Caregivers are not invisible

It is very often that people focus too much on the sickly and forget about the caregivers. A girlfriend once told me that during the time when she was caring for her husband who had terminal cancer, they often had friends and relatives visit to see how her husband was doing. They all showed concern to him and never once did they ask her how she was doing. Everyone of us hopes that we do not need to be a caregiver. In fact, we probably never even think about it, but the truth is we never know. If we should be called to this sad duty, I am sure we would hate to be treated by friends and family as if we were invisible. Please click on the photo below to read an article which may be worth reading about how caregivers suffered themselves for those they loved.

Please click on the photo to read the article

Perhaps this article will make us think that we need to be more sensitive to the caregivers if the need arises. How about asking the caregivers how they are doing and if they need an ear or some help when you visit the sick friend and relative of yours. I was thinking of making a tub of homemade ice cream and bring with me to visit my friends who are caregivers and tell them that I am thinking of them. They have my sympathy for what they are going through.  I am sure a small gesture of support will give them much comfort.

I would like to dedicate this post to all caregivers in the world. Please know that what you give is not your possessions but yourselves and this is life's greatest value.

I have attempted several times to make ice cream with the little ice cream machine I bought last year but the ice cream turned out too icy in all of those attempts and I had given up trying to make my own. Then last week, we ran out of ice cream and my Quay Lo found this recipe which is a super, easy to make, homemade vanilla ice cream recipe without the need to use an ice cream machine. How cool is that? I was ecstatic at the result because it was such a success. It is a delectable, creamy, rich, scrumptiously tasty, irresistable, and rewarding dessert.  I thought I had died and gone to heaven already. (Am I gushing? LOL!)

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream without using a machine

Adapted  from http://www.davidlebovitz.com with slight modification

Make 1 quart tub of ice cream.

Ingredients:

1 cup (250ml) whole milk

a pinch of salt

3/4 cup (130g) sugar (the original recipe is 150g)

2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (the original recipe is 1 vanilla bean)

2 cups (500ml) heavy cream

7 large egg yolks

Method:

1. Heat the heavy cream, milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and set aside. Add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour.

2. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the yolks, whisking beaten egg yolks into the warm milk. Whisk constantly as you pour.

3. Add vanilla beans into the egg yolk and milk mixture. Cook over low heat, stiring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula. Transfer custard in a cold metal container.

4. Remove the vanilla pod from the custard and freeze the custard in your freeze. Remove the custard once every 20 – 30 minutes and re-stir with a spatula around the edges and blending well without allowing much melting. Repeat for at least 10 times. Do not skimp on this as it is the reason you do not need the machine.  

Note: If you refer a less rich ice cream, you may reduce or one or two eggs for a lighter custard. You could also substitute half-and-half (half whole milk and half heavy cream) for using just heavy cream, but the final texture won’t be as rich or as smooth. This all comes down to personal taste. The recipe, as it stands, makes a very rich, unctious and velvety ice cream, much like a rich gelato. You can experiment if you think you want an ice cream that is lighter. You should have no problem not wasting any of it. Just invite some friends to come and try if there are not enough kids and husbands in your house to finish each delicious attempt. Just remember that if you invite others over, they may not want to leave. You know what they say: "You scream, I scream, we all scream for ice cream". LOL!

Banana Foster - The original recipe from Chef Paul

I do not usually have a sweet tooth but this is one dessert, perhaps second to Crème Brulee,  that I love.  It is so simple to make but it just taste divine!  Want to know more about this recipe which was created in 1950, here is the link http://www.neworleansrestaurants.com/recipes/recipes_brennans.html

Serving: 4

Ingredients:

¼ cup (½ stick) butter

1 cup brown sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ cup banana liqueur

4 bananas, cut in slices about 1 cm thick

¼ cup dark rum

4 scoops vanilla ice cream



4 red cherries (optional)

Method:

Combine the butter, sugar, and cinnamon in a flambé pan or skillet. Place the pan over low heat on the burner, and cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the banana liqueur, then place the bananas in the pan. When the banana sections soften and begin to brown, carefully add the rum. Continue to cook the sauce until the rum is hot, then tip the pan slightly to ignite the rum. When the flames subside, lift the bananas out of the pan and place four pieces over each portion of ice cream. Generously spoon warm sauce over the top of the ice cream and top each scoop of ice cream with a cherry. Serve immediately. (You can tell from my picture that pausing to take a photo can cost you a bit of melting but honestly,  it still tasted divine.)