Thursday, September 8, 2011

Double Cherry Semi Freddo Recipe

Double Cherry Semi Freddo RecipeIngredients for Double Cherry Semi Freddo

1kg cherries , stones removed
400ml double cream
100g icing sugar
4 eggs , separated
wafers , to serve (optional)

How to make Double Cherry Semi Freddo

Set aside a handful (about 50g) of the pitted cherries. Place the remainder in a large pan set over a medium heat with the cream and 50g icing sugar. Bring up to the boil, then gently simmer for 5 mins until the cherries start to soften. Carefully whizz in a blender, then pass through a sieve.

Pour a little of the hot cherry cream over the egg yolks, whisk well, then pour back into the pan. Cook for about 5 mins more or until the mixture has thickened a little and will coat the back of a wooden spoon. Pour through a sieve into a bowl, cover the surface with cling film, then leave to cool completely.

Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then whisk in the remaining 50g sugar, 1 tbsp at a time. Keep whisking until the mixture is stiff and resembles shaving foam. Stir a third of the mixture into the cooled cream, mix until it is well incorporated, then gently fold through the remaining mixture in 2 goes.

Line a 900g loaf tin with cling film. Pour the mixture into the tin, then cover with cling film and place in the freezer for about 3 hrs until just starting to freeze. Stir the whole cherries into the semi-frozen mixture, then return to the freezer for at least 8 hrs or preferably overnight. Serve cut into slices with some berries, or sandwiched between wafers.
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Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Unilever ice creams sweet on Whybin TBWA

Unilever ice creams sweet on Whybin TBWAUnilever has hired Whybin TBWA to work across its multimillion dollar ice cream account without a pitch.
Whybin has been appointed on a project-by-project basis, with the possibility of becoming a retained agency. The agency begins work immediately on the Magnum, Cornetto and Splice brands.

Unilever ice creams sweet on Whybin TBWAWhybin TBWA Group Sydney chief executive Paul Bradbury said: "We have enormous respect for Unilever and their portfolio of Australia’s best loved brands. We look forward to achieving great things working with their marketing and agency teams."

Unilever adopts a two-part marketing approach, in which it splits "regional brand development" and "local brand building". Whybin has been appointed to the local brand building element of the Unilever ice cream account.

Lowe handles the regional brand development portion of the account, however this is through a regional and global alignment. While this alignment involves Lowe Sydney, it is unclear just how much direct involvement the agency has on the ice cream account, because a lot of the regional brand development work comes into Australia from other markets.

Apart from Lowe and Whybin, the Unilever ice cream account works with digital agency Soap, which also handles other Unilever categories, and Mindshare, which handles media planning and buying for the entire Unilever business.

The appointment was predominantly overseen by VP of marketing for Australasia Peter Boone. Since his arrival at Unilever at the end of last year, Boone has been developing a number of agency relationships. He appointed Mindshare as Unilever’s media agency earlier in the year, and has also started working on a project basis with Droga5 on the Lynx brand.

Unilever estimated main media spend in the 12 months to June 2011 was $70.7 million, down from $81.8 million in the prior period, according to Nielsen. The company spent $6.4 million and $1.1 million on the Streets Magnum Ice Cream and Cornetto brands respectively in the year to June 2011, while spending nothing on the Splice brand.
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Sunday, September 4, 2011

Caramel Apple Trifle Recipe

Caramel Apple Trifle RecipeCaramel Apple Trifle Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
4 cups chopped peeled tart apples (about 5 medium)
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon apple pie spice, divided
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 jar (12-1/4 ounces) caramel ice cream topping, divided
1 carton (12 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
2 loaves (10-3/4 ounces each) frozen pound cake, thawed and cut into 1-inch cubes
Additional apple pie spice, optional

How to make Caramel Apple Trifle

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in the apples, walnuts, brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice. Cook and stir for 8-10 minutes or until apples are tender.

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in 1/2 cup caramel topping and remaining apple pie spice. Fold in 2 cups whipped topping.

