Gadgets: Zipzicles

A while back, as part of a review of an insulated sleeve that was designed to be used with ice pops (those frozen concoctions in plastic sleeves), I asked some of my friends - nearby and online - if they'd be willing to test them for me.

The unanimous answer was, "I don't buy those for my kids."

In some cases, the kids were too young to have them or too old for the product to be "cool," but the most common reason was a dislike of the ingredients -  too much sugar, use of artificial flavors and colors, and added corn syrup - were the main culprits.

So, when I saw Zipzicles (12 for $2.99) I thought they were pretty interesting. They're an incredibly simple product - essentially a tall, thin zip-top plastic bag. You fill the bag with your desired ingredients, zip the top closed, and freeze.

The bags are (theoretically) reusable, if you want to wash them and the kids don't rip or make a mess of them. Which is great, since they're a bit pricey - about a quarter apiece. But they're not so expensive that you'd fret too much if the neighborhood kids took them home after a birthday party, or if someone cut the top off instead of unzipping.

Speaking of unzipping, if kids don't finish the treats, the zip-top feature means that these can be re-sealed and re-frozen, so waste is minimized.

I'm guessing these would be most appealing to parents of kids with allergy issues for whom the store-bought versions are completely impossible. In fact, this product was dreamed up by a kid with allergy issues who wanted to have the same treats his friends had.

The adult use (since I don't have kids) was to make some frozen margaritas, and I have to say that frozen cocktails would be a fun item for a adult party. While I enjoyed my icy margaritas, I'm probably not going to make more - I actually prefer them in a glass.

The remaining bags, though, will be filled with pesto and tomato paste that I'll be freezing. Then I can unzip, squeeze out and break off what I need, and then rezip the bag and shove it back in the freezer. Whether I'll buy more bags for that purpose remains to be seen. I'll probably just rinse and re-use, since I'd be using the bags to store the identical product.

The one negative is the price. Folks whose kids have allergies will be more willing to pay, but I think that other parents will wait for the price to drop (or quantity to go up) before they make this a regular part of the summer lineup.

The product was supplied for the purpose of a review on Serious Eats; this was previously published on Serious Eats.

Malted Milk Ice Cream #IceCreamWeek

Welcome to #IceCreamWeek! Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita’s Cocina have teamed up with more than 20 of their blog friends to bring you a week full of ice cream treats, including a special ice cream giveaway! Prepare to have your taste buds tempted with some of the best ice cream treats around! Make sure you enter the giveaway for a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and two fabulous ice cream cookbooks so that you can join in on the ice cream fun!

There's a little bit of chocolate in this ice cream, but the prominent flavor is malt. Think about the inside of a malted milk ball rather than a malted milk that you'd drink.

To digress just a little, my mother was the queen of using wrong names. Andy Griffith was Andy Griffin, stuffed cabbages were pigs in blankets, and malted milk balls were moth balls.

Yeah, moth balls. Ick.

My favorite malted milk balls were the ones that showed up around Easter - the ones that were covered with a thin speckled candy coating and looked like robin's eggs. I loved those things even more than the common malted milk balls that were covered with strangely waxy chocolate.

Hmmm. Maybe it was the weird chocolate that I didn't like. I mean, I loved chocolate. But not so much on the moth balls. Er ... malted milk balls.

This ice cream is great on its own. Or, top it with some good chocolate, if you like.

Malted Milk Ice Cream

1 cup milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup malted milk powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons chocolate whipped vodka
1 tablespoon chocolate syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients until thoroughly blended. Refrigerate until completely chilled. Churn in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.

When the ice cream is finished churning, transfer it to a storage container and freeze until firm.

If you’d like to check out today’s #IceCreamWeek recipes, drool over the blogs below:

• Root Beer Floats by Cravings of a Lunatic
• Creamsicle Magic Shell by Juanita's Cocina
• French Macaron Ice Cream Sandwiches by The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen
• Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream by Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker
• Cookie Dough Ice Cream by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Green Tea Matcha Ice Cream by The Ninja Baker
• Banana Ice Cream by My Catholic Kitchen
• Coconut-Almond Fudge Ripple Ice Cream {No Machine Needed} by The Kitchen is My Playground
• Dark Chocolate Cookies & Cream Ice Cream by The Corner Kitchen
• Malted Milk Ice Cream by Cookistry
• Chocolate Mint Swirl Ice Cream by SugarHero!
• Toffee Brownies A La Mode Ice Cream Cake by Food Babbles
• Toffee Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches by Quarter Life (Crisis) Cuisine
• Honey Pecan Milkshakes by The Spiffy Cookie

Make sure you stop by our #IceCreamWeek Pinterest Board to enter to win bonus prizes. We have some amazing cookbooks up for grabs. All you need to do is comment on the current question pin to be eligible to win! Easy peasy!

