Review: Cuisinart ICE30-BC & Mixed Berry Vegan Ice Cream

This past weekend we finally tried out another of our registry gifts. This time the Cuisinart ICE30-BC Ice Cream Maker.

Two first impressions:

• It's noisy when it's running. Maybe this was because we ran it on our granite countertop.
• Vegan ice cream is not firm enough to eat after 20 to 25 minutes. You do need to refrigerate it the recommended additional 2 hours.

For the inaugural run, we made a variation of the Strawberry Vanilla Ice Cream recipe that I found at Elana's Pantry.

Mixed Berry Vegan, Gluten-Free, Refined-Sugar Free Ice Cream

Ingredients

• 5 oz Blackberries, fresh, deseeded
• 5 oz Blueberries, fresh
• 13.5 oz Coconut Milk
• 1/4 cup, Agave Nectar
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Wash and dry the blackberries and blueberries.
   NOTE: If you don't remove the seeds from the blackberries, your ice cream won't be smooth.
2. Blend blackberries, blueberries, coconut milk, agave nectar, and vanilla extract in blender.
   NOTE: If you forget the vanilla, the ice cream will have a coconut flavor. These proportions neutralize the coconut and bring the fruit forward.
3. Remove frozen freezer bowl from the freezer. Place freezer bowl on the center of the base.
4. Place mixing arm in freezer bowl.
5. Place lid on base.
6. Turn the ice cream maker on.
7. Pour blended mixture into the freezer bowl.
8. Mix until thickened, about 20 to 25 minutes.
9. Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container.
10. Place in freezer for 6 to 8 hours. Remove 15 minutes before serving.

DIY Tools: My Cricut

So I got a chance to play with/try out my Cricut this weekend. First let me say this. The manual recommends practicing with less expensive paper. I second this recommendation.

Documentation/Instructions: C-

I almost always start by reading the manual. With the Cricut, I did the same. I don't know if Cricuts typically come with the blade installed - mine didn't. None of the instructions mentioned installing the blade. I reversed the steps for removing the blade to adjust blade depth.

The steps on how to set paper size are unclear. I tried a couple of variations but was unable to set the paper length to 6 x 11.

First Impressions: C

I used printer paper to test out some functionality. When you first use a cutting mat, it's very sticky. I misaligned the paper initially and had a hard time repositioning it.

Next rookie mistake: I left the blade depth at 1 thinking the printer paper was thin. The blade didn't even cut through the paper. 2 worked much better.

Any DIY tools that you thought would be easy to use and weren't?

DIY Tools: Cutting, Trimming, and Cornering Paper

For some of our DIY projects it might appear that I tried to use every tool I owned. Remember appearances can be deceiving. If you're going to be handling all of your paper goods yourself, here are the tools I whole heartedly recommend.

Guillotine Paper Trimmer

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A guillotine paper trimmer is absolutely a life safer for quickly trimming stacks of papers down to size. You'll save a lot of time starting with this tool and then using the rotary paper trimmer for more precise cuts.

NOTE: No matter how inexpensive the Tonic brand Guillotine Paper Trimmer (pictured below) is DO NOT get it. This was one purchase where in hindsight I think not buying the cheapest one out there would have been smarter.

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The blade does not cut straight and dulls very quickly. The guard for holding paper in place is too close to the blade. The only "injury" I sustained when making the invitations and envelopes was from this tool.

Rotary Paper Trimmer

Fiskars 12" Rotary Paper Trimmer for Crafts

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Free - I've had it for years.
Typically $59.99, but with a 50% off coupon from Jo-Ann Fabrics $30.00

Pros: Can cut, deckle, score all with the same trimmer just by changing the blade

Cons: Depending on the weight of the paper can only cut three to five sheets at a time. If you don't apply even pressure as you pull towards yourself it sometimes don't cut all the way through the paper.

If money is no object (they retail for $175+), get a Dahle trimmer. If you have a friend with access to one, beg, borrow, or steal it! Luckily a friend had access to the 20 1/8" cut length Dahle trimmer (pictured below) and we were able to fold our sheets to quickly bring the pages down to manageable sizes for our other paper cutters/trimmers. (For cutting large sheets of handmade paper, I so would have loved the 37 1/2" cut length Dahle trimmer.) One thing that took a little getting used to was the automatic paper clamp. Once you master it (or just move it aside) you'll want to trim everything in sight. Trust me on this.

