The cold stuff.

Each summer, sometime in July, I remember: I have an ice cream maker. (A cheap one that has lasted five summers so far.) It's not that I truly forget about my ice cream maker; after all, its canister stares me in the eye every time I open my freezer. But I seem to forget about the glories it can bestow upon me. Then it gets hot and nasty and my cravings increase, and I remember: it's time to make the ice cream.

This year, I bought my first-ever ice cream cookbook, the incredible Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home by Jeni Britton Bauer. After just one outing, it is now my official ice cream bible. Why? Well, Jeni doesn't have you fuss around with eggs and custard. Instead, she explains the science behind her American ice cream base, including the reasons for using a little corn syrup, and the genius addition of softened cream cheese to help emulsify the mixture. And her recipes are organized by season, emphasizing fresh, local ingredients. But not in an obnoxious way, I promise.

And, let me tell you: it works. This is wonderful, creamy, balanced, stress-free ice cream. I tried my hand at her recipe for sweet basil with honeyed pine nuts, and it was magnificent. The pine nut praline was a snap to make (my one alteration: use parchment paper to line your baking sheet), and the crunchy, sweet bits of nut added interest and earthiness to the sweet and spicy basil-flavored ice cream.

I think my next attempt will be her beet, mascarpone and poppy seed ice cream. Oh, yes. (And, if you're not game to make the stuff at home, you can always order Jeni's ice cream, made with love in Columbus, Ohio, from her website.)

Lately.

Just a quick roundup of things I've eaten and sipped lately. First up, superlative green papaya salad from Wondee Siam II in Hell's Kitchen. This place has some delicious Thai and is a stone's throw from Ars Nova (my brother's theater), so we spend a serious amount of time here. (Also worth trying? Any of the curries.)

Speaking of curries, they come with a pyramidal side of fluffy white rice. As a rice lover, I hardly need any inducement to eat mine, but come on. That's too fun.

Shake Shack does day-of-the-week flavors, which change up once a month. August's Friday flavor is blueberry coffee cake: soft blueberry custard with coffee cake mixed in. It's pretty freaking good, and is delightfully redolent of cinnamon (my favorite compliment to the juicy blueberries of summer).

 

A gin gimlet at Ouest on the Upper West Side. These guys sling the most reliably delicious cocktails north of 59th Street, and I love spending an evening sipping and nibbling - the kitchen sends out regular batches of toasty warm gougeres.

Finally, a pickle sampler from the new restaurant Jacob's Pickles. The biscuits are good; the pickles are awesome. From left to right, we've got dill spears, carrots, spicy beets and dilly green beans. More pickles than even this obsessive could finish.

Cooling off.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that vacationer in possession of an appetite must be in want of an ice cream cone. After all, what is summer vacation if not an excuse to treat ice cream as its very own food group? New Englanders know this instinctively, and ice cream is available pretty much everywhere you turn.

On my first night in Maine, en route to Rockland to stock the fridge, I spotted Dorman's Dairy Dream by the side of Route 1. It was too late to stop (everything in Maine closes by 9 PM, it seems, and Dorman's is no exception), but I made a mental note to visit later in the week, as there was no way something so cute wouldn't be worth a stop.

Turns out, I wasn't wrong. Dorman's flavor list includes classics like peppermint stick, grapenuts, and pistachio, as well as less commonly-seen varieties, such as ginger and orange-pineapple. I chose a small coffee cone, while Louisa went for the peppermint stick. (I thought she was going to go for ginger, but I was wrong. It's nice when even your best friend can surprise you from time to time.) The ice creams were wonderful in an entirely classic way - creamy, rich (but no mouth-coating ickiness), and a bit on the sweet side. Our cones melted quickly in the midday heat, and we slurped up every drop.

A couple of days later, the ice cream craving struck again. My friends Liz and Skylar, who've lived in Rockland for a couple of years now, suggested we stop by Lulu's on Oak Street - so long as it was open. (Lulu's is a seasonal joint, and sometimes doesn't open until later in July.) Lucky for us, it was open, and in spectacular fashion.

Lulu's, it turns out, is a more modern take on the New England creamery concept. Sorbetto, gelato and ice cream are all on offer, and the flavors are a bit wider ranging than those at Dorman's. I went for a small cup with two types of sorbetto: dark chocolate noir, and strawberry balsamic. Both were ridiculously delicious. The strawberry balsamic tasted so strongly of rich aged vinegar and strong berries that I couldn't believe Lulu's captured the flavor in an ice cream. And the chocolate? It was like eating a bittersweet chocolate bar, but in sorbetto form. So, you know, not bad. (And by not bad, I mean amazing.)

My only regret? We visited Lulu's late on Friday, which meant we never had a chance for a return trip.

Amply delicious.

Last Sunday, I spent a truly wonderful afternoon with my friend, Miya, and her adorable daughter, Emi. Emi turned three on Tuesday, and we decided that such an event deserved not only a special story time (we read a chapter of Little House In The Big Woods, part of the set of "big girl" books I gave Emi for her big day), but also a little stroll for something all three of us love: ice cream.

