That Aldi Ice Cream Cake

I'm a bargain shopper. An off-brand lover. A bulk buyer when the sales are smoking. A shopper that makes the store pay me to take their stuff.

Actually, that's just Kohl's. And they do that for everyone.

A few brands I put my foot down, bite the bullet, and buy the real thing. Here's a few:

• Peanut Butter. "Choosy Moms choose Jiff," the commercial said. Yeah, and good Moms buy Peter Pan. Because it's the best. Especially Honey Roasted. Except when Jiff came out with a Salted Caramel which was even better. But, now they stopped. So, it's Peter Pan again. (Yes, I have a peanut butter problem.)
• Coffee. Because as much as I love church, no one should live off church coffee.
• Apples. Honeycrisp. Buy them. Eat them. Love them. Never go back.

Everyone has their "thing." Maybe you spend money on movies but couldn't imagine wasting money on a zoo membership. Maybe you spend money on fancy Scooter's drinks but would never waste money on Hallmark cards.

We strive to be good stewards of our money, to stay on budget, and make Dave Ramsey proud by telling our money where to go instead of it telling us where it went. We also have our "things" like real Oreos and homemade ice cream.

And then, my life (and waistline) changed with this bad boy.

That, my friends, is a homemade Ice Cream Cake made with Aldi brand Oreos, brownie mix, ice cream, and whipped cream.

I was skeptical that a) it would turn out b) taste good and c) would turn out.

Paper plates are a must when you sis-in-law is 37 weeks pregnant and graciously hosting a family of OU fans to watch the game, okay??

And when your SIL is having a baby girl for the first time in Kaldahl history of ever since moving to America, you should probably throw her a Baby Sprinkle. And serve these donuts.

Anywah, now, I'm just worried it won't last more than .2 seconds

And that I'll never make another dessert the rest of my life and never fit back into my pants because...did you see the picture of the ice cream cake?

Just wait till you try it.

And although I hesitate to give you the (super difficult) recipe I used because I'd rather you just come over to visit us to enjoy one slice for you and two slices for me, I can hardly contain the goodness to myself.

Here's what you need:

• Aldi brownie mix
• Aldi Oreos
• Aldi Cookies 'n' Cream ice cream
• Chocolate syrup
• Aldi whipped cream
• Spring form pan
• A big ole appetite

Here's what you do:

• Mix up and bake them brownies. I poured half into a well-greased spring form pan and half in a cake pan.
• Cool them brownies. Pop out the brownie in the cake pan (mine crumbled out, it's fine.) and freeze the one in the spring form pan for a bit. You should know by now directions for me are a loose outline, right?
• Pull out the ice cream from the freezer to soften slightly. Spread half the ice cream over the brownies in the spring form pan. Oh, and while the ice cream is all soft and begging you to spoon feed yourself, do that too.
• Drizzle chocolate syrup over that ice cream. And in your mouth, if you like.
• (Heavily) sprinkle crunched up Oreos. 
• Drizzle more syrup. Because why not?
• Top with another layer of them brownies (brownie crumbles, if you're me).
• Spread the last half of ice cream over them brownies. Or, if you ate that last half of the tub, grab a quarter, and run back to Aldi to buy another tub.
• Pop open your whipped cream can, and give yourself a shot. You know, for the energy to spray whipped cream on the top of the ice cream cake.
• Finish off by drizzling more chocolate syrup and sprinkling more Oreos on top.

Stick it in the freezer and take a nap while the magic happens. When you're ready to eat, pull out the ice cream cake about 20 minutes before that. Pop off the spring of the pan, grab a knife, cut up slices, and dish it out to your biggest fans.

If they're not your family yet, they will be after.

Just add the blasted Vanilla!

Several things in life make me feel highly uncomfortable.

1. Sitting in the front lawn.

2. When passing someone on the walking trail, making eye contact before socially acceptable to give the nod/hi/wave.

• In case you were wondering - Give the "hi" when pushing baby in stroller. Give the hand lift wave when you are running and meet a fellow runner. Give the nod when the other person barely notices your existence.

3. Baking a goodie that doesn't call for vanilla.

4. Leftover ingredients that don't have a set purpose.

My list is actually quite longer than just these four items (e.g. arriving more than 2 minutes early to...anything, Office Depot clerks playing peek-a-boo with your baby while ringing you up, after a pregnancy announcement, the first words out of your mouth are, "Were you trying?" I could go on, but this could go downhill quickly).

Well, I'm trying to push myself. Out of the box. Comfort zone. Pushing boundaries. Whatever they call it. 

Here's a recap.

1. We sat on the front lawn.

If sitting on the front lawn, are pants even necessary?

And boy, oh boy, I didn't like it. But babies give you courage to try new experiences. (Because you always have an easy out if you just can't handle it. Sorry, gotta run - baby had a blow out, baby needs a nap, baby needs to nurse.)

But, we met our neighbor across the street. Our 96 year old neighbor who has lived in the neighborhood since it sprung up 50 years. Who built her house with her husband who has since passed away. Who had a mild heart attack several months ago. Who could use seeing a cute baby every now and then. Okay, I added in that last part. But at least could use a loaf of Oatless Banana Bread.

2. Passersby on the trail.

I got nothing. That one still bothers me.

3. Recipes sans vanilla.

My husband says I like to eat bananas when they taste like trees. Which makes for a small window when I enjoy bananas. As such, I'm always baking something with bananas. I ran across this Cinnamon Crunch Banana Bread recipe. It doesn't call for vanilla. And while I normally would add it anyway, I decided to leave it out, thinking they knew what they're doing. And while they do, I don't. Since I forgot to add the oats it called for. 

So make this bread, forgot the vanilla, but do add the oats. But if you do forget to add the oats, it's still dang good.

4. Purposeless leftover ingredients.

It takes us years to go through a package of bacon. So I'm like, "Okay. Buy a package of bacon? Here's what our menu plan looks like for this week: Chicken Bacon Ranch Wraps, Bacon Cheeseburgers, Club Sandwiches, Cobb Salad...help a girl out!

And then, my husband.

My amazing husband.

Came up with this concoction that ROCKED MY WORLD.

Maple Bacon Breakfast Sandwiches.

It goes like this:

Egg.

Everything is better when it's mini. Especially a mini skillet.

Cheese.

Everything is dairy much better with cheese.

Maple French Toast Bagel.

These are also delicious toasted, spread with peanut butter, and dipped in syrup.

Bacon.

With a side of bacon.

What I've learned through all this:

• Meet your neighbors.
• Eat more bacon.
• Keep your eyes down on the trail until it's time to make eye contact.
• Add the blasted vanilla, you're gonna mess up the recipe anyway.