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Jeni, Jeni

You’re the girl for me

You don’t know me

But you make me so happy

How could Tommy Tutone have known, way back then? Courtesy of my new book, “Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home”, I am now an ice cream maker. Well, I have an ice cream maker. And Jeni’s got the recipes.

This is what I’ve tried so far:

(Please forgive the lack of pictures. I'll do better next time.)

-Chocolate Peanut Butter (a combination of The Buckeye State Ice Cream & The Darkest Chocolate Ice Cream in the World) This is the clear winner so far. Not so much because it is a superior ice cream, but because its chocolate and peanut butter. Few are immune. I chopped up some Reese’s PB Cups for a fun addition, but I don’t think it needed it. Pretty darn outstanding on its own.

-Cinnamon Ice Cream (a variation of Star Anise Ice Cream) My intention was to have a scoop of this cinnamon ice cream atop a slice of homemade peach pie. Unfortunately, the ice cream got a little too soft in transit, so it ended up being more like a soup. Not very picturesque, but pretty tasty. I think I like the simpler flavours. I’m looking forward to trying other spices, and a chai version.

-Gucci Muu Muu (chocolate & curry!). This was a special request from Rachel for Asian-Fusion Night. In case you are not able to break our super-secret code, this is a night on which we make and eat foods from Asia. It’s crazy! Not really. But the ice cream is. The texture is divine, but there is definitely a curry kick, and it’s kind of weird. Not good. Not bad. Just weird. The recipe called for toasted unsweetened coconut flakes. I used sweetened, and neglected to toast it. I think the toasting would really help the texture. I will definitely toast next time. And use unsweetened. But I’m not sure I need to make chocolate curry again. You can never be sure though…

-Bangkok Peanut Ice Cream. As I had my reservations about the above ice cream, I chose to make an alternate Asian-esque ice cream. This was delicious, though same coconut issues as above. It also had a pinch of cayenne, which gave just a little back of the throat burn. It was nice. Peanut is a good ice cream flavour.

-Cucumber, Honeydew & Cayenne Frozen Yogurt. The book recommended this as a pairing for the Bangkok Peanut. So why not? Thoughts: The yogurt tang is awesome! I love it, and am looking forward to the next frozen yogurt. The honeydew didn’t really come through, nor did the cayenne. It was mostly cucumber. Now the recipe called for an English Hothouse cuke, and I used a standard, so maybe that’s the reason. Though I enjoyed eating it, I think it was the idea of it more than the taste. All I could think was tzatziki. Which is good stuff, but not really what you’re looking for in ice cream. Worth a try though.

What other flavours are on the docket, you may be asking. Well… Scarlet & Earl Grey (black tea & cherries), Kona Stout (coffee & beer), Baked Apple Sorbet, Queen City Cayenne (bittersweet chocolate & cayenne), Black Coffee, and Grapefruit Hibiscus Frozen Yogurt (based on color alone).

Less Impractical Than Previously Thought

I bought a tart pan a while ago. Not the most practical kitchen gadget – how much use is it going to get? How much precious storage space is it going to require? I can’t remember now what I bought it for, but it was for something specific, not just a random kitchen filler. So hopefully that went well. Because I forgot about it for a long time. Exactly how long I’m not sure. But long enough to not remember why I bought it.

But I digress. It’s back, and in heavy rotation. I’m churning out adorable tarts as often as I can. I’m up to 3 uses, but that’s all this week. I feel like it’s future will be busy. Check out the spinach pie with artfully arranged artichoke hearts. It’s just so adorable. Oh, and I’ve also blind-baked for the first time in this little guy. Pinto beans in a coffee filter. I did the first one, and then forgot to put the beans in for the second, and found out why you need the beans. Major shrinkage. By the third, I was back to beans.

To inaugurate a different pan, I made the balance of the tarts even tinier and more adorable, if it’s possible. There’s the Trudy (a Belize-inspired coconut tart) and the Zane (a district convention-inspired combination of lemony cream cheese and maple apples). (The Trudy was for nostalgia, the Zane is a work in progress for October’s visit.)

Oh, I almost forgot about the muffins. Lately I’ve been having gnat issues. I don’t know if they’re really gnats, but they’re tiny, and they fly. And they like food. Especially ripe fruit. To curb the tiny pests, I’ve been trying to keep as much as possible refrigerated. But you know how you forget about stuff in the fridge? Yeah, me too. So there’s 1 banana on my counter. It’s not black yet. But it’s a little too ripe for my tastes. If I don’t handle it now, it’ll go overripe and bring the bugs. If I put it in the fridge, I’ll forget about it. What do you do with 1 banana? You quarter a recipe. And hope for the best when you don’t have any baking soda or eggs. Stock of essentials seriously depleted. They didn’t hold together well, but they tasted amazing. Banana and walnut and vanilla and butter. Really good butter. I call it a win.