Weekends are heaven for the construction-weary and their cats. I am not going to bore you with details. Suffice it to say that it has been a difficult and frustrating week. And I couldn’t be happier to have a couple of days to recover and regain my good will.

Today is the first truly warm day in 5 months here in Warwick. The daffodils are blooming and the snow is almost all gone up on the mountain!

This morning, I went for a 6 mile trail run to the edge of Wickham Lake, one of my favorite places on earth. I was able to tie my long-sleeve top around my waist after about a mile…the sun felt like a blessing on my winter-white arms.

I can think of no more perfect occasion to whip up a new batch of ice cream! I made some Crack Bark (using some of my 5 lbs. of  free Matzah) earlier this week. Now, we have sweets to celebrate the arrival of spring and a break from the weekday routine of power tools and disappointment.

Caramel Almond Ice Cream

This ice cream is wonderful plain. But it is also great with a drizzle of agave, some extra almonds, or hot fudge. And it is amazing with fruit-berries or peaches in particular.

1 pint heavy cream
1 cup slivered almonds
1 tsp. cane sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. almond extract
1 recipe caramel sauce
½ cup agave syrup
sea salt, to taste

Place the almonds in a microwave safe bowl and toss with the sugar and a sprinkle of salt. Microwave on high for 90 seconds, stirring once. Cool to room temp before making the ice cream. You can do the almonds up to a day ahead.

Beat the cream until soft peaks form. Add the extracts, salt and agave and beat to stiff peaks. Fold in the caramel sauce and the almonds. Freeze until firm, at least 6 hours.