Letters from Home

I listened to our new ABBA Greatest Hits CD all morning as I cleaned the house. When I was little, aside from having natural highlights in my hair (see above picture), I loved to dance to our ABBA  8-track in our front room on the gold shag carpet. I’d land on the floor and look up at the light fixture which had a golden circular screw which would reflect a tiny image of me. My memories of the seventies have a golden hue. It probably has something to do with the carpet, but I think it also has something to do with the happy childhood I had.

Nothing says good old American holiday weekend like homemade ice cream. Here’s a way to do it the old fashioned way. We did this for my science class on Friday. I’m posting pictures of our kids (the little cuties) making it 3 1/2 years ago in our rental house.

You will need

• 1 cup milk,
• 1 cup whipping cream,
• 1/2 tsp vanilla,
• 1/2 c sugar,

• 2 cups of rock salt,
• 1/2-3/4 bag of  ice,
• one #10 can with a lid,
• one 30 oz. can with a lid (look in the coffee aisle).

Mix the first four ingredients and pour into the small can.

If you’re being scientific, you can measure the temperature of your mixture.

Tape the small lid on the small can to prevent leaks. Place 1/2 cup of rock salt on the bottom of the BIG can and put a layer of ice down. Place the small can into the big can and pack more ice around it and on top of it, layering 1/2 c more rock salt with the ice. Place the lid on the big can, tape all around (to prevent leaks) and….

Start rolling the can across the floor… and keep rolling…

for 12 minutes.

After 12 minutes, unpack the small can and stir the ice cream and take a temperature reading (if you’re being scientific). Work quickly.

Tape the small lid back into place. You’ll notice that the ice in the big can has melted a lot. This is because the heat from the cream has passed from the small can to the super-cooled  ice. (Rock salt lowers the freezing point of ice, making the ice colder than “freezing,” and this draws more heat from the cream mixture. It’s the heat from the cream that melts the ice as the liquid cream turns to ice cream.) You’ll need to discard the old ice and salt and repack the big can with 1/2 c rock salt on the bottom and more fresh ice and 1/2 c rock salt around the small can. Tape the big lid in place and get rolling again…

Roll for 7 more minutes. Gloves are a good idea.

By this time, anticipation will be high and many hands will want to help…

You’ll have a nice creamy treat waiting for you in that little can.

Science before dessert…

All that hard work is worth it. Happy Labor Day!

I hope we made enough for Pack Meeting.