Double Dark Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream {Get Your Chef On}

I am not going to lie- when Julie from White Lights on Wednesdays and Jen from Four Marrs and One Venus announced that this month's Get Your Chef On ingredient was CHOCOLATE, I was pretty stoked.  I actually had a deep, rich, decadent chocolate recipe stashed in my back pocket (or at least in my Draft posts) that I had not published yet to my readers.  Plus, I had won Get Your Chef On once before with an ice cream recipe...  Maybe another ice cream recipe could get me back the GYCO title? ;)

What you will need:

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup cocoa powder

2 oz (2 squares) of baking chocolate, chopped

2 cups of milk

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

2-3 oz of  your favorite dark chocolate bar, chopped

In a small saucepan over medium heat, mix together the sweetened condensed milk and the cocoa powder.  Continue heating for about 2 minutes.  Add in the chopped baking chocolate and heat for an additional minute until everything is melted and well incorporated- mix the entire time!

Pour the heated chocolate mixture into a bowl and then quickly and vigorously whisk in the 2 cups of milk.  I am serious here- whisk vigorously.  The chocolate mixture will try to seize on you when you add the milk so it has to be a constant whisking.  We want creamy ice cream here, folks.  Not fudge. ;)

Once well mixed, whisk in the vanilla and salt.  

Chill the chocolate mixture in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

In the meantime, be sure to chill the container for your ice cream maker.

Once chilled, process the chocolaty ice cream base in your ice cream maker according to your maker's specifications.  (I churned mine for about 25 minutes.)

Once churned, use a spatula to scoop and scrape the chocolate ice cream into a freezer safe container.  Fold in your chopped dark chocolate bar.
Cover and place in the freezer for at least 2-3 hours, or overnight.

Because homemade ice cream always freezes harder than the store bought varieties, allow your container to sit out at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before scooping it out.

This Double Dark Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream is seriously the best, most chocolate loaded ice cream I have ever ate.

Ever.
And I am not just saying this because I really want to win Get Your Chef On again. 

I am a dark chocolate fiend, and this cured my craving for it every single time.

Double Dark Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

by Frugal Foodie Mama

Prep Time: 2 hours, 10 minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours or overnight (to freez

Keywords: freeze dessert chocolate milk sweetened condensed milk ice-cream

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Ingredients (6-8 servings)

• 1 can of sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 oz (2 squares) of baking chocolate, chopped
• 2 cups of milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2-3 oz of your favorite dark chocolate bar, chopped

Instructions

In a small saucepan over medium heat, mix together the sweetened condensed milk and the cocoa powder. Continue heating for about 2 minutes. Add in the chopped baking chocolate and heat for an additional minute until everything is melted and well incorporated- mix the entire time!

Pour the heated chocolate mixture into a bowl and then quickly and vigorously whisk in the 2 cups of milk. I am serious here- whisk vigorously. The chocolate mixture will try to seize on you when you add the milk so it has to be a constant whisking. We want creamy ice cream here, folks. Not fudge. ;)

Once well mixed, whisk in the vanilla and salt.

Chill the chocolate mixture in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

In the meantime, be sure to chill the container for your ice cream maker.

Once chilled, process the chocolaty ice cream base in your ice cream maker according to your maker's specifications. (I churned mine for about 25 minutes.)

Once churned, use a spatula to scoop and scrape the chocolate ice cream into a freezer safe container. Fold in your chopped dark chocolate bar.

Cover and place in the freezer for at least 2-3 hours, or overnight.

Because homemade ice cream always freezes harder than the store bought varieties, allow your container to sit out at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before scooping it out.

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2013 Father's Day Man Cave Filler Giveaway

I have joined up with a group of awesome bloggers to bring you all the ultimate Father's Day giveaway!  Sure we could have gave away a grill, or some fancy designer tie, but we all know what dad would really like... cold, hard cash- Paypal cash!!  You could buy something nice for Dad with it or just give him the cash. ;)  And we are not giving away just one Paypal cash prize, but THREE! 

And make sure you take a few moments and check out the newest blogging book... 

The Blogger's Survival Guide: Tips and Tricks for Parent Bloggers, Wordsmiths and Enthusiasts

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Whipped Captain {Our Signature Wedding Cocktail}

It has been two years today since I married my high school sweetheart (delayed).  I say delayed, because although we graduated from the same high school during the same year we never once dated during our high school careers.  We even worked together at the same restaurant during college and still nothing.  Fast forward about 12 years and we happened upon each other on Facebook. 

