Milkjam Creamery - Masala Holla

Masala Holla - Garam Masala Spice Blend (Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Allspice, Ginger, Peppercorns and Cardamom) spun into a Dairy-Free Base with Oat and Coconut Milks

Today is another flavor from the Milkjam Creamery of Minneapolis.  This flavor is called Masala Holla (instagram link here).  It is a dairy-free flavor made with oat and coconut milks and then seasoned with a garam masala spice blend.  I have had two ice creams specifically billed as 'masala', one from McConnell's and one from Pumphouse.  That said, this specific spice blend is very similar to that of "5-spice" or even the "spice" of "pumpkin spice", so it would appear that many cultures have discovered that cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and ginger go well together.  Masala Holla was part of Milkjam's "Silk Road" series from the month of January, but I found a pint in their freezer case just a couple of weeks ago.  It is not unusual for pints to continue to be available after they've cycled the flavor out of their scooping pints.  Let's check it out!

Removing the lid, the ice cream has a off-white color consistent with oatmeal.  Knowing that oat milk was used may have led me to use that description, I might have used a linen color.  Digging in, the base is sweeter than I expected.  Not candy sweet, but almost a cereal-milk type of sweetness to it.  I do taste the masala spice blend in the mix, but it is surprisingly mild.  'Garam' means 'hot', so perhaps this is just masala.  The texture of the non-dairy base is interesting.  It has a bit of gritty oiliness to it.  It is not extreme -- it is still pleasing to eat -- but I do note the difference when I compare it to dairy bases.  The texture reminded me a bit of Indian or Thai desserts -- cold, sweet with a little bit of graininess in there.

I enjoyed this flavor.  It was not nearly as spicy as I was expecting for a masala flavor, but it was still cool and refreshing.

Izzy's - Mango Django

Mango Django - Mango Ice Cream infused with Honey and Balsam Vinegar with Cayenne Pepper, Poppy Seeds and Ground Pink Peppercorns

Today's flavor is another People's Flavor Award from Izzy's Ice Cream in Saint Paul.  This one is called Mango Django and it won their biennial contest in 2011.  I am looking forward to attending the 2019 contest on June 16th.  In their flavor page, I notice they specify that it is pronounced with a silent D.  That movie came out in 2012 -- the year after the flavor -- but that character is based on the title character of a 1966 spaghetti western film, so the name has been in pop culture for quite a while.   This flavor is a mango based flavor, but with several other ingredients.  It is sweetened with honey, but cut with balsamic vinegar and then cayenne pepper, poppy seeds and pink peppercorns are mixed in.  Looks quite interesting!

Removing the lid, I see the deep orange color of mango as expected.  I do see a few of the poppy seeds embedded in the ice cream.  They almost look like large vanilla bean specks.  Digging in, this is really good!  I can taste the mango flavor, but it is different from other mango implementations.  The honey & balsamic used to balance the flavors creates interesting effect.  It's not at all tangy like a balsamic-heavy pint, but it is not too sweet either.  The mix-ins are quite light here.  I can see the occasional poppy seed but it is not loaded with poppy seeds like a poppy seed muffin.  I could not taste much cayenne, though my spice tolerance is very high so perhaps there's a little kick in there that most people will notice.  I also did not notice many ground peppercorns, but maybe there were ground up so fine that they blended into the amazing base.

I enjoyed this ice cream greatly.  Often a simple mango ice cream or sorbet can be great for few spoonfuls but then have diminishing returns.  This base blends in a few other things to create a rich, creamy ice cream that was good for the full pint.  It reminded me of their Cabernet de l'Orange flavor -- a seemingly simple blend but surprisingly good.  Don't expect many mix-ins, though.  I've run into this issue sometimes with Izzy's.  The flavor description has me expecting a busy and crunchy pint but the mix-ins are either very sparse or fully ground up and blended into the base.  But don't let the mix-in confusion deter you.  This base ice cream is excellent.

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.