There's this little place in the next little town over called Sunni Skies. It's an ice cream shop that has 40+ flavors of ice creams and all are homemade. We've been many times before and always look forward to the NEXT time...it's so good! Well worth the 20 minute drive.
I wish I could tell you that every time we go we all try different flavors. That, would be a lie! We've all found our comfort zone or comfort flavor, I should say. If I had to analyze it, it would fit our personalities to a "T".
1st M always gets vanilla. He's my purist. Sometimes, when he's living on the wild side, he'll get a drizzle of hot fudge. This day, he did!
2nd M switches between crazy flavors & milkshakes. She's my free spirit. She was trying to be more grown up so she sided with a milkshake this day.....but went with cookie dough ice cream as the base to prove she's still a little girl!!!
3rd M...good gosh, she's all over the place. She was delighted to get the blue ice cream, which was cotton candy. Yucky for us, pure sugar heaven for her.
When it comes to this place, R and I are comfortably predictable. We started out trying different things, but we found this one flavor that just hooked us.
Coconut Cookie Ice Cream...Just the best ice cream in the world! We have been faithful to this flavor for the past couple of times now. However, like all love affairs, this one will someday end. As I was walking out, I saw a man with a huge waffle cone filled with blueberry ice cream that I began coveting. That may be my next obsession. (and come on...blueberries have to be healthier and lower in fat than this coconut cookie!!!)
Our next weekend treat was an old stand-by, but never less loved. Grilled Rib Eyes. I can't begin to tell you the love we have for grilled rib eyes. Of course, as you know from previous entries, we're trying to limit our beef/pork intake to once a week. This is our exception.
R always beats himself up because he'll find any little thing to say he didn't grill them perfectly, but he always does. This weekend, I paired these beauties up with that pattypan squash I got from the farmer's market. It was the perfect side. Actually, if they were a little bigger and stuffed a little more, it could be a main entree by itself. But, I didn't over stuff them and they were smallish.
Here's what I did:Stuffed Pattypan Squash
serves 4
4 pattypan squash
1/3 lb ground pork, (I used 90/10)
1/2 white onion, diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
3 Tbs fresh parsley, divided, chopped
1 cup plus 1/3 cup shredded cheese, divided ( I used provolone & mozzarella)
salt & pepper to taste
In a large covered pot, bring about 1 -1 1/2" of water to a boil Place squash in water and boil for about 10-15 mins (depending on how large your squash is) or until you can easily stick a knife through the flesh. Remove and drain on paper towels. Let cook long enough to handle easily.
Slice off the tops of the squash and using a melon baller, scoop out the insides. Be careful to not tear the skin. Rough cut 1/2 of the squash and set aside. (I chose the pieces without lots of seeds)
In the meantime, brown the ground pork for a couple of minutes then add the onion, jalapeno, red pepper flakes and salt & pepper. Cook until pork is browned and onions are translucent. Add the chopped squash and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add parsley and cheese.
Put the hollowed out squash in a round cake pan (it's what I grabbed first and it worked...use whatever you want that has sides) and using large spoons, scoop into squash. Top with a sprinkling of shredded cheese and a little parsley.
Bake for 15 in a 375 degree oven.
As you can see, these were super simple but were also super tasty! Use what you have left
*this would also be terrific if you crumbled up a little bacon in the stuffing or if you used a gourmet cheese. I can also only imagine how delicious it would be with spicy Italian Sausage. Next time!
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