OddFellows - Chico Stix

Chico Stix - Peanut Butter Ice Cream with a Shaved Coconut Candy Crunch

 Today brings the fourth pint from my recent "Bodega Capsule" shipment from OddFellows Ice Cream in Brooklyn.  See my first review in this series for more info about this shipment.  A note to Twin Cities readers that I bought this online and it is not available in local stores.  Today's flavor is called Chico Stix and it is a peanut butter ice cream with coconut candy mix-ins.  This flavor is based on the Chick-O-Stick candy which is a peanut butter and toasted coconut candy which has been around since the 1950s.  I must admit that I had not heard of this candy!  I did not even know about this flavor combination before but a check of google online shows quite a few recipes for cookies, balls, bars, etc.  It should be fun to see if this makes a good ice cream.

Removing the lid, I see a lighter than usual color for a peanut butter base.  I'm not sure if I see any mix-ins yet.  Maybe one in the four-o-clock position of the photo below, but I'm not sure.  Digging in, it is a mildly sweet peanut butter base.  It is tasty, but with not as rich or heavy as some peanut butter bases can be.  I quickly encounter the coconut candies.  These are light in color and do not stick out visually in the base, but they are crunchy and provide quite a bit of coconut flavor.  A little bit of coconut goes a long way.  The resulting peanut butter and coconut mix is quite good!

I was pleasantly surprised by this peanut butter and coconut flavor from OddFellows.  It is a fairly simple implementation, but quite successful.  I may have to track down one of these Chick-O-Stick candies the next time I visit New York.  Until then, maybe I will try one of those recipes I linked to above.  More brands should try to combine these flavors.

 

Bebe Zito - Lemon Party

Lemon Party - Lemon Buttermilk Ice Cream with Spiced Streusel and Spiced Blueberry Jam

 

Today's flavor is from the Minneapolis-based Bebe Zito and is called Lemon Party.  I picked it up from their scoop shop in the Wedge/Lowry Hill neighborhood of south Minneapolis.  This particular flavor is not on their current scooping list, but I found a pint of it in their freezer case.  I imagine this flavor will cycle back into the scooping bins at some point.  This is a lemon buttermilk ice cream with spiced blueberry jam and some spiced streusel.  Sounds like a good combination of flavors!

Removing the lid, I see a lot of crumble!  Bebe Zito likes to sprinkle mix-ins across the top of the pint before putting the lid on and that has definitely happened here.  Digging in, I get a lot of flavor all at once.  I do taste the lemon right away despite all the mix-ins.  It is a good lemon flavor.  I think the buttermilk is used just to help blend the lemon into the ice cream and does not provide any of its own flavor -- it is not a sour pint.  The blueberry jam is delicious.  I was surprised to note that the jam is spiced a bit.  I checked the ingredient list and note that there is coriander and cardamom mixed into the jam.  This is a nice effect and reminds me a bit of the jam used in Jeni's Claire's Cabinet flavor.  I still primarily taste the blueberry, but there's subtle and spicy 'finish'.  Good stuff.  The crumble provides a bit of grit to the pint and I note spiciness in there was well.  Checking the ingredient list, it says they use a five-spice powder.  It's not super-spicy, but I can definitely taste the cinnamon and nutmeg in the mix.  

This is a delicious pint from Bebe Zito.  This is not simple a lemon berry or a lemon pie pint as they a tasteful amount of spice to both the jam and the crumble.  Lots of flavor in here without overwhelming the lemon either.  This flavor is a winner and I highly recommend it.

 

 

 

 

 

OddFellows - Sweet Tea & Lemonade

Sweet Tea & Lemonade - Sweet Tea Sorbet and Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade Sorbet

 

The third pint from my recent six-pint "Bodega Capsule" shipment from OddFellow's Ice Cream is called Sweet Tea & Lemonade.  For more information on this shipment, see my first review in the series.  Also, a note to local readers that I bought these pints online and had them shipped to me.  They are not available in Minnesota grocery stores.  Today's flavor is a sorbet -- or really I suppose it is two sorbets mixed together:  Sweet Tea and Lemonade.  I have had a few lemon sorbets (alone here and swirled with raspberry sorbet here) but this is my first sweet tea sorbet.  As its name suggests, sweet tea is a form of ice tea which has some sort of sweetener added (sugar, simple syrup, etc).  Let's check this out.

Removing the lid, the top of the pint has a blurry brown color to it.  It looks like the tea and lemon sorbets may be partially mixed.  As I dig down with my spoon, I notice that the blurry color is only on the top surface.  Below, I see two distinct sorbet sections marbled together.  The sweet tea sorbet is quite good.  It does taste like sweet tea and is quite sweet.  The lemonade sections have good lemon flavor with only a hint of tartness.  It goes quite well with the sweet tea.  I think some of the sweetness from the tea sections might be offsetting the tartness of the lemon sections but I imagine that's the point of this combination.  The flavors hold up as I continue eating.  One thing I notice is that my spoon is getting quite sticky from the sweet tea sections.  At the end of the pint, my fingers have actually gotten sticky from holding the spoon.  I had to wash my hands when I was done.  I have never had that happen before.  Still, there was enough lemonade in the mix that flavor was still appealing right until the end.  I was able to easily eat the whole pint in one sititng.