Miya lives in Prospect Heights, a few blocks from Ample Hills, a homegrown Brooklyn ice creamery, and one all of my Brooklynite friends have been bugging me about visiting for ages. I was thrilled to relent, and ordered a single scoop of the salted caramel with crack cookies.

Oh. Mah. Guh.

This is some seriously ridiculous ice cream. It's indulgently creamy, but without that horrid, too-fatty, mouth-coating after effect. It's blended with just enough air to go down easy, but not so much that it enters the dreaded frothy territory. And the flavor. My GOD the flavor. The salted caramel comes through strong and clear - unlike so many caramel-flavored things, this one actually retained the slightly bitter, almost burnt quality of good caramel, and the salt was wonderful against the sweet, buttery crack cookies (shortbread coated in dark chocolate).

Emi was kind of mad that I didn't give her a lick, and says I owe her two next time. We'll see about that.

Inspiration strikes.

I love peanut butter sundaes. (The shot above is vanilla custard and peanut butter sauce from Shake Shack last weekend. Yum.)

I mean, hot fudge sundaes are wonderful, of course, but peanut butter has my heart. And I know that some people simply swoon over butterscotch. All of this (plus the gloriously sunny, hot weather we're having in NYC right now) has me thinking about hosting a sundae party. Some fabulous local ice cream (perhaps with a few homemade flavors, too), homemade sauces, loads of toppings (including booze), and piles of candy-colored bowls.

Seems like the easiest summer party ever, right? Now I just have to find the time - by which I mean a time when people are actually free and in town, never an easy feat during a New York summer.

What kinds of gatherings do you have planned for the rest of the summer? Make me jealous with your backyard barbecues and shipboard cocktail soirees, why doncha?

Coffee & donuts.

I am normally staunchly opposed to stuff in my ice cream. Ben & Jerry's has never been my favorite, in large part because they tend to add a whole slew of stuff to their flavors. For most, this is a prime attraction. All I see, though, are pint-sized minefields of over-frozen pretzels and chunks of chocolate, all chilled for far too long and at far too high a temperature to actually taste like anything. Bleh.

But. But, but, but. At Shake Shack, the special flavors that have, well, stuff in them are different. For starters, the custard is soft-serve, and so the added bits and pieces are in no danger of freezing to the point of tooth-cracking stiffness. And since everything is made fresh, the add-ins have just enough time to integrate, but not enough time to assimilate. In short, you can chew on and taste everything, as opposed to eating around chunks of chocolate hard enough to shatter your enamel.

I like.

And I especially like this month's special flavor for Saturdays: Coffee & Donuts. The coffee custard is rich, creamy and just a little bit salty, in the way that all of the most delicious sweet things are. The donuts are a light cake, and have a slightly maple flavor to them. They're soaked in the custard, but are a bit spongy instead of just soggy - kind of like (you guessed it) a donut that you've dunked in really good coffee.

Go forth and enjoy, free from the fear of the deeply frozen pretzel.

Shake Shack, 4 PM, 9 April 2011

Pancakes and bacon custard. My take? Too salty, not maple-y enough. I feel like a traditionalist-slash-provincial, but there you have it.

Super creamy, though.

Meatless Week: Giving in.

On Thursday night, I became the embodiment of every parent's worst fear about their child's vegetarianism: I had ice cream and french fries for dinner.

After four days of cooking and eating meticulously sourced, impeccably fresh vegetable-based meals, I couldn't take it any more. I needed relief from the virtue and toil of Meatless Week. And so, when I was walking past Shake Shack and saw that there was a lull (for once, the line was not out the door), I pounced.

Ten minutes later, in possession of a small cup of vanilla custard (with peanut butter sauce) and an order of fries (mayo on the side), I sat myself down in the sunshine to be very, very naughty. Not gonna lie: it was seriously good. I hardly even missed the burger.

Guest Blogger: Ana of Rearranged Design makes banana-chocolate-coconut ice cream!

Hello all! My name is Ana and normally you can find me over at Rearranged Design. I'll be guest posting for Meg today while she's visiting my adopted home state of California.

I am going to share my recipe for homemade Banana-Chocolate-Coconut Ice cream. It's a favorite around my house and easy to make.

I use a KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker attachment. If you have your own ice cream maker I don't see why the recipe wouldn't work with that. If you have a KitchenAid mixer and don't have the attachment, get it! I love mine and once you see how few ingredients are actually in ice cream you'll wonder why you don't already own one.

So, here goes. You will need:

2 1/2 cups Half and Half
8 Egg Yolks
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups Whipping Cream
1/8 tsp Salt
4 tsp of Vanilla (I always add a glug more just to give it a real strong flavor)
1 Banana
1 cup Shredded Toasted Coconut
1 Large Chocolate Bar (This is up to you, if you like you can use chocolate chips or a King Size Bar. It's up to how much chocolate you like)

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat half-and-half until very hot but not boiling, stirring often. Remove from heat; set aside.

Place egg yolks and sugar in mixer bowl. Attach wire whip to mixer. Turn to speed 2, and mix about 30 seconds, or until well blended and slightly thickened.

