The Mixing Bowl: Blue Hawaiian Ice Cream by Lili Chin

Lili Chin is a woman after my own heart. Her website, We All Scream, combines three of my favorite things---illustrations, ice cream, and unique flavor combinations---to create an illustrated recipe site that equally appeals to both my stomach and my eyes! Seriously, with ice creams flavors like Ginger Caramel, Strawberry Bourbon, Mexican Corn, and Sunflower Seed, how could I resist! There’s even an ice cream recipe for dogs! I was in dessert/design heaven. And it doesn’t stop there. In addition to these wonderful recipes, Lili creates individual labels for her ice creams that feature her designs. How cute is that?? When I first laid eyes on her site, I instantly knew that I had to ask her to contribute a recipe to The Mixing Bowl and when she sent over this recipe for Blue Hawaiian ice cream, I couldn’t wait to share it will all of you. I’m a huge fan of tropical flavors (tropical lifesavers were always my favorite pack) and I can’t take my eyes of the ice cream’s lovely blue hue. Who doesn’t love blue-colored food??

Malaysian-born Lili Chin is an artist and animator based in Los Angeles. She is the co-founder of FWAK! Animation, which produced its first feature-length animated film in 2006, Los Campeones de la Lucha Libre (The Champions of Wrestling). She was also the co-creator, producer and designer on Mucha Lucha, a Warner Bros' hit animated series which ran for 52 episodes on Kids WB and Cartoon Network. When not animating, Lili draws the cutest dog portraits over at Doggie Drawings. I love the retro kitsch look of her dog portraits and, as an animal lover, the idea of a getting a personalized pet painting really appeals to me! If you don’t own a dog, have no fear, she draws other animals as well. In addition, as the proud dog owner of a rescued Boston Terrier named Boogie, Lili donates a percentage of her Doggie Drawing sales to Boston Terrier/Animal rescue (woo hoo!).

To check out Lili's ice cream site, We All Scream, click here. If you’re a fan of this site, I’m sure you’ll love it as much as I do. You can see more of Lili’s work via her Flickr page and on her Doggie Drawings site. Thanks, Lili!

To see a larger version of the recipe, simply click on the image at the top of this post. You can also view additional images from Lili after the jump.

The Mixing Bowl: Bakewell Tart by Katie Green

I am such an illustration geek that when Katie Green sent over these illustrations/pictures for her Mixing Bowl recipe, I had a little internal freak out (in a positive way, of course). Illustrations make me sooo happy and these Bakewell Tart drawings by Katie are just perfect! I was also really thrilled, and quite honored, to discover that Dessert Girl is now officially part of Katie's What I Wore Today series, in which she playfully chronicles her daily outfit choices, not in photos, but in illustrations! It's a great, whimsical alternative to all those fashion blogs out there. Here she is making her (vegan) Bakwell Tart for us!

But, wait, that's not all Katie's got up her sleeve! For a lot of designers, having one creative outlet might be enough, but not Katie. She's also has found time to write and illustrate a super cute vegan cookbook, in which this Bakewell Tart recipe appears and she is in the process of writing and illustrating a graphic novel that is set to be published by Jonathon Cape (see b&w image below). Oh, did I also mention the painting, papergoods, toys, jewelry, and graphic design work?? It's making me tired just thinking about it!

I hope you enjoy Katie's Blackwell Tart! She has assured me that it tastes as good as it looks in the pictures. Oh, and in case you're wondering, Katie used natural uncoloured glacé cherries on her version, which is why they look dark and prune-like instead of red! [click on the image at the top of this post to see a large-print, readable version of the recipe.]

Click here for more info on Katie’s latest projects, including her graphic novel. Also, you can check out her What I Wore series on Flickr, right here. If you're interested in ordering her vegan cookbook, Bake Me a (Vegan) Cake, you can contact her directly. Thanks, Katie!

More tart pics and artwork after the jump.

Jessie Steele Aprons at Sur La Table

I can't seem to bake anything without getting sugar and flour all over my clothes, so I'm always sure to put on an apron first to protect myself from the mess I'm about to create! If you're a cooking slob like me, check out the super cute aprons ($40 each) at Sur La Table (my favorite is the red cherries version, seen above). They're so adorable that you won't mind covering up your outfit while you're in the kitchen. Frankly, I wish some of these were dresses, so I could wear them outside of the house! Oh, well. Click here to view Sur La Table's complete apron collection.

This just in. I just discovered that these aprons are also available via the designer's Web site. Click here for more info.