Saturday, August 9, 2008

Tough Times - Tough People

If you are keeping up with the news these days you know the times are tough! We are all having to adjust our budgets just to keep up with gas and food prices. These times call for tough measures. While reading the newspaper this week there was an article saying that the cost of ice cream is going up. Now that's getting personal....don't mess with my ice cream!

Some of my fondest memories involve the times our family would get together and make homemade ice cream. My mother-in-law would mix the farm fresh cream, sugar, fresh eggs, and vanilla, and then the cranking began. Yes, I said cranking (we didn't have electric mixers in the beginning). With the mixer packed with ice and salt we began to take turns cranking the machine. The first to get their turn had it made because it was almost effortless, but as the ice cream thickened, it got really hard to crank. The men usually stepped in to show their muscles and soon it was time to sample the goods. Everyone hurried to get in line to fill their bowls with the smooth and tasty treats, and we were never disappointed.

I still enjoy the ice cream in the freezer sections of the local grocery stores, but somehow, on a hot summer day, nothing can beat the taste of the old fashioned homemade ice cream made in the old wooden mixers.

Simple tip of the month:

To save money you can buy a less expensive cut of meat and marinate it in 1/2 cup vinegar and 1 cup bouillon. It will cook up much more tender.