In a 3-1/2-qt. trifle bowl or glass serving bowl, layer a third of the cake cubes, cream cheese mixture and apple mixture. Repeat layers twice. Garnish with remaining whipped topping and drizzle with remaining caramel topping. Sprinkle with additional apple pie spice if desired. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
Caramel Apple Trifle is ready to serve.

Yield: 14 servings.

Prep: 40 min. + chilling
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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Chocolate Chip Banana Sour Cream Bread Recipe

Chocolate Chip Banana Sour Cream Bread Recipe1 cup butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup baking cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk chocolate chips

How to make Chocolate Chip Banana Sour Cream Bread

1 Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together.

2 Then add the eggs and mix.

3 Then put in the dry ingredients and mix well.

4 Add the bananas and sour cream and mix.

5 Then add in the chocolate chips and pour into 3 greased loaf pans.

6 Bake at 350 for 1 hour, or until a toothpick that has been inserted into the
center comes out clean.

Chocolate Chip Banana Sour Cream Bread Recipe is ready to serve.
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Thursday, August 25, 2011

Coffee Can Ice Cream Recipe

Coffee Can Ice Cream Recipe
Coffee Can Ice Cream Ingredients:

1 c. cream
1 c. milk
1 beaten egg
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 lg. coffee can
1 sm. coffee can
Crushed ice
Rock salt

How to make Coffee Can Ice Cream

Combine the first five ingredients and pour into small coffee can. Place lid on top.
Set small can in large can. Fill space with alternating layers of crushed ice and rock salt.

Place lid on large can. Roll can back and forth for 10 minutes.

Open large can and remove salt and melted ice.

Stir contents of inner can. Replace lid on top.

Fill space between cans again with layers of crushed ice and rock salt and replace lid.

Roll another 5-10 minutes until ice cream is set.
To make flavored ice cream, stir in fruit puree, chocolate sauce or other flavoring.

To get firmer – place in freezer.
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Coffee Ice Cream Punch Recipe

Coffee Ice Cream Punch RecipeCoffee Ice Cream Punch Ingredients:

1 gal. strong coffee, allow to cool
1/2 gal, coffee ice cream
1 pt. vanilla ice cream
1 pt. heavy cream, whipped
Nutmeg or cinnamon

How to make Coffee Ice Cream Punch

Blend coffee and half of the coffee ice cream to a fairly thick consistency.
Chill in a punch bowl in refrigerator.

When ready to serve, mix in ice cream balls made with the remaining quart of coffee ice cream and the vanilla ice cream.

Top with heaps of whipped cream. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon.

A refreshing change from coffee or tea for warm weather entertaining.

Makes about 20 to 30 cups.
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Sunday, August 21, 2011

U. Delaware joins schools with their own ice cream

University of Delaware students can study 125 different subjects, but now there's an unofficial new major students can pursue: ice cream.

Ice cream is serious work for students at the university, which has an agriculture school and its own herd of dairy cows. The school opened a campus ice cream store earlier this year, and students are now involved in nearly every part of the production process, from milking the cows to developing flavors and scooping ice cream.

"I've literally seen the milk from cow to cone," said Rebecca Sheahan, a junior who milks the school's cows and is business manager of the new UDairy Creamery.

Sheahan said she probably puts about as much time into ice cream as into her two majors: agriculture education and agriculture & natural resources. She isn't the only one devoting serious scholarly time to the dessert. Animal and food sciences major Meghan Thompson wants to eventually sell ice cream cakes at the store. And sophomore Katie Williams, a food sciences major, dreams of creating new flavors like peanut butter and jelly with pieces of chocolate-covered potato chips.

The University of Delaware is hardly the first school to have a creamery, the more technical name for the ice cream store since it produces its own product on site. Penn State opened a creamery in 1865 and sells some 750,000 scoops a year. About two dozen other universities from the University of Connecticut to the University of Wisconsin also have creamery operations, producing ice cream or other dairy products such as yogurt and cheese.

