McConnell's - Masala Chai, Dates & Walnuts

Masala Chai Tea Ice Cream Flavored with a Spice Mix of Cardamom, Nutmeg, Cloves, Mace, Peppercorns, Star Anise and Cumin with Salted Walnuts and California Dates

 

Today, we continue with the Melting Pot Collection from McConnell's.  The second pint is Masala Chai, Dates & Walnuts.  This looks like a very interesting flavor.  I think that might be the longest ingredient list that I have typed in.  Dates and Walnuts are the mix-ins and the base ice cream is a masala chai tea.    Masala is the Hindu word for a spice blend.  I have had tikka masala chicken but that is a different blend of spices than used in masala chai tea.  The Wikipedia link  for masala chai tea above lists a similar list of spices that McConnell's uses, so that checks out.  I can't want to try this out, it looks pretty exotic.

The top of the pint shows that the base is a milky off-white color and some of the mix-ins are visible already.  The first spoonful packs quite a punch.  This is quite spicy!  It is not a hot spice, it is more of a baking spice.  I don't know if I can pick out all of the flavors but I can definitely tell it has cloves, nutmeg and cardamom.  It is fairly sweet, but not overly so.  I really like this flavor.  It would make a good flavor for a sweetbread.  The walnuts and dates are distributed throughout the pint.  The walnuts provide some texture and crunch.  The dates are cut into small strip-like pieces.  With all of the other flavors present, I could not specifically taste it but perhaps it contributed to the overall blend of flavors which is quite excellent.  A half an hour after eating it, I did notice an aftertaste of all the spices in my mouth -- I could tell there was star anise and peppercorn in there.  The aftertaste did not detract from the pint at all, just a heads up to be prepared for that.

This was an excellent pint of ice cream -- one of the best that I have had recently.  If you have access to a McConnell's scoop shop and you like spicy desserts, then you have to check this out.

McConnell's - Hibiscus Lime

Hibiscus Lime - Hibiscus and Lime Ice Cream

The other day, I got a nice present from a relative who appreciates my ice cream hobby -- a shipment of the McConnell's Melting Pot Collection.  It is four limited-edition flavors for the end of summer -- all flavors are a bit exotic in nature.  The first flavor is Hibiscus Lime.  I have never seen hibiscus-flavored ice cream before.  I've never seen hibiscus flavored anything before.  My mother had a potted hibiscus plant in our backyard when I was a kid, but I never thought about eating it.  I guess it is a thing, though.  Part of the flower can be used to make a red-colored tea which has a tart cranberry-like flavor.  Places that serve crafty mixed drinks sometimes include hibiscus in their rotation of exotic ingredients, so it makes sense to extend that to ice cream.  Here, McConnell's adds a bit of citrus into the mix with the lime.  I am quite curious to check this out!

Since these pints were packed in dry ice for shipment, I always leave them out for an extra five minutes to let it soften.  Opening the pint, I see that the base has a chalky pink color.  It is an ice cream and not a sorbet so it won't be a bright red.  With the first spoonful, there is a strong berry flavor and it is a little bit tart.  I was trying to figure out exactly what kind of berry, but it is hard to place.  It reminded me a little bit of tart version of Izzy's Church Elderberry but more tart.  At any rate, it really is quite delicious.  I could sense the presence of lime, but its role here is a supporting one.  There are no mix-ins in this pint.

This was fun.  I enjoyed this new flavor.  The tartness built up a bit as I ate further down into the pint.  The end of the pint was still good, but this is perhaps a flavor enjoyed one large scoop at a time.  So, if you're in a McConnell's scoop shop in the next couple of months, then check this out.

  

Jeni's - Pistachio & Honey

Pistachio & Honey - Pistachio & Honey Ice Cream

We return to the Columbus-based Jeni's brand for their Pistachio & Honey flavor.  Recently, I had tried a pint of pistachio from the usually-reliable Tillamook brand and was disappointed.  A reader in the comment section mentioned that I should try Jeni's, so I ran out and picked up a pint.  As you may recall from previous reviews, Jeni's is the super-premium brand which uses tapioca starch as a thickening agent.  I am hoping that they restore my faith in the pistachio flavor.  Here, they mix the pistachio with honey.

