SLICE of HEAVEN

This Spring I have been able to test out a few new cake recipes and all of them have been wonderful! Coconut Lime Cupcakes for Easter...

Carrot Cake for a Sunday afternoon treat...

and Raspberry Vanilla Ice Cream Cake for David's Birthday.

I hope that you can grab a cup of coffee...a fabulous magazine

...and a small slice of heaven...

before heading out to soak up the beautiful Spring sunshine 

...and a moment of quiet bliss! 

 Elizabeth's Ice Cream Cake: 

 3/4 box of Nilla Wafers 

 1 cup walnuts 

1 cup turbanado sugar 

1 Tbs. cinnamon 

1/2 cup melted butter 

____________________ 

 1 gallon Vanilla Ice Cream 

2 pints Sorbet 

Directions: Pulse ingredients in the food processor until it is a crumbly mixture. 

Press into a spring form pan and bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown and just coming away from the sides of the pan. 

 While you allow the crust to cool, take out a gallon of Vanilla Ice Cream (I use Dreyer's Vanilla Bean) and 2 pints of sorbet (I use Haagen-Dazs). Let the ice cream and the sorbet come to a soft texture, but not melted, before beginning your cake assembly. 

 I layer one pint sorbet, vanilla ice cream, then top with another pint of sorbet. Smooth each layer down before adding the next layer on top (fyi...clean hands often work better than a spoon to smooth out layers). Wrap in plastic wrap and return to freezer overnight or for at least 3 hours in order for the ice cream to harden and the crust to cool completely. 

 ***Variations have included pumpkin ice cream/french vanilla ice cream with a ginger snap crust for a unique Autumn dessert. 

 Also, the option is always there to mix sorbets, this time I used one pint of peach and one of raspberry and it was a fun change!

Soon I am going to be trying a 'cookies and cream' ice cream cake...I'll report back with which ingredients I decide to use and how that turns out!

PIONEER WOMAN

When we began our blog in 2008, it was all because we moved to Germany and we wanted to be able to communicate with our family and friends during our European adventure.

I had no idea that "blogging" was such an amazing world in and of its own...we moved to Germany  before the MAJOR Facebook craze, the iphone, even Pinterest....and "blogging" as a past time, wasn't even a part of my vocabulary.

Fast forward a few years and we were getting ready to move to Texas (definitely not as glamorous as Germany) though still full of excitement....I kept the blog thinking that it would still be a great way to document our adventures and communicate our Air Force life with our loved ones in the PNW.  

Then I got here.  To Texas.

In June.  In the 108* temps of the Texas summer.  

We had no furniture.  I had no job.  I had no friends.  Life was bleak.  

But, I quickly learned that there is one thing that Texas has an abundance of...old things.  There are loads of places to find antiques, flea market steals, yard sales and treasures.  In Texas there are also a TON of home improvement stores, with great military discounts!

So...I began to explore this one horse town, and I began to think of creative ways to reuse, and refurbish items purchased for little to nothing.  Amazingly enough I learned quickly what a can of spray paint can do to really change the look of things....and fill up the hours in my day!  

So along with my need for a creative outlet, my desire to jazz up and recycle knick knacks, and my utter loneliness...I discovered the world of DIY projects and the blogosphere where people share them.

While seeking out creative inspiration online, I found a blog called The Pioneer Woman, which quickly became my go-to for cooking.  The Pioneer Woman shares her recipes in step by step form and she is very real when she opens the door to her family home in Oklahoma, revealing the true colors of owning a farm and raising children.

Last month I had the privilege of seeing Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, speak at the Wichita Falls Country Club.  She was as fantastic as her writing and her show on the Food Network.  

She is funny, sweet, and most of all she is very real.  She spoke of how she began her blogging and her photography adventures and how they became a wonderful part of her life when she was looking for a creative outlet.  

It was such an inspiration to me to hear that no matter what the circumstances are around you...you can create a life that you love.

It was wonderful to be reminded that you can be successful, creative, fulfilled, and purposeful no matter what road your life leads you to...

...and I must say that for a young military wife, who isn't ever quite sure of the next road, the next chapter, or even the next city, it is a very good lesson to hear...

...that no matter where we go......or what road The Fox Family may head down......I can find purpose and inspiration in my day...everyday.