But Delaware's decision to open a new creamery is unusual, said Thomas Palchak, the creamery manager at Penn State since 1986. Palchak said that at one time, 50 universities had creameries, but they began closing from the 1950s through the 1970s because of the cost of modernizing them even as fewer students pursued dairy industry careers.

Tom Sims, one of the people who pushed for the University of Delaware creamery, said its creation has been talked about for 25 years at the school's College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, which has about 800 undergraduate and graduate students studying everything from agriculture to wildlife conservation.

"Everyone has always said, 'Why don't we start a creamery?'" said Sims, the college's deputy dean who helped get a $400,000 grant to start the creamery.

The university actually sold its first batch of ice cream in 2008. At the time, however, the school's only involvement was providing milk from its cows to a dairy, which turned it into ice cream.

Now, the creamery's 25 student employees do much of the ice cream making. Students help milk the school's 100 dairy cows twice a day. A tanker truck picks up the milk and transports it to a dairy. It returns as ice cream base, a sweetened liquid about the thickness of buttermilk. That's when students take over.

Students add flavorings to make the shop's 20 varieties. They mix in some ingredients by hand, like cookies for cookies and cream or pieces of crunch for the shop's Cinnamon Toast Crunchie. The store's most popular flavor is its Delaware River Mud Pie, which is a cookies-and-cream blend with fudge. Corn on the Cone, a novelty flavor with corn kernels, is one of its newest.

Students make hundreds of pounds of ice cream daily and sell some 18,000 scoops a month.

That may sound like a lot, but university officials say they aren't looking to be a mass producer.

"We're not going to be the next Cold Stone or Dairy Queen. World domination is not in the long-term plan," said Katy O'Connell, a spokeswoman for the university's College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Instead, the university's goal when it built the creamery was for it to be another way for students to learn, whether to gain experience running a business or developing a product. Already, half a dozen professors have asked to bring classes to the creamery, including a dairy production professor and an engineering professor who wants students to study the equipment. Students studying food science may eventually develop products for the store.

Students who don't use the creamery as a classroom won't be left out. Starting in the fall, the school's ice cream will be available at a campus dining hall, the bookstore and three campus convenience stores. There's also talk of new fall flavors, including pumpkin and apple pie. And the creation of a signature university flavor is also not far off.

Creamery manager Melinda Litvinas, the store's only non-student employee, said someday she hopes to buy equipment that would let students make ice cream base on site, as well as yogurt and cheese. She also wants an ice cream truck.

"I don't know any colleges that have an ice cream truck, and I'd like to be the first," Litvinas said.

Litvinas and other school officials hope that the creamery will cover its operating expenses within the next year. Any money it makes after paying the student employees and covering other costs will go back to the college to pay for things like additional research opportunities and improvements on the dairy farm.

Customers, meanwhile, say the creamery is off to a good start. Mary Ann Hilbeck, the mother of a University of Delaware student, liked the mint chocolate chip flavor she tried on a recent weekday. It was her first taste of the ice cream, which costs $1.75 for a single scoop. But repeat customer Bert Jicha, who was at the store picking up a Holy Fluffernutter ice cream shake for his daughter, said his family is split. Some think the ice cream is too rich; others say it is just right.

University of Delaware student Leeah Fayson, an athletic training major, already has a favorite flavor: Black Raspberry. "It tastes real," she said as she finished a cup of the ice cream and licked her spoon, "like somebody took the time to make it."
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Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Appeal for ice cream VAT cut turned down by government

Appeal for ice cream VAT cut turned down by governmentIn April, Derbyshire-based trade body Ice Cream Alliance (ICA) wrote to the Treasury requesting the change to help producers cope with rising costs.

Now HM Revenue & Customs has written back saying it cannot make changes to VAT because it is an EU-wide tax.

Zelica Carr, chief executive of the ICA, said she was disappointed with the response.

The appeal was made after the ice cream industry was hit by a sharp rise in the price of ingredients, energy and transportation over the past few years.

