Hot Cocoa Ice Cream inspired by The Branson Beauty

The book tour stops here today for The Branson Beauty, the debut novel by Claire Booth. The first in a planned series, this mystery is set in the Ozark region of southern Missouri, during the wintertime. Recently appointed sheriff Hank Worth responds to an emergency call, where a popular local attraction The Branson Beauty, a showboat, has crashed and its paddlewheel has been wedged into some boulders.

In a county that's low on both fund and resources, rescuing the 100 people on the boat, most of whom are elderly (some in wheelchairs) in freezing weather conditions proves to be a challenge...which turns out to be minor compared to the dead body of a beloved young local track star he finds locked in the boat's private dining room.

Fresh Peach and Whiskey Ice Cream

I've got a double-whammy to share with you today—Eat a Peach Day and this month's round of she made, ella hace with my friend Leslie from La Cocina de Leslie! Two reasons for one delicious post. Well, I guess it's actually two since both Leslie and I are sharing a recipe. Hmmm, so maybe it's a triple-whammy. Or would that make it a quadruple-whammy? I'll let you ponder that (or not) while I turn my attention to PEACHES!

My kids went back to school this past week, but we still have another month of summer to go—that means tons of fresh produce is still rolling in. My kitchen looks a little ridiculous right now. My counters and table are overrun by tomatoes, chiles, zucchini and yellow squash, corn on the cob, and green beans. I'm not even the one with a garden, my neighbors are. Not that I'm complaining (much), but I find myself without any space in my teeny-tiny kitchen to prepare or put it all up!

So what do I do? Hit up the market and roadside stands for deep ruby plums and fuzzy peaches. You know, so I can fill in the tiny gaps and form teetering pyramids. The fruit disappears in a flash, though, so I had to snag a couple of those peaches to make this ice cream. Yeah, I'm still in full-on ice cream mode, too.

Baseball Nut Ice Cream (a copycat Baskin-Robbins recipe)

You know how certain foods, just like certain songs, can transport you back to a certain moment in time? For me, Baseball Nut ice cream is one of those foods. I didn't plan such a perfectly round number, but it was exactly 20 years ago this summer that I didn't go home from college for the summer for the first time. It was the summer after my sophomore year, and really, the next step in exercising my independence.

I rented the tiniest room known to man in a house rented by some of my friends who were already living out of the dorms. Seriously, it should have been a closet. My twin bed was just able to squeeze in between 3 of the walls, my other stuff in boxes stacked high against the fourth wall. I didn't have any room to walk, only enough room to open and close the door. After about a week or two, there was no hot water in the house and it was filthy (my housemates were all guys)—but I was on my own.

I didn't have a car, but it was the mid-90's, which meant that I rollerbladed everywhere. I lived in East Lansing, but worked in Okemos, which was about a 3 mile treck. I had pretty much the same meal every day: a sleeve of saltines, a tin of tuna fish, and an orange. Once a week I'd walk to Subway and order a Subway Club with light mayo and salt and pepper. And every once in a while I'd treat myself by popping in to Baskin-Robbins and ordering a double-scoop of Baseball Nut Ice Cream. Only that, never anything else.

No-Churn Butter Pecan Ice Cream inspired by Butter | #FoodnFlix

I will state the obvious before I go any further. I made ice cream as my Food 'n Flix inspiration two months in a row. I don't know why that makes me feel a wee bit guilty; both are rooted in the particular movie and both were too delicious to let that guilt weigh too heavy on my mind. So, on to this month's inspiration...

This month's Food 'n Flix pick is Butter, as chosen by our hostess Evelyne of Cheap Ethnic Eatz. Here's the thing—I picked up a copy of the dvd when it was first released...and didn't really like it. There were funny bits, and the opening scene of movie said it was "...the cut-throat story of greed, blackmail, sex, and butter." I had high hopes, but it just didn't connect.

I think it was just that I could not stand the racist, elitist snob that was Laura Pickler (played by Jennifer Garner). When I think about it, it's funny that a single character could overshadow (in my mind) the great characters played by Ty Burrell, Olivia Wilde, Alicia Silverstone, Rob Corddry, and Yara Shahidi. But, I gave it a second chance. Wiped the slate clean and decided to watch it as if it were the first time.

No-Churn Baby Ruth Chunk Ice Cream inspired by The Goonies

Like most other children of the 80's, I hold The Goonies in cult classic status. I've worn out a couple of VHS tapes in my day, and even a DVD. I can spout off one-liners and amuse (annoy) my kids by reciting every line of every character while they're trying to watch it. Unlike Andy, I most definitely am a Goonie. This month I'm going into it with a nod to the food of The Goonies.

Obviously Chunk lends the most fodder to the flick. The 80's thrived on anti-PC characters. Of course, the chubby kid gets to have all the fun. From pizza and milkshakes to twinkies (deleted scene) and candy bars to potato chips and ice cream—it revolves around Chunk. But the thing is, he doesn't just eat it to eat it—he's passionate about it. I mean, he can wax poetic about the glories of ice cream when there's "a stiff" mere inches from the cartons. How can you not love Chunk?

Is there other food inspiration to be found? Yes, there definitely is. You need only look to the Fratellis (Italian), Steph (fresh crab), Brand (muscle building food), Data (Chinese), or perhaps a little Octopus (the deleted scene that Data alludes to towards the end). And I was so very close to using one of the best Mouth (slash Mama Fratelli) scenes for inspiration; not Veal Scallopini, not Fettucini Alfredo, but—you guessed it—TONGUE!