Continuing on speed 2, very gradually add half-and-half; mix until blended.

Return half-and-half mixture to medium saucepan; cook over medium heat until small bubbles form around edge and mixture is steamy, stirring constantly. Do not boil.

Transfer half-and-half mixture into large bowl; stir in whipping cream, vanilla, and salt. Cover and chill thoroughly, at least 8 hours (otherwise the ice cream will have ice crystals in it). Just a side note: if you’re not making your own vanilla already it’s SO easy. Add Vodka to a couple of vanilla beans and store in a dark place in a week or so you’ve got homemade vanilla!

Assemble ice cream maker attachments. Pour mixture into freeze bowl. Continue on Stir for 15 to 20 minutes or until desired consistency.

While the ice cream is churning toast the coconut on a backing sheet until it’s golden in color. Chop the chocolate into chunks (I used 2.5 regular sized Hershey bars) and cut up the banana.

At the 20-minute mark add the coconut, banana and chocolate. At this point my ice cream is usually the consistency of soft serve. You can eat it or put it in an airtight container and freeze to desired consistency. It makes about 7 cups/1.75 quarts.

I hope you love it as much as I do! Thanks to Meg for letting me share!

Emi screams (well, grabs) for ice cream.

After lunch at Nam Son, Emi, Miya and I walked over to Chinatown Ice Cream Factory for a sweet, cold treat. The Ice Cream Factory is known for its fresh product and its unusual flavors, and this visit didn't disappoint. Miya ordered the lychee, which she shared with an ice cream-crazy Emi.

I ordered the Zen butter, a combination of peanut butter and sesame seeds. It's more sesame-y than peanut-y, but it's 100% delicious. Creamy, cold and satisfying. Rich in a way that we're not really used to when it comes to ice cream, it's dense and nutty, but not even a little bit sweet. Good stuff.

Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
65 Bayard (Between Mott and Elizabeth)
212.608.4170

Mashup.

Ice cream sandwiches are one of summers great pleasures, and I wasn't about to let the fact that summer is pretty much over keep me from enjoying mine.

On Monday afternoon, a bit bored and a tad restless, I decided to make some chocolate chip cookies to take into work on Tuesday. As I took the first batch out of the oven, I remembered one of my grand plans from earlier in the summer: homemade ice cream sandwiches filled with salted caramel ice cream.

I didn't have the ingredients for homemade ice cream on hand, but I did have some delicious Ronnybrook vanilla in the freezer. Cue light bulb and deliciousness.

I took two same-size, completely cool cookies and spooned some slightly softened ice cream onto one of them, pressing the other down to complete the sandwich. I cut off a piece of parchment paper, wrapped the newborn sandwich, and put the packet in the freezer to firm up for a couple of hours.

Later that night, after dinner, I took the sandwich out of the freezer and took a bite. Keller's cookies are distinguished by their large quantity of dark brown sugar, and I think this helped keep the cookies nice and chewy, even after a few hours on ice. The ice cream had firmed up nicely, too, so the sandwich held together nicely.

The salty, sweet, rich cookie worked really well with the Ronnybrook. They make a very traditional vanilla: sweet, creamy and fairly neutral in flavor. As it turns out, that's what you want when the cookie in question is super-flavorful.

Now, for that salted caramel version...

I scream for peanut butter sundaes.

As former denizens of New England, Miles and I were both thoroughly indoctrinated into the church of Friendly's at a very young age.

You think I exaggerate, but I do not. Ice cream is something of a religion in New England; the abundance of dairy farms combines with the fervent embrace of a short summer season to create a frenzy for frozen, creamy goodness. The region is chock full of local, artisanal creameries. I remember, for example, my brother's deep and abiding passion for the banana split at Kimball's in Westford, Massachusetts. And there are two local ice cream places within walking distance of my aunt's condo in Bristol, Rhode Island.

All this local goodness, and Miles and I wind up at Friendly's. I know, I know.

Friendly's, for those of you who've never had the luck to visit it, is a hamburger and ice cream chain with outlets found mainly in the Northeast - but who, in the last ten years or so, have begun to sell their ice cream in grocery stores around the country.

For me, Friendly's was always, primarily, a place for dessert. My dad would take us there as a Sunday afternoon treat, or I'd go with fellow community theatre cast members after a late-night dress rehearsal or to celebrate an opening night. It was a treat, a special occasion kind of place, and it was there that my love of peanut butter sundaes was born.

Friendly's, you see, has this Reese's Pieces sundae that I remember as pretty much the best thing ever. The peanut butter sauce is a warm, salty counterpoint for the rich hot fudge (Friendly's has real fudge sauce, not syrup) and the cold vanilla ice cream. All of these things remain awesome, but I'm actually kind of over the Reese's Pieces themselves. When eaten at room temperature, they are as delicious as ever, in that peanut-butter-plus-chemical-emulsifiers kind of way. But dotted in a sundae, they are frozen, rock hard, and practically tasteless.

Not that this stopped me from enjoying my sundae to the utmost; I just ate around them. I am, after all, an expert in the field.