Then we happened to be in our hometown at the same time and met up for lunch just to catch up...

And well, the rest is history. ;)

As we started planning our spring wedding, I kept reading about how the trendy thing to do for a wedding reception was to have a signature cocktail available for the guests.  

Being a former bartender, the wheels started turning and  I decided I wanted to combine my favorite liquor with my husband's- Captain Morgan and Pinnacle Whipped Vodka. 

Thus, the Whipped Captain was born.  (Appropriate for a wedding, don't you think? ;) )

The Whipped Captain is pretty simple (much like our wedding reception was) and straight forward (much like how my husband and I both are).

It is just-

1 part Captain Morgan

1 part Whipped Vodka

2-3 parts Coke (or Diet Coke)

Pour over ice and stir.  That's it!  I didn't really give exact measurements.  I usually do a shot of each of the liquors over ice and then pour in Coke to fill a rocks glass.  You could tailor this cocktail to be as weak or as strong as you would like. 

P.S.  My mother was even kicking back a few of these and she NEVER drinks liquor.  ;)

Today I want to raise a glass to my loving, amazing, supportive husband.  The past two years  were not always wedded bliss and rainbows.  We faced quite a few challenges and hard times together, and have also welcomed more joy and love into our lives than either one of us could have ever possibly imagined.  I couldn't imagine a man, a father to my children, a partner in this life that could be more perfect for me.  

After a few of the above mentioned Whipped Captains and a glass or two (or maybe 3?) of champagne. ;)

Please pour yourself a little Whipped Captain some time today and join me in raising a glass to real, beautiful, honest, hard loving marriage. <3

Did you or will you have a signature cocktail for your wedding reception?  Do tell in the comments- I love seeing how creative everyone is with these and the stories behind their cocktails! :)

Marvelous Mondays Link Party #47

 

Today is also the last day to bid on goodies (like homemade yummies from your favorite food bloggers, signed cookbooks from popular food bloggers, etc.) at the Baking For Kate Online Bake Sale!  We are getting so close to reaching the goal of $1000- all of which will be donated directly to my dear friend Kate and her family.  Kate is currently battling Stage IV breast cancer and has created a Mommy Bucket List to help create memories with her family while she can.  Please consider stopping by and bidding. <3

Also, I’m participating in a Good Old Fashioned Recipe Blog Swap! Julie {White Lights on Wednesday}, Kelley {Miss Information} and Rachel {i love my disorganized life} have paired up 30 incredible bloggers to trade blogs for the day.

Julie from White Lights On Wednesdays and I will be sharing a fabulous recipe on each other’s blogs {but we can’t tell you what they are, because they’re a secret!}. Be sure to visit both of us on May 27th, we wouldn’t want you to miss out on any deliciousness!

We had a pretty good amount of viewed links again last week! Thanks to each and every one of you for linking up and sticking around to visit some other bloggers’ posts. Carrie, Paula, and I can’t tell you just how thrilled we are. Let’s keep it up this week and continue to spread the bloggy love.

Now, let's move on to the party.

Your Hosts

Julie from This Gal Cooks

Carrie from Frugal Foodie Mama

Paula from Call Me PMc

Last week's most viewed link (we had a tie!):

My Favorite Blogging Resources by Krafty Cards Etc

   

Lego Peanut Butter Cake from Amy's Confectionery Adventures   

A few of our favorites from last week:

Pumpkin Better Than Disneyland Pie from Busy Mom's Helper

   

Coconut Ricotta Bites with Lime Syrup from Ma Niche

 

Mod Podge Shoes {Thrift Store Finds} from A Little Claireification

Party Rules

• Please follow your hosts and co-hosts via Twitter, Blog Lovin, Facebook or RSS Feed. Please leave a comment stating how you followed so your host can follow you back. Your host and co-host links can be found at the top of the party post.
• Please visit at least 2 other links. I suggest leaving a comment to let them know that you stopped by.
• Grab a button. It’s not mandatory but it helps get the word out about the party.
• Link up your recipes, crafts or DIY projects. Please link something that you made. No giveaways or shops, please.
• Please note that by linking up your posts and projects you are giving This Gal Cooks, Frugal Foodie Mama, and Call Me PMC permission to use your photos in the featured posts and possibly on our social media outlets. All photos will be linked back to your sites and your posts.