This is a fun and enjoyable sweet tea sorbet from OddFellows.  The lemonade did a good job of keeping it from being too sweet.  It is a sorbet and not an ice cream, so be prepared for that, but this is a good flavor for fans of sweet tea.

 

 

 

Talenti - Dark Chocolate

Dark Chocolate - Dark Chocolate Sorbet with Dark Chocolate Sauce

Today's flavor is a relatively new flavor released earlier in 2020 from Talenti Gelato.  It is a sorbetto called Dark Chocolate.  I am surprised that they had not released a dark chocolate sorbet before this year.  Often sorbets are associated with fruit flavors, but a few flavors like peanut butter, coconut and dark chocolate make for very good sorbets because their flavors supply their own 'butter' or oils which help add a creaminess to the texture with the use of dairy.  Here, Talenti adds a swirl of dark chocolate into the mix as well.  I bought this at a local grocery store (probably Target or Lund's).  Keep in mind that this pint is different than their Double Dark Chocolate flavor.  Double Dark Chocolate is a gelato that uses dairy also has chocolate chip mix-ins.  Today's flavor is a non-dairy sorbet with a swirl of chocolate sauce swirl.

Unscrewing the lid, I see the deep brown color of the chocolate sorbet with a couple of the dark brown swirls of chocolate sauce visible on the top.  I have seen darker colored chocolate bases, but it is still fairly dark.  Digging in, the sorbet does have a creamy texture and not at all icy or slushy -- Talenti does texture well.  The dark chocolate flavor is quite good and tasty.  The swirl of sauce is half blended into the sorbet base.  Instead of creating sections of different texture, it creates darker colored sections in the base which have a more biting chocolate flavor.  This biting flavor reminded me a bit of chocolate syrup that I used to use when I was a kid.  

This is an excellent chocolate sorbet from Talenti.  It has a good chocolate flavor with a good bite to it and it has a creamy texture.  The sauce creates sections which have a more biting flavor to it than the rest of the base, but it's half blended in, so it does not create a different texture.  So, you like to use ice cream as an ingredient in other things (shakes, as a coffee additive, etc), don't worry about the sauce.  I really liked this flavor.  For the mid-premium price, it's hard to beat this implementation.

 

 

OddFellows - baconeggncheese

baconeggncheese - Smoked Cream Ice Cream with Candied Bacon, Whipped Cheese Cream and Candied Egg Yolks

 

Today is the second pint from my recent "Bodega Capsule" shipment from OddFellows Ice Cream in Brooklyn.  (A quick note to local readers that this flavor is not available in Minnesota grocery stores).  For my first review from this shipment, I chose Bodega Counter Crunch (see for more background info on this collection) because it had "bodega" in the flavor name, but today's flavor, 'baconeggncheese' is arguably the headline flavor from the collection.  This is the one with bacon and it is also the flavor that Desus & Nero had Stephen Colbert try on the Late Show.  Not only is this my first pint which includes bacon, this is my first pint which includes any type of meat product.  How do you convert bacon, egg and cheese into an ice cream?  Let's find out!

Removing the lid, the off-white base ice cream contains bacon bits right on top as well yellow sections which look like bits of egg yolk.  It really does look like bacon and eggs are blended into ice cream.  Digging in, the first thing I notice about the bacon bits is that they are salty.  They are crunchy and provide a bacon flavor --  not the bacon I usually have with breakfast, but the bacon bits I would add to salad.  Next I notice the 'egg' sections.  These are surprisingly sweet!  It tastes like small pockets of custard in the mix.  I guess that is basically what custard is -- a frozen dessert made with lots of eggs.  I have seen this effect with egg-nog-themed ice creams as well.  I am at first apprehensive about what egg nog in ice cream would taste like and end up pleasantly surprised because it tastes like custard.  The 'cheese' in the mix is not quite as distinct.  I think it got blended into the base.  It is a good base consistent which containing a cream-cheese-like ingredient (rich, creamy and no vanilla).

This is a fun and interesting flavor from OddFellows.  The salty and savory bacon bits go well with the sweet and custardy egg sections and the whipped cheese ice cream does a good job of holding it all together.  It is a bit saltier than I expected, so be prepared for that, but that is not a deal breaker for me.  This flavor is definitely worth trying out if you live in an area that sells OddFellows.

