WINDING UP THE HOLIDAYS

So, the outside decorations are down and in the basement, and the last of the straggler presents has been opened. The holidays are really winding down. I guess I'll go back to work on Monday. Sigh.

In more exciting news, L got me the ice cream maker attachment for the Kitchen Aid Mixer she got when we got married. That, along with David Lebovitz's "The Perfect Scoop" should make for a delicious summer. But, like a kid getting a baseball mitt for Christmas, we had to play a little out of season. So far we have had banana sorbet, and (decaf, after all, there's a toddler to think of!) Mocha sorbet. Each has been fantastic. I really like the banana sorbet because all it has in it is bananas, water, sugar, and a little lime juice. It is sooooo banana-y. Good stuff.

Of course, life is not all about good recipes that work. You know those easy, comforting cookies made by wrapping chocolate chip cookie dough around a Hershey's Kiss, rolling the resulting ball in coconut and baking? Well, let me tell you, you CANNOT replace the Kiss with a Special Edition Cherry Cordial Kiss. I know it seems like it would be great because the cookie would have a chocolate/cherry flavor in the middle. In the event, what happens is that the chocolate melts, the cordial runs out, hardens, and you get a cookie with a cherry concrete center. Just a word to the wise . . .