**Paula, Julie, and I please ask that you ONLY link up posts that you have not linked up before to Marvelous Mondays. We have been noticing some repeat posts being linked up recently. To be fair to all party-goers, please only link up NEW posts or posts that you have never linked up to our party before. We will not be "policing" post link-ups, but please note that repeat offenders' posts will not be featured on Marvelous Mondays. Thank you, all.

Have you entered the Gift Cards Galore Pre-Summer Gift Card Extravaganza? Up for grabs: a $400 gift card prize back! You can enter via the Rafflecopter below! As of the start of tonight's party, there are only 6 hours left to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Oreo Chocolate Mousse Cupcakes {A Guest Recipe from Curves and a Camera}

Happy Friday Foodies. I'm so excited to be guest blogging for Carrie here at the Frugal Foodie Mama. I have been following her blog via Facebook and Twitter long enough and figured it was time to start joining in the fun. So here I am guest blogging and visiting over from Curves and a Camera; where I do food/recipe posts, but also blog about being a plus-size fashionista, my love for classic/vintage inspired items/life and my journeys as a 30-something woman.

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Recently I started having Friday's be my "Foodie Friday" weekly post so when I had the chance to guest blog (thanks to being a Frugal Foodie Mama sponsor this month) I knew right away I wanted to do a recipe.

Last Saturday, my Portland family got together to acknowledge and celebrate the six mothers and five May birthdays. Since I'm pretty much the "designer baker" in the family I volunteered to do the "cake". What I ended up doing instead was Oreo Chocolate Mousse Cupcakes. Because who doesn't love a cupcake?

The entire family loved them! Even my sister K who doesn't like cake said they were delicious.

I will be honest they took me three days to make....BUT only because I made the cupcakes one night after work, the mousse the next day after work and then Saturday morning made the whipped cream and assembled them. Because there are so many steps, if you decide to try making them, set aside the better part of the day.

However, I will be honest....they were simple to make. I used boxed cake mix (although I doctor it up as you'll see below) and the mousse and whipped cream go by pretty fast. They are worth the effort I will tell you that!

If you've never done a filled cupcake before, here's my trick: wait until the cupcakes are completely cooled and then using a measuring tablespoon, carve out about two tablespoons worth of cake. I don't try to put the top back on - it's just being covered in frosting anyway. Hollowing them out this way allows for more of the mousse to be put into the center and prevents the cupcakes from splitting our their sides when just piping the cream directly in.

I found that putting the mousse into a pastry bag and piping it in was the easiest - use your largest tip and make sure to fill them FULL!

A word of caution (learn from my mistakes) make sure if you are folding cookie crumbs into your whipped cream that they are completely broken apart and very fine (no chunks). I ended up having one piece that kept clogging my pastry bag and I had to attack with a chopstick. (Yes, you read that correct. Attacked. With. A. Chopstick.)

In the end the cakes were moist (that's the trick with baking them at a cooler temperature), the mousse smooth and rich,  and the chocolate whipped cream fluffy and light. My family fought over how many they each got to take home after the party.

That's my last tip: Make extra because you'll want left overs!

Want more Curves and a Camera? I'm on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ and Bloglovin'. Hope on over to www.curvesandacamera.com to follow through multiple avenues.

Thanks, Carrie for letting me take over Frugal Foodie Mama today!

Baking For Kate {The Final Bake Sale Preview!}

It is hard to believe that the Baking For Kate online bake sale is happening AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT!!  I am so thankful to each and every one of the amazing food bloggers and creative and amazing women who have donated items for this bake sale.  I have been blown away by the generosity of so many!   And also by the outpouring of friends and family of Kate's and total strangers who have pledged to stop at the bake sale this weekend to bid on their favorite goodies.  :)

If you haven't done so already, please make sure you click on over and give the Baking For Kate Facebook page a Like.  That is where ALL the bidding will be taking place, and you don't want to miss out on bidding on one of your favorite goodies, now do you? ;)

Also, make sure you CLICK ON OVER HERE for all the bidding guidelines.  Please note that you MUST have a Paypal account to bid on items (this is how you will send the payment if you happen to be the highest bidder on an item) and you MUST have the bake sale items shipped to an address within the United States.  If you live outside the U.S. & have a Paypal account, you could still bid & send your goodies to a friend or family member in the States for a fun surprise!  Just a thought... :)

Okay, are you all ready for the last sneak peek of some of the amazing and yummy goodies that could be getting shipped to your home after this weekend?? 