Removing the lid shows a beige color instead of the green that I normally imagine when I think of pistachio.  There might be a tinge of olive green if I look at for a bit.  That was the case with the Tillamook pint as well, but here the presence of honey might be another explanation.  Digging in, there is quite a bit of pistachio flavor as I eat each spoonful.  The honey seems to add a bit sweetness as well as a little bit of an aftertaste. I mean aftertaste in a good way here.  Ample Hills' Commodore flavor had a similar salted honey aftertaste and I loved that flavor.  As usual with Jeni's, this is a very thick and slow-melting pint.  The tapioca starch is doing its job.

I really enjoyed this pint.  I think the honey was what was missing in the Tillamook pint that I had a couple of weeks ago.  Jeni's has restored my faith in pistachio ice cream!  If you're a fan of pistachio, give this pint a try.

  

Dreyer's - Hostess Twinkies Ice Cream

Twinkies Ice Cream - Sweet Butter Cream Ice Cream with Sponge Cake Pieces and a Frosting Swirl

Today we try something different.  I always check the freezer case whenever I visit any store.  That includes 7-11 where lately pints of Twinkies Ice Cream has been catching my eye.  Normally, I do not review all the novelty ice creams with brand tie-ins -- there seems to be one associated with every candy bar -- but Twinkies occupy a very fun, nostalgic and kitschy part of my memory banks.  As a kid, we often had a box of Twinkies in the freezer.  My mother used to keep the box in the freezer to make them last longer -- which didn't make much sense because with four of us kids, the box never last longer than a couple of days.  It does mean that I am used to eating them frozen. 

Twinkies were first created in the 1930s by the Continental Baking Company -- the makers "Wonder Bread".  Continental already made a cream-filled strawberry shortcake product.  One of Continental's, James Dewar, noticed that the machinery used for making that product sat idle when strawberries were not in season, so he came up with product which used a banana filling and called it the "Twinkie" and they were sold under Continental's Hostess Brand which also included the famous CupCake.  Banana rations during WWII forced them to switch to vanilla cream -- a switch that was so popular that they did not switch back.  It become one of the most popular snack cakes of the post-war era.  The original company went bankrupt in 2012 but a product as iconic as the Twinkie could not be kept away from the American public.  It lives on as as a brand and the company which manages this brand trades on the stock market under the ticker symbol TWNK.  Here, they have partnered with Nestle Dreyer's (Edy's) Ice Cream to convert the Twinkie into an ice cream flavor.

On to the ice cream!  Before I even opened the pint, I notice that it is quite light.  They do use a "14-ounce pint" to cut costs like Baskin-Robbins and Häagen-Dazs do, but it seems even lighter than that.  I examined the packaging and there are only 160 calories per 4-ounce (quarter-pint) serving.  The ice creams I normally eat are usually around 250 calories, sometimes as high as 300.  Then I checked the ingredient list and they use skim milk.  Could Twinkies Ice Cream be healthy?  They still label it as ice cream, though.  The FDA requires a certain milkfat content for that, otherwise you have to call it 'frozen dessert'.  Opening the lid, the top of the pint is yellow -- Twinkie colored, so far so good.  Digging my spoon in, the ice cream is quite sweet.  There are yellow cake pieces generously distributed throughout the pint which stayed soft in the frozen ice cream.  The frosting swirl simulated the creme filling and was also quite good.  It did indeed taste like a Twinkie!

I was expecting this pint to be a total disaster which I would ironically enjoy anyways, but it was actually pretty good.   The one thing to look out for is the sweetness.  It did build up over the course of the pint and left me with a bit of a headache for a while afterwards.  I have eaten a lot of pints of ice cream in the past couple of years and that normally does not happen.  It reminded me of eating cupcakes.  Fun while you are eating them, but don't overdo it.  Maybe Twinkies snack cakes are the same way.

  

Steve's - Salty Caramel

Salty Caramel - Caramel Ice Cream with Sea Salt Caramel Sauce

We return to Steve's Ice Cream for their implementation of a Salty Caramel flavor.  Salted Caramel is a big thing in ice cream for the past five years or so.  This particular pint includes both a caramel base and a salted caramel swirl.  Usually, you only get one or the other.  I am looking forward to this pint.


