The time has come for us to end this ice cream series, October being halfway to Halloween. We wanted something to complement fall's palette of desserts: crumbles, crisps, cakes, and quickbreads, filled with apples, pears, walnuts, and cinnamon. With that in mind, apples and sour cream were a no-brainer, a lusciously tart rejoinder to rustic late-harvest food. More
Gelato just might be the most misunderstood form of ice cream in our great, ice cream-lovin' nation. We know it's smooth, intense and delicious but what makes a gelato real gelato? Here are the three elements that differentiate real-deal gelato from the traditional American stuff, and a recipe for a caffeinated twist on mint 'n' chip. More
Carrots may sound like an odd dessert ingredient, but they're certainly not just health food. They're starchy and sweet, and when cooked down slowly with milk, practically become candy on their own. Consider them an alternative sweetener, like honey, but with an even more complex sweetness. In a dessert, carrots can build a mild but flavorful base for more intense ingredients to play. Our result is something of a hybrid between Indian and Middle Eastern halvah. More
The Spanish have a long tradition of eating their beloved Manchego cheese with a smear of membrillo, a sweet paste made from quince. As their culinary influence spread to colonies in the Americas, they were adopted and adapted to match local tastes and ingredients. The gestalt of the two flavors together is incredible, a completely perfect combination of sweet and tart, creamy and fruity, exotic and familiar. In ice cream form, it's even more delicious (but what isn't more delicious in ice cream form?) and incredibly easy to make. More
As the temperature drops and New York's skies take on a dignified gray, we've put our window fans away and taken out our fall jackets. Summer may be on the way out, but making ice cream isn't. A new season... More
A few weeks ago, Guerrilla Ice Cream (my mobile ice cream project) was approached by fashion designers Shipley & Halmos about doing a New York City-themed flavor for Fashion's Night Out, a city-wide fashion event taking place today. As a native New Yorker, I jumped at the chance to capture the flavor of the greatest city in the world in ice cream form. I decided on a deep, complex, and just-a-tad spicy Brown Ale and Buckwheat Honey Ice Cream, topped with roasted chestnuts (hat tip to the chestnut vendors of old New York) and apple chips (it is the Big Apple, after all). More
When it comes to Labor Day food, the general rule is "it's more fun on a bun". Happily, dessert can be part of the party when you combine ice cream and hot dog buns to make Chilly Dogs. More
Lavender is a surprisingly versatile dessert ingredient with a strong affinity to cream. It's a love-it-or-hate-it kind of herb, but the creaminess subdues its at-times overwhelming intensity. Hyssop has largely fallen out of Western culinary use, which is a shame given its long history dating back to ancient times. Fortunately it's increasingly common in gardens and at farmers' markets. More
[Flickr: Carly & Art]... More
