The History of Baked Alaska
April 22, 2014Great ice cream really does not need any help. It can stand on its own as a great dessert. Yet, ice cream has played a pivotal role in some of the world’s most popular desserts. What’s apple pie without a little ice cream? And how many kids’ birthday parties have been made more tolerable because of the presence of cake and ice cream? One of the most famous desserts to feature ice cream is Baked Alaska. There are so many question with this dessert. Is it really baked? What does this have to do with Alaska? Is there a dessert out there that incorporates the state of Delaware into the title? Let’s go on another dessert history lesson: Charles Ranhofer was about as close to a celebrity chef as this country had back in the 19th century. Today he’d probably be a judge on Chopped. Ranhofer started his culinary…
Read MoreIce Cream with a Little Something Extra
April 14, 2014It’s 2014 and everyone wants to get creative and find the next big thing. This thought process even applies to ice cream. There are hundreds of delicious ice cream flavors using ingredients we would never thought of using years ago. We are all for ice cream creativity, but are things starting to get a little out of hand? One British ice cream maker has created an ice cream flavor that includes 25 mg of Viagra in every scoop. We’re going to assume everyone knows the purpose of Viagra. So what else is in this special ice cream? Well, it also includes champagne as a key ingredient. In fact, the ice cream is supposed to taste like champagne. The British ice cream maker is not exactly taking credit for this little blue pill ice cream idea. He tells one news organization the Viagra ice cream concoction is a custom order. The…
Read MoreFresh Milk & Ice Cream
April 9, 2014All ice cream is pretty good. Most ice cream is great. I think we can all agree the more natural ingredients there are in ice cream, the better the ice cream. However, let’s be realistic. Big companies that produce mass amounts of ice cream have to watch the bottom line. Sometimes that means the natural stuff gets replaced by a cheaper alternative. Now ice cream makers are turning to fresh milk. The reason? Cost. The price of skimmed milk powder is on the rise and the price spike is hitting ice cream makers in the wallet. Skimmed milk powder is a key ingredient for many ice cream manufacturers. Because of the milk powder price hike, many ice cream companies are increasing the procurement of fresh milk. The idea is to reduce cost without sacrificing taste. Some ice cream companies have increased their fresh milk procurement by about 20 percent. One…
Read MoreThe Wine Ice Cream Controversy
April 1, 2014One of the many great things about ice cream is the variety. Sure, you’ve got the traditional favorites like vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. Can’t go wrong with any of those. Plus, you’ve got tasty creations that are unique to certain ice cream shops. Praline’s is proud to serve up Beez Neez. This flavor is a winner for everyone who loves ice cream. It’s knee-slapping good stuff. It’s graham-flavored ice cream with a graham cracker ripple and chocolate honeycomb candy. Praline’s also offers ice cream flavors for the over-21 crowd. Rum Raisin is rum-flavored ice cream filled with rum-soaked raisins. White Russian ice cream is light coffee ice cream flavored with vodka and coffee liquor. Both the Rum Raisin and the White Russian ice creams contain alcohol. Those flavors might not have had a chance to go on sale in Louisiana. Seems some stores would like to add wine-infused ice cream…
Read MoreThe Ice Cream Size Fight
March 24, 2014Imagine not getting as much ice cream as you thought you were getting. An Arizona man says that’s exactly what was happening to consumers at one major supermarket chain. In fact, he took legal action. Confused? Follow along. 71-year-old Gerald Morris filed a lawsuit last year, accusing Fry’s Food Stores and its parent company Kroger of misleading customers by posting deceptive ice cream ads. He told one Arizona TV station that customers were being cheated out of “40 percent of their purchase”. Morris claimed he saved more than a dozen ice cream ads that all listed the wrong weight of Kroger ice cream products, resulting in thousands of customers not getting what they paid for. Morris claims the ice cream container label says it carries 48 ounces when, it reality, it contains 26, 29, 37 or 38 ounces, depending on the flavor He says customers thought they were buying 100…
Read MoreAn Ice Cream Cleanse?