'Lift spirits'
A HM Revenue & Customs spokesman said: "It is not possible to completely remove VAT from ice cream.

"VAT is an EU-wide tax, the scope of which is set out in EU law under the terms signed by successive UK governments with our European partners.

"These agreements do not allow the UK to extend the scope of its existing zero rates or introduce new ones."

Ms Carr said: "It is the UK government which has increased VAT on ice cream to 20%, surely it must also have the power to reduce it.

"I do appreciate that the country has fiscal challenges and that is precisely why I raised this as an opportunity for the Chancellor of the Exchequer to give a much needed boost to the ice cream industry, and in doing so to help lift the spirits of the nation.

"This was an opportunity to help an industry which is worth more than £1bn to the UK economy and provides pleasure to millions of people."

The Ice Cream Alliance, which represents more than 600 businesses, estimates the ice cream industry is worth about £1.3bn a year.
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Tuesday, July 12, 2011

How to make Fried Ice Cream

Even after experiencing fried ice cream in a restaurant, you might think that it would be too difficult to make this scrumptious treat at home. Not so! Just imagine the fun of serving this delicious dessert at a special dinner and hearing the amazed expressions from your guests. It’s not at all hard to do but it does require some advance preparation. You’ll want to pull all the ingredients together as early as the morning before the dinner. That will give you plenty of time to prepare this wonderful surprise for your friends and family after dinner.

The recipe for fried ice cream starts with, of course, ice cream. You can experiment with flavors once you are comfortable with the process but it is best to start out with vanilla. You’ll need an ice cream scoop that you can make almost perfectly round balls with. Practice a bit with the scoop to try to get the balls as round as you possibly can. Scoop out 8-12 balls of ice cream and place them on a cookie sheet. Immediately put them into the freezer so that they will freeze into that round shape. You’ll want the balls to be frozen very hard when you are ready for the frying.

Ingredients:

3 cups corn flakes, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 eggs
honey
whipped cream
hot fudge or chocolate sauce

You’ll want to let the ice cream balls freeze for around an hour. Take three cups of corn flakes and crush them in a medium sized bowl. Try to crush them into tiny pieces for the coating. Add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the crushed flakes. Break three eggs in a separate bowl and whip them until the yolks are blended with the whites. Take the ice cream balls out of the freezer and dip them into the egg mixture. Take the corn flake coating and cover the ice cream balls completely. Place back on the cookie sheet and freeze for another 3 hours.

When you are ready to make the dessert, fill the fryer with cooking oil. Dip a few of the ice cream balls into the hot oil preferably with a basket. Cook them for around 15 seconds. Place the cooked balls on a serving plate and cover them with whipped cream and honey. You can also drizzle hot fudge or chocolate syrup over the top. A cherry on top makes for a perfect finish. Serve your fried ice cream up to your guests and wait for the “wows” to come rolling in.
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Wednesday, July 6, 2011

How to throw Great Parties for your Kid in less than 30 Minutes!

Want to have an ice cream party but don't know where to begin? It sounds like great fun! But how do you plan great ice cream parties easily and hassle free?

Whether you want to have a kid party with ice cream or you are just bored and you need to add some spunk to your next party, playing with ice cream can be a delicious treat or project for kids and adults alike! You can throw an ice cream sundae party, an ice cream dessert party, have an ice cream picnic...there's no limit to what you can do with ice cream!

Below are some specific directions and a list of ideas about the ice cream you need for your ice cream party.

You may have an upcoming birthday party you are hosting for one of your children or you might be wondering what to serve for your next get together. Ice cream is an all-time favorite during any time of year, so dig in and find some great ideas for ice cream parties below!

* Ice Cream Sundae Party

An ice cream sundae party is always fun. Everyone can make their own dessert - just the way they like it! Whether it be lots of chocolate, lots of fruit, or lots of sauce - everyone will be able to enjoy their own delicious sundae creation! When getting toppings for the sundaes, you can choose to get a variety of toppings or choose to go with a theme. Topping themes could include only chocolate toppings, only fruit toppings, only Christmas-theme (or other holiday) toppings...let the toppings help re-enforce the theme of your party!