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Magnetic Cutting Board

If you're cutting at angles, a cutting board with a straightedge that doesn't move is a must. I primarily used the We R Memory Keepers Magnetic Cutting Set for trimming the envelope liners. It was nice to not have to worry about the paper or blade slipping.

We R Memory Keepers Magnetic Cutting Set

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$15.00 (used a 50% off coupon).

Typically $29.99, but be on the look out for 30% and 40% off Scrapbooking Tools Sales or use 40% or 50% off coupons

Corner Punches

Shaped or rounded corners make everything look more elegant. Be sure to get a punch where it's easy to line up the corner and make a consistent cut.

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Fiskars Corner Squeeze Punch:
Something Old, Something New

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$4.80 (purchased during a 40% off Scrapbooking Tools Sale).

Typically $11.99, but be on the look out for 30% and 40% off Scrapbooking Tools Sales or use 40% or 50% off coupons

Pros: Can easily line up your punches

Cons: Can only punch 90-degree corners; can't punch thick paper; cut pieces end up all over your workspace

What tools did you find you couldn't live without? Did you go cheap to save money and wish you hadn't?

The Night Crate and Barrel Closed the Store for Us

On May 12th, we attended The Wedding Parties Registry Event at the store in Union Square in San Francisco. For Bay Area brides, there are two events on May 30th at Stanford (Palo Alto) and Santana Row (San Jose). For everyone, there are more events in June. I highly recommend if you're thinking of registering at Crate and Barrel to attend.

The pluses of attending a Crate and Barrel Registry Event:

• Having the store all to yourselves
• Friendly sales representatives who wait for you to approach, answer questions, and then back off
• Seeing products in use and getting to honest feedback from the sales representatives
• Wide range of products across all price ranges

Product Demonstrations

Crate and Barrel combined products they offer with the party they were hosting. Glasses of wine were aerated through the Vinturi Wine Aerator.

We got to try a taste unaerated and then a glass aerated. You could notice a difference. cubes and I belong to a couple of wine clubs and enjoy a glass of wine with dinner. This item was a quickly a must have for our registry (we didn't find it in the store to scan it so we added it easily online when we got home). Interestingly enough I'd heard of (and seen) the Vinturi Wine Aerator before. I hadn't seen it in action though, and for me seeing was believing.

We also saw the Crate and Barrel wine opener - the one being used didn't have a notch that grabbed on to the rim of the wine bottle and frequently slipped. We already have a wine opener so we didn't need another, but based on how hard it was for the sales rep to use this particular wine opener we wouldn't put it on our registry.

Wine in hand our next stop were was the warm appetizer area. Here we saw two products demoed - a Cuisinart GR-4 Flat Griddler Grill and Griddle-Panini Press and an Indoor Grill. They had a Bruschetta Panini that got me thinking about how I could alter my Bell Pepper Bruschetta so that I could serve it as a panini (easier to eat with two pieces of bread instead of open faced). What sold me with the press was that it could be flipped open and used to make pancakes. I used to have a waffle maker that I'd bring to the table and make waffles while we all ate brunch together. I immediately imagined the same with pancakes. Another plus was that there's a tray to collect grease. We could make bacon at the table. Yay!

As I mentioned in my earlier post, the highlight of the registry party was Nick's knife demonstration. Not only did he show us the proper way to cut with a Japanese blade versus a German blade, he let us try the knives for ourselves. This was a definite hit with all of us as we were specifically looking to add to our knife collections.

Registering

We also had fun walking around the store without the hordes of people that you typically find on a weekend or after work. (I love Crate and Barrel and have been known to spend hours in the store - my pot rack is from there as well as my rattan storage crates.)

We found nice high balls that we added to our registry so that we could serve Presbyterians.

We also found a convertible bar that would fit nicely in our living room. Right now we have liquor stored throughout the apartment - in the kitchen with the oils, in the linen closet with the sheets. You get the picture? We had wine stored on top of the fridge but the rack when empty would move with the vibrations and coasters as well as wine glasses ended up in pieces on the tile floor.

MyRegistry.com

When we got home it was a simple matter to sync our new Crate and Barrel registry with items we'd chosen from Amazon and other online stores. I'd downloaded the MyRegistry iPhone app ($1.99) prior to the event, but forgot to try it. We tried using it when at the Macy*s Sip and Scan registry event the following week and I'll tell you about that experience next Thursday. Stay tuned!