And don't forget there's an awesome giveaway on THIS POST.

Zesty Salsa for Can-it-Forward Day

Until recently, I didn't even know Can-it-Forward day existed. But I can get behind it. I mean, it's better than some of the other crazy holidays.

You know, like Dryer Lint Day. Okay, I made that up. But it could exist, right?

So, you'll never guess what company is celebrating this canning day, big time. Wait - you already guessed? Yeah, Ball - those people who make all the canning jars and stuff.

Me, I'm getting a jump on the day. I just made a bunch of salsa using a kit that Ball sent me. It was a pretty simple kit, and geared for folks who want to make small batches of stuff.

I mean, not everyone needs dozens and dozens of jars of cherry jam, right?

But if you've never canned anything before, I have to warn you. Canning is addictive. When you sit back and look at the pretty jars full of lovely products that you canned yourself, you'll probably be thinking about what you can make next. You start with a couple innocent jars of salsa, and the next thing you know, you've got three kinds of pickles, five kinds of jam, and a whole shelf full of tomato products.

But that's a good thing. Home-canned products are a great gift. And it's wonderful to be able to grab a jar of tomatoes in the middle of winter and know that you canned them in summer when produce was at its peak.

The salsa I made was from the booklet that came with the canning kit, and it's scaled to make less than a vat of salsa. I ended up with four pints of salsa plus another half-cup or so of sample salsa that didn't get canned. That went straight to the fridge. It's already gone

This salsa can be made more or less spicy based on the peppers you choose. It's a pretty basic recipe, but it's a good place to start.

If you're wondering why one jar in the photo looks a lot more green than the others, that's because the jar is one of the special edition blue jars that Ball started selling this year. I think it looks kind of cool.

Zesty Salsa
Adapted from the Beginner's Guide to Canning & Recipe Booklet

5 cups chopped, cored, peeled tomatoes
2 1/2 cups chopped, seeded green bell peppers
2 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 1/4 cups chopped, seeded chili peppers (hot banana, hungarian, etc.)
2/3 cup cider vinegar
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (optional)

Get your stockpot and jars ready for action*.

Combine all the ingredients in a large stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat - but keep it boiling gently - and stir frequently. You don't want it to stick and burn. Cook until the mixture thickens a bit - about 10 minutes. No one wants a watery salsa, but you don't want it completely dry.

Note: Sometimes when I want a thick sauce that's still chunky, I'll blend part of the mixture. I usually use a stick blender to blend just a little. Or put a half-cup or a cup into a blender and blend until smooth, then add this back to the salsa in the pot.

Ladle the salsa into jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace*. Remove air bubbles, re-measure headspace. If needed, add more salsa to get to the right amount. Wipe the rim of the jar, center the lid on the jar, and screw the band on until it's fingertip-tight. You don't want to over-tighten, because air needs to leave the jar during the canning process.

Process the jars in a boiling water for 20 minutes (at sea level**). Remove the stockpot lid, wait 5 minutes, then remove the jars from the pot. Let them cool, then store them.

*If you're not sure about canning basics, I suggest checking out a canning book that explains all of it. Ball has a book - it's actually more of a thick magazine - with plenty of recipes along with complete instructions. I see it every year at stores that sell canning supplies. I also wrote a blog post about it here.

**If you live at higher altitude, you need to process longer. I had to let mine process for 30 minutes.

Can-it-Forward Day

So here's the scoop on Can-it-Forward Day. If you live in New York, you can experience the action, live. The rest of us get a webcast and social media stuff.

You want some salsa, don't you?

• On August 17 from 10am to 2pm (eastern), there will be a free, live webcast starring Ted Allen at FreshPreserving.com and Facebook.com/BallCanning with instructions on fresh preserving, along with crafting demonstrations. Viewers can questions and post comments in real time to be answered by canning experts. 
• The webcast will be broadcast live from the Union Square Greenmarket in Manhattan. Those in the area are welcome to come attend in person. 
• Participants can share photos, videos, questions and comments on the Ball brand home canning Facebook page, Facebook.com/BallCanning, where fresh preservers from across the country will connect on Can-It-Forward Day.
• All recipes and craft ideas from the webcast segments will be available for inspiration on the Ball brand home canning Pinterest page, Pinterest.com/BallCanning. 
• Users can also Tweet along with the hashtag #canitforward. 
• Consumers across the country are invited to host their own home canning parties on National Can-It-Forward Day to teach friends and family the joys of fresh preserving. A Getting Started guide, home canning recipes and more information is at www.FreshPreserving.com. 

So there you go. Go can some stuff.

Next for me: Pickles.

Uh oh. It's started. I better clear a shelf.

So, have you ever canned anything? Are you going to tune into the webcast?

Ball sent me a canning kit. I was not required to write a post.