* Flower Bouquet Ice Cream Dessert

What looks gross yet is really yummy? Dirt Ice Cream! Imagine your guest's or family's confusion when they see dirt and yet they taste the yummy ice cream! This is a simple recipe and yet is quite decorative. It is served in a flower pot along with flower-shaped cookies that are planted in ice cream. It's perfect for any kid party with ice cream. You can find the directions for this Flower Bouquet Ice Cream Dessert in the link below.

* Ice Cream Picnic

Another great ice cream party idea is to take advantage of the bright sunny day and all your excellent helpers. What could be more fun than making ice cream outside! If you wait till you make it at your picnic, you won't have to worry about it melting before it hits your mouth. You brought other food with you on your picnic, didn't you? Did you keep it cold with ice? You can use that ice to make your ice cream! Ice cream parties are memorable and fun for kids when they get to make their own ice cream!
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Thursday, June 30, 2011

Major ice cream players could threaten innovation, Keynote

Major ice cream players could threaten innovation, KeynoteIn a May 2011 report, the market analysts said that new mergers and acquisitions are making it harder for other companies to compete and also stated that “product innovation in the market could be threatened, as this requires a huge amount of money and time”.

R&R have the right to distribute brands such as Walls, and also hold a license to manufacture NestlĂ© ice cream. Similarly, Unilever owns brands such as Ben & Jerry’s and Magnum.

Estimated sales growth: Key Note estimated that the ice cream market had grown in value, with retail sales up by 5.5% from £879m to £927m in 2010 as against 2009.

The analysts attributed this to “new flavour variants for established brands, new size formats, crossovers from other food sectors and brands, such as confectionery, [and] healthy-eating products, such as frozen yoghurts or ice creams that have reduced fat and sugar levels”

Growth in the ice cream and frozen desserts market is predicted to continue, reaching £1.4bn in sales value by 2015, with Key Note attributing the increase to “inflationary pressures” and rising sales of premium brands as the economy continues to recover.

The report also notes the expected impact of the London Olympics, stating that in 2013 UK sales of ice cream are expected to top the £1bn mark for the first time.

Areas of opportunity: Key Note said that there are several opportunities to exploit gaps in the ice cream sector, with frozen yogurt one example. It noted that Unilever’s Ben & Jerry’s brand has established a range of lower-fat frozen yogurt, but the market is currently under-developed.

The development is largely due to a March 2011 Department of Health (DOH) initiative which is encouraging companies to reduce calories, replace saturated fats and to remove artificial trans fats by the end of 2011.

Key Note said Unilever and R&R Ice Cream’s dominance was further evident in new ranges exploiting well-known confectionary brands. In 2011, R&R Ice Cream launched two new products under licence from NestlĂ© using the Rolo brand name: Rolo Sticks and Rolo Cones.

Despite predicted market growth, Key Note warned about the rising price of raw ingredients used in the manufacture of ice cream, as well as spiralling fuel and energy costs, factors compounded by a VAT increase to 20% introduced in January.

Such problems were highlighted by Ice Cream Alliance (ICA) ceo Zelica Carr in a recent letter to Chancellor George Osbourne calling for the reclassification of ice cream as a food rather than a luxury item, which would make it exempt from the VAT increase. But the ICA told FoodManufacture.co.uk this morning that it has yet to receive a response.
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Tuesday, June 28, 2011

The great Toronto Ice Cream Sundae Challenge: Parfait presentation

The great Toronto Ice Cream Sundae Challenge: Parfait presentationOne of the things I like about The Thomson Hotel's 24 hour dineresque restaurant, the Counter, is the $7.00 PB&J sandwich on the menu. I've never tried it myself (PB&J will never win when bangerang fried chicken is on the menu), but just that they offer it, gives a little insight into the concept of the place. Now, I say dineresque because The Counter isn't really a diner. It's decent place, with nicer food dressed up to look like diner-style. Diner's, for instance, don't offer $7.00 peanut butter and jam sandwiches, they offer $3.00 ones. But diners also don't offer the same level of quality found at the Counter. It's all well and good to reminisce over greasy spoons and hot hamburger sandwiches and mammoth ice cream sundaes — oh right, ice cream sundaes.

