Super Easy Ice Cream Cake

My son, Caleb has a summer birthday in July.  Ice cream cake is a nice option for his cake. This year we were in the middle of moving during his birthday so an easy cake was all we could manage.  This cake is SUPER EASY and quite tasty as it is made with ice cream sandwiches which most people really like.

Build the base with rows of ice cream sandwiches

Spread cool whip over the top (chocolate cool whip gives a nicer look, but I couldn't find any)

three layers makes a nice size cake

Freeze until cool whip is frozen and decorate

Enjoy!

Household Tip: Organizing Your Grocery Shopping Trip

I confess. I hate grocery shopping! I try to get in and out as fast as I can. I believe this tip has shaved 20 minutes off of my grocery run each week (over 17 hours per year). If you tend to do one main shopping trip each week, and shop at the same store most of the time, this will work wonders for you.

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1. Visit your store with pen and paper in hand and make a list of what type of items the store stocks on each aisle. Just note general categories and note the aisle numbers. For instance: #13 baking/canned beans, veg & fruits/soups

2. On the computer make a one page, aisle by aisle, blank shopping list that you can print off. In addition to the aisle by aisle list you'll have all those items that can be found around the perimeter of the store such as "seasonal/holiday," "deli/bakery," "produce," "meats," and "dairy." Put those on your list in the order that you come to them in the store. Leave extra space under each category that you buy a lot of items in. I have the biggest space under "produce."

3. If there is another store that you almost always visit on the same trip, make a category for that store on the end of your list.

4. Print copies of your list (scrap paper that has already been printed on one side is great for this) and attach one to your refrigerator each week. Instruct your family to mark down any items you need under the proper category on the list as you discover you need them. No more "I didn't know we were out of ketchup . . ."

5. When you get to the store you can glance quickly at what you need in each aisle or section of the store, you won't have to stop to mark things off your list. You can see which aisles you don't need to go down at all which saves a lot of time and frustration--especially if you shop with young children.

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Additional tips for your grocery trip:

* Plan weekly menus and mark all the items you will need down on your list--don't try to guess at the store.
* Sort coupons before you go.
* Wipe out your refrigerator shelves before you shop when they are at their emptiest for the week.
* Grab your reusable shopping bags, or better yet, put them back in your car after you unpack your groceries so you always have them handy.
* Will you need a cooler or insulated bags?

Kitchen Tip: Save time and money!

In our home we have a lot of stir frys since it's a great, quick way to feed the family a little protein and several servings of vegetables. Since my husband likes to eat low-carb, he can have the stir fry and the rest of us add rice or noodles. The money saving part comes in by buying large family packs of chicken or inexpensive cuts of lean beef at the supermarket or warehouse store and using small amounts of meat and a lot of vegetables in each stir fry. So, what do I do with those large packages and how does this save time?

I pop the whole package, as is, into the freezer for an hour or two to firm it up for cutting into very thin slices. When it is partially frozen, it cuts very easily. I rinse the meat and then slice the entire package and put the slices into a large bowl. I then add all the ingredients that I would normally add for a stir fry marinade. For a couple of our favorite recipes, look below.

Leave just enough in the bowl to use for that night's dinner. Cover the bowl and put it in the refrigerator to marinate for an hour or more. The rest gets divided up into quart size freezer storage bags in portions large enough for your family. Seal the bags carefully pressing out all the air and pat the bags flat so they freeze quickly. Freeze them right away. The meat will marinate as it thaws when you are ready to use it for a quick, healthy family meal. On a busy night, half the work of meal prep will already be done for you and you save time in general by prepping everything for several meals all at the same time.

Pictured above:  Citrus Chicken Stir Fry with yellow summer squash, white onion "petals" and delicate enoki mushrooms.

CITRUS CHICKEN STIR FRY MARINADE

adjust the amount of each ingredient according to the size of the batch and your family's taste

fresh orange juice

low sodium soy sauce

fresh ginger, minced

green onions, sliced

pepper, optional

small amount of fresh orange or lemon zest (for more citrus flavor)

SAVORY BEEF STIR FRY MARINADE

adjust the amount of each ingredient according to the size of the batch and your family's taste

low sodium soy sauce

small amount of rice vinegar

oyster sauce

fresh garlic, minced or sliced very thin

fresh ginger, minced

green onions, sliced

drizzle of roasted sesame oil

pepper, optional

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To Prepare Stir Fry:

Thinly slice vegetables of your choice and have them ready to add to the stir fry.

Heat a wok or large frying pan and quickly saute the marinated meat in a small amount of peanut or canola oil. Add vegetables one by one according to how long they will take to cook--for instance, the delicate, straw like, enoki mushrooms in the stir fry pictured above were added just before the heat was turned off. Do not overcook the vegetables. This can take some practice, but it always tastes good anyway. If you want to thicken the sauce with cornstarch mixed with water, do this at the end. Optional:  top with chopped peanuts, green onions or pepper flakes.

Serve with rice or noodles if you like. For a nutrition boost I usually serve it with fragrant brown basmati rice, brown jasmine rice or very quick cooking buckwheat soba noodles if I forgot to start the rice 40 minutes early (brown rice takes longer than white rice to cook).

Enjoy,  Sue