March 18, 2014When it comes to dessert, there’s not much that tops ice cream. There’s nothing like a double-scoop ice cream cone on a warm summer day. And, like any great dessert, ice cream is best enjoyed in moderation. After all, a diet of just ice cream would never be healthy….right? Tell that to the folks running an ice cream shop in Venice, California. They’ve come up with an ice cream cleanse. Yes, you read that correctly…an ice cream cleanse. You’ve probably heard about cleanses before. Juice cleanses have been popular over the last few years. But would an ice cream cleanse really work? Before we get too far, we should make one thing clear: This ice cream used in the cleanse is not actual dairy ice cream. It’s coconut milk. This four-day cleanse costs about $240. For that, you get five pints of the “ice cream”, which works out to about…
Read MoreIce Cream and the Calorie Count
March 10, 2014We all love ice cream. But have you ever eaten a little too much ice cream and felt guilty about it? Hey, we’ve all been there. To err is human and to err with ice cream is natural. In fact, if you’ve ever downed a pint of ice cream during one sitting, then glanced with a wince at the calorie and fat count listed on the container, you’re not alone. And it probably won’t be the last time you sneak a peek. However, those labels may look different the next time. Late last month, the Food and Drug Administration announced plans to overhaul the system of nutrition labeling. This represents the first change in the labeling system in two decades. The FDA says the goal in revamping the labeling is to save consumers the hassle of trying to calculate the fine print. The proposed changes will apparently reflect America’s fondness…
Read MoreIce Cream Helps Deliver Life Lesson
March 3, 2014There is a lot to love about ice cream. It just might be America’s favorite dessert. Turns out ice cream can also help deliver life lessons. Earlier this year, a school teacher in Michigan invited a local ice cream shop owner to deliver a lesson in money and economics to some elementary school students. Dozens of youngsters were taught about supply and demand, goods and services and how certain things (like money) can sometimes be scarce in life. They also learned about some of the things that go into running a small business. The ice cream shop was used as an example of such a business. The students’ teacher had hoped to take the students to a local ice cream shop, but funding was not available. So, the business owner came to the students. She explained how terms like goods, service, producer and consumer related to the ice cream business.…
Read MoreIce Cream at 35,000 Feet
February 24, 2014It’s always fun to get ice cream. Yet some people just can’t decide on a flavor. Ever been in line for ice cream behind someone who just can’t make that all-important flavor decision? We get it. Sometimes it’s tough to choose. Now the people who fly on one airline are being given the honor of making an important ice cream decision. Three new ice cream flavors have been created for first-class passengers on Virgin America. Here’s the thing: Only one of the new flavors will be served on flights. The three ice creams are creations from Humphry Slocombe, a San Francisco-based ice cream shop. The three flavors are Butter By Moodlight (buttery with a blueberry glaze), Red Hot Banana (featuring real Red Hot Candies) and Coconut Blond Ambition (vanilla marshmallow Fluff with lemon sorbet). All three of the ice creams are hand-made. The voting will be done on social media.…
Read MoreBone Marrow & Ice Cream?
February 17, 2014When it comes to ice cream, lots of people are traditionalists. Vanilla and chocolate always rank high when surveys are taken on America’s favorite ice cream flavors. Others like to try something newer and equally delicious like Cookie Kaboom or Beez Neez. One of the many great things about ice cream is that because there are so many different flavors to try, you’ll never run out of reasons to keep eating ice cream. It’s true that flavors have gotten more creative over the years. We’ve found places that add bacon to ice cream and you can find people that fully support the marriage of olive oil and ice cream. But bone marrow ice cream? That’s what is being served up by one ice cream maker in Portland, Oregon. The folks who run Salt & Straw, a small ice cream maker, are testing Bone Marrow and Bourbon Smoked Cherry ice cream.…
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