Blame The Fresh Fig Ice-Cream

I bought sexy shoes yesterday. Sky high heels. And then I wore them to go grocery shopping. It. Felt. GREAT!

Oh, no need to fret about my little tootsies. The shoes were actually deceptively comfortable. The important thing was that these were the first shoes I bought since getting pregnant last year that were not flats. I do love my collection of chic flats and summer sandals. But these zebra-printed, pointy-heeled creations were just what the doctor ordered for this harried mom-of-a-six-month-old. If I could, I'd sleep in them. But I don't trust my sense of balance during those 3am scampers over to B's crib.

My parents might cringe every time I use the word "sexy", so listen up Dad - just skip to the end, for your own good, ok? Yes. Now, please. Thank you.

There's nothing wrong with feeling sexy, at any age. It's really about being happy about the way you look and feel. So that when you look in the mirror, you don't say "man, I wish I could look like Ms. Celebrity So-and-So", but rather you look yourself up and down, and say "not bad at all, if I do say so myself". And if your husband/boyfriend happens to be walking by and does a double-take with that "hot damn!" expression on his face, even better.

And no, I don't believe that spending time on your looks is frivolous. Everything in moderation, of course. But I can assure you, feeling sexy is very important for your confidence and self-esteem. Especially for new moms, who spend most of their days in pajamas or sweats, usually stained with baby's spit-up and who-knows-what-else! (I know what else, and it ain't pretty). So go on ladies, break out those sexy shoes the next time you're doing a mundane task, like grocery-shopping, or going to the bank, or to the gas station. It'll keep you smiling for the rest of the day.

Can I tell you what else is sexy?

These fresh figs. Go on, look again. Remind you of anything? Anatomically speaking. You know what I'm talking about, don't you?! Don't be coy, yes you do!

It's hot and humid outside, and I didn't feel like baking (although the idea of a fig tart sounds divine), so I turned my stash of ripe figs into luscious ice-cream. Easy. Delicious. Sexy. It's a win-win scenario.

Fresh Fig Ice-Cream (inspired by David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop and the Tastespotting blog)

Click here for printable recipe

Ingredients:
1 lb fresh figs
1/2 cup water
1/2 lemon
1/2-2/3 cup sugar (depends on your taste)
1.5 cups heavy cream
1/2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

Method:
1. Remove the hard stems from the figs and cut them into quarters.

2. Put the figs in a pan with the water, and zest the lemon directly into the pan. Cover and cook on medium heat for 8-10 mins till the figs are tender.

3. Remove the lid, add the sugar and continue to cook till the mixture reaches a jam-like consistency.
4. Turn off the heat and let this cool for 20 mins. Stir in the cream and lemon juice, then refrigerate this for a few hours.

5. Then put it into your ice-cream maker and follow the instructions. Instant lusciousness!

Verdict: Rich and figgy. The flavor of this ice-cream depends wholly on the quality of the figs. So make sure the ones you use are ripe and scrumptious. I think I could have done better in this area, but hey, you live and learn. I did think the texture of this ice-cream was surprisingly lovely. Creamy, smoooooooooooth, but dotted with those crunchy seeds - nummy! I think I'm going to go have some right now. And if DH behaves, I might feed him some myself. Oh yeaaaah.

*shaking head* - gawd, I can be so lame sometimes ...

Anyhoo, dear readers, let me end on a better note. As you know, I've only just moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, so am spending my days exploring my new neighborhood. A priceless find has been Meijer Sculpture Gardens. Holy wow. It's so beauuuuuuuuuutiful! A real gem. And these days they're featuring the glass work of Chihuly scattered throughout the grounds. Here's one of his pieces on display.

You likey? I'll share more in my next post.