So what the Counter does, at least in theory, is to take diner food and remove the frozen, pre-packaged, general shittiness out of it. The menu has all the hallmarks of a diner — all day breakfast, wild eclecticism — while skewing it a little and of course, bumping up the price. So in keeping with this theme, the restaurant obviously offers an ice cream sundae, which is, along with fruit pie, perhaps the dinerest of diner items. Here's what their take looks and tastes like.

ICE CREAM 3.5/5

Perhaps the biggest strike against the Counter's sundae is the ice cream itself, which actually isn't as big a thing as it might seem. Most of the places profiled in this challenge so far have been ice cream parlours and, as such, the bar was set pretty high, pretty early. The Counter's ice cream is more grocery store than creamery. It was also, surprisingly, the first sundae I've tried to use straight up vanilla ice cream, which has less in it to mask imperfections.

Not that the ice cream wasn't good, it was. It was just icier and grainier than the others. Not as thick and creamy, but as I said it wasn't a huge deal; it's still ice cream after all, even the bad stuff is delicious, and this stuff wasn't bad.

TOPPINGS: 5/5

At The Counter they pass on things like crushed chocolate bars, nuts or other candies in exchange for shaved milk and white chocolate, both caramel and chocolate sauce and lots of whipped cream — almost equal parts of each. It's a great combo that keeps the flavours pretty streamlined and doesn't let anything overpower the dish. Just creamy sweet flavours of chocolate and vanilla.

PRESENTATION: 5/5

That's right, full marks for a parfait glass. You eat with your eyes and this sundae won me over as soon as it was placed in from of me. Rather than a meager looking scoop hiding inside a paper bowl, this is piled high and ready for the spotlight. You could have filled this thing with soft serve and Kraft caramel and it would have been a winner (which would probably taste pretty good, too).

VALUE: 4/5

Here's the other thing about great presentation, people are often willing to pay for it. An ice cream sundae standing tall in an elegant piece of glassware looks like it's worth the $7.00 price tag, while a couple of scoops stuffed in a paper cup seems pricey at $5.00. And I won't even dwell on the environmental aspect of plastic spoons and paper cups because that's not what this is about; it's about getting to charge $7.00 for a sundae, and the Counter gets to charge $7.00.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS: 5/5

My server asked me if I had a headache because he's never seen someone eat an ice cream sundae so fast. I couldn't help it though, it was delicious, and it might have even changed my opinion of sundae creation. I once belonged to the church of crushed chocolate bars, pieces of crunchy Skor, Crispy Crunch or even Smarties sprinkled on top or mixed in, but now they just seem like a distraction in comparison. Shaved chocolate is a perfect addition because it's not so stiff to detract from the rest of the dish, but still provides wonderful texture and flavour — parfait indeed.
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Monday, June 27, 2011

How to Make Healthy Homemade Ice Cream

Once, we made ice cream by beating together cream and sugar and adding a little milk before setting it outside on top of the tank stand - to set in the frost. It was hard work, and it was too bad if the cat got to it first!

Now, ice cream recipes have evolved into something a lot less fattening and, with the advent of home ice cream machines, a great deal easier to beat and freeze.

The hardest part about making an ice cream recipe successfully by hand was usually the second beating. The mixture was by then partly frozen, making it difficult to beat it up to the required thickness. However, if you have an ice cream machine that is all taken care of. You don't have to keep on checking the mixture to ensure it is not getting too frozen - and you don't have to beat it by hand.

Use the Internet to collect interesting and healthy ice cream recipes, and then have fun experimenting.
When making up ice cream recipes at home, you can actually make these treats very nutritious for fussy eaters by adding fruit, berries and all sorts of goodies. Don't be afraid to add a few more ingredients to the basic ice cream recipe.

