It is not getting any cooler in Beirut. Whenever I get the chance to escape to the mountains I would not miss the chance. This weekend, we were running crazy serving burgers at 1670m above sea level at the Zaarour Lakeside Festival for 3 days.

The view was fanstastic and our burgers were nothing you could ever taste anywhere else. Perfectly crafted by us, the chefs of BiBayti, no one has tasted our burgers and was disappointed. Hire us, or hire me, and we’d bring everything to your backyard or apartment and make a delightful feast for you to enjoy!

If you can’t get away from the heat, then FIGHT IT! And in this fight there is ONE RULE! ALWAYS TALK ABOUT THE FIGHT. And share it for others to benefit. We are in August now and the only thing to beat the heat is a scoop of ice cream. Or a tub… on a hot summer night… alone… in the car… on the seaside… with Lana Del Rey softly playing next to you… You finish the tub, one spoon followed by another. I CERTAINLY DID NOT DO THAT! Not with Lana Del Rey playing. I’d never. Ever.
Ok. I did. And it was MAGICAL!

What’s more rewarding though is licking the ice cream from a portion you made yourself. Add to that the goodness of labneh, our magical white creamy spread.

I had this bunch of blueberries. I cooked them slightly and mixed them in the creamy yogurt mix before freezing. Try it yourself. All you need is whip the ingredients and freeze. That should teach the summer heat a lesson: This is its life and it’s ending one minute at a time!

By the way, everytime I’m shooting a recipe on the front porch, Olly the cat is always trying to sniff or even taste what I’m shooting to approve the quality. This time, we were not allowing her yet she grabbed a handful by force and tasted the ice cream. She approves!

Labneh and Blueberry No-Churn Ice Cream

Ingredients

• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 cup labneh
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 2 tbps vanilla-infused vodka
• 2 tbps gin
• 2 cups blueberries
• 1 tbsp brown sugar

Procedure

• In a large bowl, or the bowl of a food processor with a whisk, beat the cream until it forms stiff peaks
• Add the yogurt, labneh, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, and gin then beat until incorporated, keeping an eye on the texture. It should remain thick and creamy. Overbeating will result in a crumbly mix
• In a small saucepan, mix the blueberries and sugar and heat on low until the blueberries spill out their red purple juice and soften a bit
• Line a container, or a loaf pan, with baking paper and pour half the cream mix into it. Add half the blueberry mix and swirl lightly with a knife. Pout the other half and the rest of the blueberries and swirl. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight
• Thaw for 10 minutes before scooping in bowls or cones