Removing the lid shows the off-white color of the caramel.  There is not a strong caramel color.  Digging into the pint, the base is creamy, but extremely thick.  I stopped and let it sit out for a couple of minutes to let it soften a bit so that my spoon would slice through it better.  The caramel flavor was good, but like the color it was not too strong.  I saw a little bit of a caramel swirl but it was very small.  Eating my way further down, I had trouble seeing evidence of the swirl until I got to three-quarters the way down and then there was large amounts of caramel.  All of the swirl had settled down to the bottom of the pint.  I tried the swirl.  It was thick, caramelly and with a noticeable kick of salt.  It was quite good, but I was already down to the bottom and there was not a lot of ice cream left.  I took extra pictures this pint so you can see all the caramel at the bottom.

The ingredients of this pint were good, but there was a mixing issue.  This has happened with Steve's before. so it is not a fluke, I think it is an issue with their manufacturing process. 

  

Graeter's - Black Cherry Chocolate Chip

Black Cherry Chocolate Chip - Black Cherry Ice Cream with Black Cherries and Chocolate Chips

We return to Graeter's for another member of their Signature Chip collection.  This time, it is Black Cherry Chocolate Chip.  Frequent readers will know that Graeter's is the brand which uses the french pot process and a unique way of creating large soft chocolate chunks in their pints.  A couple of videos in a previous review demonstrate how this is done.  I really like these chips, so it is almost guaranteed to be a good pint already, but it is always interesting to see what else is in the pint.  Here it is black cherries -- or sweet dark cherries as they write in some of the descriptions.  This should be interesting.

Opening the lid shows the purply pink color color of the black cherry base with a couple of large cherry pieces visible right away.  The first spoonful was quite tasty.  It is a different cherry than Cherry Garcia.  Like black cherry soda, the flavor is simultaneously more sweet and more sour than a regular cherry.  It is a little more sweet when you bit into it and there is a bit of a sour aftertaste.  I actually like flavor better, but that is a personal preference.  The cherry pieces are distributed generously throughout the pint and are also quite good.  As usual, the famous chocolate chips do not disappoint.  If you've watched the videos and/or are familiar with these chips, you'll know that there is some variability in chip size.  In this pint, I ran into a chip that was too large to fit on my spoon!  I had to shovel it up to the rim of the pint and bite off a piece first.  That was fun.  The chunks are soft and even a bit chewy so that didn't seem weird.

This was another successful Graeter's pint.  The chips are always good, but I really liked the base and the cherry pieces here as well.  If you'd like a black cherry version of Cherry Garcia with the famous Graeter's chips, then don't hesitate to give this a try.

  

Tillamook - California Pistachio

California Pistachio - Pistachio Gelato

Today we return to Oregon's Tillamook Creamery for their California Pistachio flavor.  I haven't had a pint of Tillamook in a while and I was in the mood for pistachio, so I thought I would give it a try.  Interestingly, it is labeled as a 'farmstyle gelato'.  They seem to be careful on their flavor page to make the distiction between gelatos, ice creams and frozen custards.

Popping off the lid, the top of the pint is an off-white cream color which small specks visible if I look closer.  I was not expecting this as pistachio ice creams are usually light green in color.  Perhaps this means they are not using artificial colors, or maybe it is the variety of pistachio being used?  Not sure.  Digging in, the flavor is recognizable as pistachio, but it seems different.  It is hard to describe.  It is a bit nuttier perhaps, definitely less sweet than I was expecting.   Eating my way further down, the flavor did not improve.  It was not a strong or overpowering flavor, but it was not the refreshing palate-cleansing flavor that I am used to from other pints of pistachio.  The pint did have the thick but soft consistency which are found in other Tillamook pints.  I did like that.

I usually try to spin a positive opinion here, but I simply did not care for this pint.  I was expecting a simple pistachio flavor but something was off here.  Did I get a bad batch?  Was I suppose to accompany this with something?  Not sure.  For a pint of pistachio, I greatly prefer Ben & Jerry's.

  

Talenti - Fudge Brownie

Fudge Brownie - Dark Chocolate Gelato with Brownies and a Fudge Swirl

We return to Talenti gelato for their Fudge Brownie flavor.  This looks like an interesting flavor.  Normally when I think of gelato, I think of something light and airy -- perhaps a fruit flavor, but chocolate and fudge are heavy and rich ingredients.  I'm curious to see how this works out.

