ICM's Winter Wonderland

Ice cream in the snow? Yes, please. This past week was eggnog ice cream at Goldie's in Prairie City, Iowa. You can see my previous post about Goldie's here. The eggnog was phenomenal. The fuzzi-'rents and I stopped there last week on they way to pick up Lucky from doggy daycare in Runnells. It was so good I finished the whole thing (hence the less than gorgeous photo of the above ice cream phone).

In fact, it was sooooo good that we went back for a full 1/2 gallon of it the next day. I had gotten a holiday thank you from Goldie's for being on their mailing list and used it towards the half gallon. I was wondering if the soft serve would lose something in translation when frozen solid. But by dog! It was just as good. There's still most of it left...but not for long. Mwhahahaha!

Return of the ICM!*

It's summer. In Iowa. That means HOT! It also means a search for the best locally produced ice cream. It is still the ICM's goal to make it to Le Mars, Iowa and eat...I mean check out the Ice Cream Museum. For realsies. But for now we'll have to be satisfied with tastings a little closer to home.

On the list? Moo Roo (they raise cows and wallabies, is Iowa not trippy?) in Waterloo. Heyn's and Whitey's in Iowa City. And Wilton Candy Kitchen (one hundred and fifty years...and counting! the oldest continuing ice cream parlor in the US) in Wilton, IA.

This week we happen to be near Prairie City. Goldie's has been mentioned quite a few times in conjunction with the phrase 'excellent ice cream'. We passed it on the way to IL last time but didn't stop.

(unprepossessing small town cafe...a totally hidden gem)

Oh man, I wish we had! The butterscotch fuzzi-mom and I tried last week was AMAZING!!! Not too cloyingly sweet, subtle rich burnt sugar flavor and a 'small' cone that can easily satisfy two. Not surprisingly, I dragged my brother and his friend, Nikhil, back this week when I heard the featured flavor was papaya.

(Heh, Nikhil ordered a large. Guess he missed hearing me say how big the small was.)

Next week? Kiwi. How I missed pear and cranberry I'll never know. But I now have a flavor forecast through the end of the year. And trust you me, we'll be headed back several times. My current pick for favorite Iowa ice cream. Now all it needs is eyeballs ;)

Goldie's Ice Cream Shoppe
304 West 2nd Street
Prairie City, Iowa 50228

515.994.3190

IceCreamMonster strikes again!

I haven't been doing much cooking (except for that delicious Emeril Jambalaya!) or blogging lately...but I do follow bites and pieces of the foodie community. When I read how the Ben & Jerry's Flourless Chocolate Cake flavor was tough to find I HAD to hunt it down.

So today I trekked to our local SuperWalmart (the only place that is carrying this limited edition flavor) to snag myself a carton....or two. ;) I'm happy to report it's as delicious as anticipated. It's like the chocolate fudge brownie ice cream but awesomer. The cake pieces are not quite as chewy as the brownie chunks. I failed to find the 'chocolate frosting ribbon' but it was delicious despite that fact. I plan to do another more extensive tasting tonight and add to this review. Until then....

Extra! Extra! Jersey Dairy Delivers!

There was good news for the Geneva branch of the International Ice-Cream Council today, as Jersey Ice Cream announced that a shipment had been successfully transferred from the tiny Island to Switzerland.

Speaking late last night Ross Belhomme, 24, a spokesman for the Company chortled, "We have successfully transported a carton of authentic banoffee* Jersey Ice-Cream to the Alpine state. The Ice-Cream, which is made using the finest milk from the finest Jersey cows, for that authentic creamy flavour long associated with Jersey Ice Cream, seems to have held up ok and
we hope the defreeze was limited by the cold temperatures experienced during flights"

Belhomme, clearly wishing to milk the situation, further blurted "we hope that this delivery will improve relations with our continental based cousins, and feel this is a strong example of the synergys created by our record investment in Ice-Cream Mobility Solutions.." (Ed - read Airplane)

A spokesman from the Iowa based Ice-Cream Review Select Sub Committee merely commented that the news was "delightful".

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The IceCreamMonster is pleased and greedy enough to solicit other ice cream samples from around the world. A 'Best Ice Cream Ever' list is to come.


*For those of you nonBrits and nonAussies, banoffee is a mix of banana and toffee flavors found primarily in candies and sweets in other English-speaking countries.