something so magical about a marshmallow that’s been roasted over charcoal briquettes (eh, a gas grill is alright, too).

If you’ve ever brought a package of dates home, on at least one occasion you’ve probably pulled them out to find them looking kind of crystallized on the outside and way more firm than you remember. Am I right? Here’s the thing about dates — these sweet fruits continue to dry out (and eventually harden up) as they age. It happens when they’re stored properly, and even faster when they’re not.

Last year when I was developing a recipe for breakfast sandwiches, I had one major goal in mind: to create a recipe with the creamiest eggs imaginable. I envisioned eggs that tasted like an indulgent upgrade from an everyday plate of scrambled eggs — soft and tender, with an unmatchable creamy richness. After trying a few different mix-ins, I struck gold, in the most delicious way possible. It forever changed the way I make everything from scrambled eggs to egg casseroles.