Grilled Peach Ice Cream with Gingersnap and Caramel

At some point in my elementary school education, my mom thought it a wise idea to sign me up for sewing camp. You are probably stooped as to what “sewing camp” could actually entail but let me please just remind you that a) I am from a small town and b) obviously sewing is a marketable skill for women these days (oh wait, maybe its not). My mom would drop me off each day with my sac lunch and sewing tool box and I would belly up to a table with a bunch of other girls whose moms thought this was a good use of summer. We took direction from little old ladies as our machines buzzed and we chatted and I actually do recall kind of getting into it (okay, I admit I liked it). We made pouches and pajama pants and a few other non-essentials, but more importantly, we learned how to sew. We learned how to create. We perpetuated this lost art of homemaking that somehow our career-driven has opted to drown out.

husBen left for Michigan on Wednesday to join his family at their lake house so I have been flying solo all week. I have mostly busied myself working then hanging out with friends each night (thanks for taking care of my time good friends) so as not to slip into quiet solitude (which I occasionally don’t mind doing, but could produce in me an antisocial indulgence if I habituate myself in the practice for too long). Finally reaching some free time on Friday night, I lugged out my sewing machine and plopped it down on the dining room table with good intention to tailor a dress that I wanted to wear out; I had committed to “go out” with my kid brother on a Friday night, which meant I had to wait around til 11 o’clock when these freshly post-grad kids deem it finally acceptable to begin their night. 

My sewing machine is ancient, but still functional. I just stared at it initially, wondering if I really even remembered how to use it. Then my hands grabbed the thread and then with some sort of intrinsic guidance, began to trace it around the necessary twists and turns in order to load it (the muscle memory involved in this task truly amazed me, that somehow the recesses of my brain stored this information as valuable and allowed me to recall it). I appreciated my mom in that moment for forcing my skinny awkward elementary school self into such a thing as sewing camp.

To further my home-skills this week, I also made some ice cream. I recently saw a recipe for homemade vanilla in Bon Appétit and thought I ought to jazz it up a bit. The basic recipe for Vanilla is below but feel free to doctor it up as you please!

Grilled Peach Ice Cream with Gingersnap and Caramel

Combine 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup whole milk, 1/4 cup sugar, and a pinch of kosher salt in a medium saucepan. Split 1/2 vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape in seeds; add pod (or use 1 teaspoon vanilla extract). Bring mixture just to a simmer, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat. If using vanilla bean, cover; let sit 30 minutes. Whisk 5 large egg yolks and 1/4 cup sugar in a medium bowl until pale, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup warm cream mixture. Whisk yolk mixture into remaining cream mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick enough to coat a wooden spoon, 2–3 minutes. Strain custard into a medium bowl set over a bowl of ice water; let cool, stirring occasionally. Process custard in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.

(Straight from BA, August 2013)

I made the above recipe then…

Grind 2 cups of gingersnaps and 1 tube of almond paste in a food processor until it resembles sand.

Slice 3 firm peaches and soak in a bowl with 2 tablespoons Amaretto liquer, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, 1 tablespoon brown sugar and a pinch of salt. Grill on a grill pan rubbed with butter for about 2 minutes on each side (over medium-high heat).

Layer your homemade vanilla ice cream with alternating layers of gingersnap crumbs and the grilled peaches. Serve drizzled with warm caramel sauce. Share with people you love.