Unscrewing the lid shows the brown color of the chocolate base with some of the fudge swirls visible.  The side of the pint and the website bill this as a dark chocolate base but it does not visibly look that dark.  Digging in, it tastes like regular chocolate and not dark chocolate -- it is good, though.  The brownie pieces are small, but dispersed generously throughout the pint.  They are chewy and chocolatey.  Sometimes brownies can freeze, but that did not happen here.  The fudge swirls are blended in more than the initial view up top would suggest.  Perhaps it make the base more chocolatey.  

I liked this pint a lot better than I thought I would.  It's a bit thick and rich for 'gelato' but it is still a good pint of ice cream.  I think Ben & Jerry's is still the gold standard for brownie mix-ins but one could argue that the chocolate base is better here.  If you are a Talenti fan and you like chocolate, then don't hesitate.

  

Baskin Robbins - Rainbow Sherbet

Rainbow Sherbet - Pineapple, Orange and Raspberry Flavored Sherbet

Today's flavor is Baskin Robbins' Rainbow Sherbet.  I have to admit that it made me smile nostalgically when I saw it in the freezer case.  I really liked orange sherbet when I was a kid.  This is my first sherbet review, so let me say a few things about sherbet.  First, there is only one 'r' in sherbet and is pronounced "sure-bit".   It is a common mispronunciation to say "sure-bert" instead -- common enough that some dictionaries list 'sherbert' as an alternate spelling -- but "sherbet" is correct.  The next question would be to ask what exactly is sherbet and what makes it different from ice cream and sorbet.  It is all about the amount of milkfat.  'Ice cream' is a thick, rich dessert which the FDA requires to contain at least 10% milkfat.   On the other hand, a sorbet contains no dairy products at all.  Sorbets contain flavored syrup (usually fruit juice and sugar) and ice.  A 'sherbet' is in the middle.  The FDA requirements for sherbet are that it contain between 1% and 2% milkfat.  Sherbets are almost always fruit-based and the presence of some dairy give it a slightly creamy texture.  Today's sherbet is a 'rainbow' mixture of pineapple, orange and raspberry flavors.

Enough talk, let's eat!  Removing the lid shows a marble-like swirling of the three flavors.  It reminded me a bit of the way my last pint of spumoni was marbled.  Digging in, sherbet has a different texture to it than ice cream.  It is still soft and creamy but it has a bit of grit to it.  The fruit flavors are quite noticeable.  The raspberry and orange more so than the pineapple.  I think orange and raspberry might just be more dominant flavors to my tongue.  If I focused, I could sense the pineapple producing an undercurrent of tropicalness.  Also, as I scoop lower, the colors are quite striking.  See the pictures below, it is quite beautiful.

I had quite a bit of fun eating this pint.  Sherbet is a great way to provide fruit flavoring -- especially citrus flavors.  If you feel like something light and fruity, then you could give this one a try.

  

Graeter's - Coconut Chocolate Chip

Coconut Chocolate Chip - Coconut Ice Cream with Coconut Flakes and Chocolate Chips

The local Ralph's is starting to stock more pints from of the Cincinnati-based Graeter's brand.  Because of this, I am able to bring you today's flavor:  Coconut Chocolate Chip.  As mentioned in previous reviews, Graeter's is the 19th century ice cream shop which uses the old-fashioned "french pot process".  They also have a unique way of creating chocolate chips -- they pour liquid chocolate into the base and break it up with a paddle while it hardens and mixes in.  (See the video in the Mint Chocolate Chip review to see how it is done).  I really like their chocolate chips, it will be fun to see how they taste with coconut.

Removing the lid shows the white color of the coconut base with a big hunk of chocolate visible already.  Mmmm.... Digging in, the coconut base is fairly mild in flavor but it is definitely noticeable.  The big chip visible was just the tip of the ice berg, look at the picture below to see how big it was!  The chocolate chips are tasty.  They manage to be both chunky and chewy at the same time.  There were also shreds of coconut mixed in but not too many.  They did provide a little bit of extra coconut flavor when they were around.

I liked this flavor for the chocolate chips.  They know they do great chocolate chips at Graeter's so they have a whole line of flavors which include them.    The coconut was a bit mild though.  If you love coconut, though, it was still good but I've had better pints that focus more on the coconut.  McConnell's does a great toasted coconut and Talenti does a raw Mounds-bar type of coconut.  For me, this pint is worth it just for the chocolate chips.