 

 

Milkjam Creamery - Fun-Sized

Fun-Sized - Sea Salt Ice Cream with Halloween Candies

Milkjam Creamery has four flavors for this Halloween season.  One of them is Death by Chocula I reviewed last winter (out of season) and the other three are called "Fun-Sized", "Poison Apple" and "It Shall Not be Named...".  I picked up those three and took them home.  The first of pints is called Fun-Sized (instagram link here) and is basically a flavor where assorted Halloween candies are the mix-ins inside a simple base.  I have seen this once before from Izzy's with their Trick or Treat flavor.  Let's see how Milkjam compares.

Removing the lid shows lots of mini M&M's on the top.  They are very colorful.  I like the way the candy coating has bleed a little into the base.  Digging in, the M&M's are very good.  The base ice cream is a sea salt sweet cream which has a good texture and does a very good job of holding all the mix-ins below.  I did not specifically notice the salt, but it's effect must be subtle.  As I continue eating my way down, I run into other types of candy.  There are some chunks of chocolate which are good.  I notice some chocolate-covered caramels which remind me of Rolo's but they are the wrong shape.  These are shorter and more lozenge-shaped and are excellent.

I enjoyed this Halloween-candy-themed ice cream from Milkjam Creamery.  My batch was mainly mini-M&M's and little chocolate caramels, but I imagine this would vary from batch to batch.  Check it out if you are in the mood for Halloween candy this holiday.

 

 

 

OddFellows - Bodega Counter Crunch

Bodega Counter Crunch - Light Caramel Ice Cream with Chocolate-Covered pretzels, honey roasted peanuts and crushed homemade butter crunch cookies

I was watching the Late Show with Stephen Colbert last month and the had a couple of guys named Desus Nice and the Kid Mero on.  These guys host a podcast called "Bodega Boys" and a pay-cable talk show called Desus & Mero.  To be honest, I hadn't heard of them before but it was a fun interview and when they came back after the commercial,  in the second half of the interview, they were promoting their own line of ice cream flavors!  Stephen also had an excuse to drag out pints of his own flavor Americone Dream.  Fun!   

So, I googled to see who was selling Desus & Nero's ice cream and it was OddFellows Ice Cream of Brooklyn, New York.  I have had before!  I usually eat and review at least one pint whenever I visit my sister in New York.  OddFellows actually has a group of six flavors associated with Desus & Nero called the Bodega Capsule.  I checked to see if they ship nationwide and they do.  (A note to local readers that these are not available in local stores.)  Shipping costs were a bit expensive, but I figure how often does it happen that people promote a colorful line of ice cream flavors on my favorite talk show.  I had to get it.  OddFellows only ships one day a week and I had just missed the deadline, so I had to wait a week for it to ship but then it arrived quite quickly and intact.

Once my Bodega Capsule did arrive, there were all sorts of goodies that came with the six pints.  There's a picture placard with a picture of a bodega menu on one side (including the six ice cream flavors and a photo of a typical bodega counter on the other.  There was a couple of stickers, a lottery ticket (looks like I win a coupon to order from OddFellows and a discount on a first month of Showtime to watch Desus & Nero).  There is also a postcard and there is even a little packet containing a single lactase tablet.  Ha ha...  I am not lactose-intolerant, but it is fun to know that they are worried about that.

There was ice cream in the shipment, too!  I suppose I should get around to that.  For the first pint, I decided to go with Bodega Counter Crunch because it had "bodega" in the name to match the same of the 'capsule'.  Bodega is a fun word.  In New York City, it means a small convience store (usually non-chain) which also sells some grocery-type items and often has a grill behind the counter where they can make some simple hot meals to go.  The word itself has an interesting etymology.  It's the Spanish form of the Latin/Greek word apothecary meaning 'storehouse' -- the French form is 'boutique'.  So, you end up with three totally different types of stores:  apothecary (drugs), boutique (clothing/jewelry) and bodega (convenience) all coming from the same root.  Aren't word histories fun?

OK, back to the ice cream again!  The base here is a light caramel and there are a variety of mix-ins: chocolate-covered pretzels, honey roasted peanuts and butter crunch cookies.  Let's see how this works out.  Opening the lid, the caramel base has a light yellow color and I can see bits of a couple of the mix-ins right away.  Digging in, the base ice cream has an appealing caramel flavor.  It is fairly mild, but this is billed as a 'light' caramel.  This base is meant to be a vehicle for the mix-ins.  The mix-ins are scattered throught out the pint.  The density of the mix-ins is not super-high, but each spoonful contains at least one of them.  Sometimes I get a small pretzel bite, sometimes I get a crunchy peanut, sometimes I get a bit of a cookie.  Each tastes pretty good, but the pieces are small enough that the flavor quickly disappears once you bite into something new.  It's still good though and I enjoyed eating it.

This is a solid flavor to start off the Bodega Capsule from OddFellows.  One minor quibble is that with so many different kinds mix-ins, it is hard for any of their flavors to stand out, but it's still quite delicious and the caramel base does a good job of holding it all together.  It'll be fun checking out the rest of this Bodega Capsule in the coming few weeks!