I sit in my office doing the internet version of twiddling my thumbs; bouncing from Facebook to Instagram scrolling through the feeds until my thumb aches and my mind is overwhelmed with images and updates that leave me feeling depleted. I have only a couple more hours to work and yet I can’t focus and am losing motivation in the midst of the scrolling.

“That’s it.” I say to myself. “I need to get out of here.”

So I jump in the car with a simple plan of going to the market and seeing where that leads me. Once there I see crate after crate overflowing with stone fruit. Nearly black plums with a hint of red underneath which tells me they are perfect; mostly sweet with a good sour bite. Next to them, small Italian plums covered in a soft dust that wipes off easily to reveal a deep purple skin. And apricots the color of a late evening sun and the star of so many of my favorite summer recipes.

Immediately I grab several pounds of plums because two days before I heard a lovely story on NPR about a pastry chef who stood at her stove sobbing at the site of this German Plum Cake. It was the first time she had made it since her mom died and just the site of it; familiar like a dear friend, made her lose it in her kitchen leaving her staff a little clueless as to why chef was looking at the stove dripping tears into a plum studded cake (that’s actually a bit more tart than cake). I needed to make this.

Then I grab the Italian plums and my mind turns to stewed prunes. The resulting dish is actually much more appetizing than the name suggests. They are so good in fact that I keep my oven on for an entire day in the midst of a crazy heat wave just to dry out the plums so I can make the very best version of stewed prunes when a winter’s evening demands a taste of summer.

Finally I reach for apricots. My usual response to apricots is pie or jam but today I dust off the ice cream maker and decide to roast a batch for ice cream. I need something cold to counter  the temperature in the house after the oven has been on all day.

I roast the apricots with a bit of sugar because it’s only after roasting that apricots reveal their magic. They succumb easily to a gentle pressing with my spatula to turn into a sort of puree, intentionally left a bit rustic as I imagine the pleasure of biting into a piece of apricot on top of an ice cream cone. The puree turns the creamy base into a pinkish orange hue, enough to catch the attention of Ivy who is immediately drawn to anything pink. While it churns I melt a bit of chocolate and drizzle that in to the ice cream just as it looks like soft serve. Ivy licks the chocolate bowl clean.

The result is a sweet ice cream, softly tart and rich with speckles of bittersweet chocolate and more importantly for me, an end to my twiddling of thumbs and an awakening to the day in front of me with all its possibilities.

Roasted Apricot Stracciatella

base recipe from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home

1 pound apricots, halved and pitted

2 cups milk

1 tablespoon +1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 cup heavy cream

1/3 + 1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2  tablespoons light corn syrup

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

3 tbsp. cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (or chopped)

1/2 tablespoon coconut oil

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat your oven to 400°F.

Place the apricots in a cast iron skillet or small baking dish along with 1/3 cup sugar. Roast for 40 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Remove the apricots from the oven and gently smash them with a rubber spatula to make a craggy and rough puree.

Set aside while you prepare the base. In a small bowl, stir together 1/4 cup milk and the cornstarch; set slurry aside.

In a 4-qt. saucepan, whisk together remaining milk and the cream, sugar, syrup, and salt; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook for 4 minutes; stir in slurry. Return to a boil and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 2 minutes.

Place cream cheese in a bowl and pour in 1/4 cup hot milk mixture; whisk until smooth. Then whisk in remaining milk mixture.

Fold in the apricot puree and lemon juice. Set a bowl inside of another bowl that is filled with ice water. Pour the base into the top bowl. Let sit for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until very cold.

Pour mixture into an ice cream maker; process according to manufacturer's instructions.

While the ice cream is churning, melt the chocolate with the coconut oil (quick 15 second bursts in a microwave, stirring in between heatings, until melted) until smooth.

When the ice cream looks like soft serve, slowly drizzle in the chocolate and let the process of the churning break up the chocolate into small bits.

Transfer ice cream to a storage container and freeze until set.

Still half asleep I instinctively rolled over to check the time, fumbling for my phone with my eyes still closed. My near slumber state was rudely interrupted as the numbers on my phone flashed 7:30 am.

In an instant the morning had begun. In a matter of 15 minutes we would have to feed three kids breakfast, find and pack a backpack, select the perfect snack for the day, dress, brush, wash, and put on shoes. If you are a parent you’ll know that sometimes just the act of putting on shoes takes 15 minutes.

Although we typically like to allow for more time in the morning this scenario is not unlike five of the seven days in our week. The topic of weekend breakfasts starts being discussed around Wednesday as we debate pancakes or waffles and what, if any, additions will be present. By Saturday morning we are all relieved to not have to rush through our morning routine.

The way this week has already begun I think it is going to take more than simple pancakes and waffles to ease us into the weekend. It seems this week needs to be capped with something over the top. Like perhaps two slices of thick cut Challah dipped in a French toast-like batter then spread with creamy Mascarpone, topped with pleasantly tart plumped dried apricots and in case that may not be enough, a fine grating of dark chocolate floats on top. Then maybe it’s capped with another piece of bread before hitting a hot gril. When the bread has cooked through and is crisp on top, the cheese has melted and the chocolate succumbs to the heat holding it all together a drift of powder sugar descends and finishes it off.

Yes, I think that would do the weekend quite nicely.

This post was made possible by Wisconsin Cheese. After getting spending way to much time drooling over all the inventive grilled cheese creations on their site we created a video with them (Gabe shot it – they edited) demonstrating how to make this sandwich. Watch it here then enter their contest with your favorite grilled cheese recipe.

Check out the other great grilled cheese recipes from Sara and Kelsey. Of course, leave it to me to add sweetness and chocolate to my grilled cheese. Typical.

Grilled Mascarpone cheese with Apricots and Chocolate

This decadent dish is similar to a stuffed french toast teetering the line of eat-with-your-hands or a fork. Either way it's indulgent and decidedly delicious. Tart, lightly sweet, and showered in dark chocolate - a special way to welcome in those leisurely weekends.

Stewed Apricots

1 cup dried apricots
1 teaspoon orange zest
juice from one large orange
vanilla bean, split down the middle
½ cup water

Combine all the ingredients in a small sauce pan. Cover and let simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the cover and continue to simmer until most of the liquid is gone.
Use a wooden spoon to smash and break up the apricots just a bit.
Let cool for about 20 minutes, or until just warm.

Bread Dip

3 eggs
1 cup milk
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Whisk all the ingredients together in a shallow bowl or pie plate.

For the sandwich you’ll need:

1 loaf Challah or Brioche cut in 1” slices
1 8oz tub Mascarpone
I recipe stewed apricots
1 recipe bread dip
3 oz dark chocolate
Pre-heat an indoor grill or grill pan.
Quickly dip one slice of bread into the bread dip and let the excess drip off.
Add about 2 Tablespoons Mascarpone to the bread. Top with several pieces of stewed apricots and finish with finely shaved dark chocolate.
Top the sandwich with another piece of bread that has been quickly dipped in the bread dip.
Immediately grill until grill marks form, cheese and chocolate are melted and the bread is cooked through - about 5-7 minutes.
Slice, dust with powdered sugar and serve immediately.