And be sure to also follow my Baking For Kate Online Bake Sale Preview Board on Pinterest to see all the bake sale goodies in one place and to get a sneak peek of the starting bids for each item. 

Chocolate Covered Pretzel Caramel Cookies from from Meg at Sweet Twist of Blogging

Summer Fun in the Kitchen Gift Pack donated by Julie from This Gal Cooks

Ultimate Cookie Lovers Duo- Oreo Pudding Cookies & Death by Chocolate Sea Salt Cookies from Sarah at Fantastical Sharing of Recipes

Feed Them With Love 8x10 Print from Lisa at Wine & Glue

Coconut Oatmeal Cookie Bars from Lyuba at Will Cook For Smiles

Sweet Cupcake Crocheted Hat for Baby (Custom Size & Color) from Kelly of Star Blossoms

Autographed copy of The RecipeGirl Cookbook from Lori at RecipeGirl

The Essential Meal & Recipe Planning Pack- an 11x14 Dry Erase Menu Board & 24 Customizable Hand Stamped Recipe Cards

Created & donated by Carrie at Frugal Foodie Mama & Amy of Rational Designs

Custom Engraved Recipe Bamboo Board from Marcella's Engravables donated by Jaime from Mom's Test Kitchen

Autographed Copy of the SprinkleBakes Cookbook from Heather at SprinkleBakes

What are you most excited to bid on this weekend?  

Please continue to help spread the word!  Feel free to grab the bake sale button below and place it on your blog or website.  Also, use the hashtag #BakingForKate on Twitter and Instagram!  

If you missed my first preview of the bake sale items, make sure you check it out here.
See you all at the Baking For Kate Facebook Page at midnight when bidding starts for the weekend!  Thank you all again SO much!! :)

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Let's Finish The Fight {Sponsored Video}

All thoughts and opinions are my own. I am honored to have this opportunity to tell my story as part of the American Cancer Society’s 100th Birthday Celebration.

Cancer has always been a silent fear that I have carried with me.  My paternal grandmother died so very young from cancer.  

She was gone before my parents were even married.

Before I was even thought of.

I never met her.  I never knew her.  I often wonder how knowing her would have affected who I am, how I grew up, the mother I became...
And my father rarely spoke of her.

I don't fault him.  I know what he experienced with her... the sickness, the chemo treatments, the hospital stays... It must have been painful and heart wrenching for him.

Those are not exactly moments you want to recall, relive often.

So she has mostly remained a mystery to me.  Am I like her?  Is there some part of her that lives on in me?

And with that question, the fear and anxiety can often start.  What if this part of her- the cancer part- is the part of her that will live on in me and then take me like it did her?  

Because of this fear I have always been drawn towards organizations and fundraisers that support cancer research.  

Donating money or time felt like maybe just maybe I could be adding the drop to the bucket that might one day save my own life... or that of my sister.  Or my mother. 

Or a friend...

And presently that is a reality that I am living.  A dear friend of mine, a young mother of 3 has been diagnosed with a very rare genetic disorder that in turn has caused her to have a very aggressive form of breast cancer.  

So aggressive that it has already spread to her liver, her right shoulder joint, her right ribs, and in three different places in her spine.  The chances of a cure being found for her are less than 5%.  My friend is living a bucket list right now that she has created for her children and her family- to create memories while she can. (If you want to learn more about what I am doing to help Kate & her family and how you can help, please click on the Baking For Kate button over there on my right sidebar.)

My friend is living MY worst fear.  

In a few short days the American Cancer Society will turn 100 years old.  From it's humble beginnings in 1913, it has now become one of the leading organizations in the world funding cancer research.  The American Cancer Society has been there and helped play a hand in almost every single major breakthrough in cancer research in recent history.  

And now they want to finish the fight.  
Silence won't finish the fight.  Action will.

I commend the American Cancer Society's role in helping to fund research and treatment for preventative measures and early detection, and encourage them to look towards funding more research that would benefit those with metastatic and late stage cancers ... like my late grandmother.  And my friend Kate.  

Please take a moment to watch this video from the American Cancer Society.  Let's not be silent.  Let's demand that more life saving research be funded.   Let us not be silent until 3 out 3 people survive cancer.

This post is sponsored by the American Cancer Society.