Crushed berries swirled through a soft-serve ice cream recipe mixture are particularly tasty and will tempt almost anyone to eat them. Since many children never seem to eat enough fruit, this is a great way of getting them to eat more. Passion fruit, pineapple, mandarins, oranges and kiwi fruit are all good additions to your ice cream recipe.
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Friday, June 17, 2011

Cigar ice cream, anyone?

Cigar ice cream, anyone?Karl Heinz does not hesitate when he names the strangest ingredient he has used in his exotic ice creams. The asparagus ice cream sounds odd as do the requests from customers for wasabi, brown bread and pineapple curry flavours.

But the cigar ice cream wins the prize as weirdest. No matter how unusual, the German ice-cream maker, who moved to Dubai four years ago, will make any flavour from scratch on demand.

And so when Dubai Marine Beach Resort & Spa called to order the tobacco leaf-flavoured dessert four months ago, he said yes.

"They asked for a cigar ice cream for a themed dinner held for the launch of a cigar in their hotel. Not my taste, but I did it," he says.

Mr Heinz bought a bunch of Cohiba cigars and cut them into tiny pieces. He added them to his basic ice cream mix of milk, sugar, cream and a stabiliser that helps give the ice cream a better texture and then strained the concoction to maintain the cigar aroma.

This month, the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi hosted 300 sheikhs for dinner - and asked for tomato, sweet balsamic vinegar and pumpkin ice creams.

The hotel also placed an order for baklava and date ice cream, with ingredients from the UAE. He also has a local supplier of edible flowers, allowing him to add rose and lavender petals to the ice cream.

"Every day I come up with new flavours. Hotels need special flavours for special menus for their functions so I send them samples after I taste it myself."

As a chef with 25 years' experience, Mr Heinz has become an expert. He owns a hotel in Germany where he started his ice-cream business - but in Europe, he says, homemade ice cream is "commonplace".

"It's not very popular here but it's picking up and I think in 10 years' time, it will really boom," he says. "People usually associate ice cream with walking, which is why it happens more in Europe."

Mr Heinz says he takes special care when it comes to sourcing his ingredients.

"I bring in vanilla sticks from Madagascar, 200kg of frozen fruits a day from France, mangos from India and chocolate from Belgium," he says. "It's better quality and it's fresh."

He makes more than 100 flavours at his Empire Ice Cream premises in Ras al Khor, with no minimum order or time restraints.

Other exotic flavours include black sesame seed, chocolate chili, spicy honey, Arabic coffee, camel milk, strawberry black pepper, red bean and a sorbet of ginger and dates.

He sells tubs of two, four and five litres, at Dh26 a litre for a basic flavour. More complex mixtures can run to Dh70 a litre.

"Some customers have asked me to incorporate gold in the ice cream, which has to be done by hand, and that costs about Dh260 a litre," he says.

One hundred litres of the ice cream take one to two hours to make, and his factory produces on average 500 litres a day. The ice cream is stored at minus 18°C and it is best eaten at minus 14°C as "it maintains the flavour".

Mr Heinz sells Empire to 45 hotels across the UAE, a few restaurants and coffee shops. Once the establishment puts in a custom-made request, the flavour is immediately labelled under their name.

"It's important to have this kind of business in the UAE because it's a niche market," he said. "People only knew about industrialised ice cream before, such as Baskin Robbins and Haagen Dazs."

"This isn't so heavy, it's healthier and as mindsets are changing here, people are thinking more about their food and their health."
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Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Pierre's Ice Cream opens new $9.2 million production facility in Cleveland

Pierre's Ice Cream opens new $9.2 million production facility in ClevelandPierre's Ice Cream Co. officially opened its $9.2 million ice cream factory on Monday morning, inviting visitors to taste freshly churned French vanilla ice cream and Hola Fruta! pomegranate and blueberry sherbet straight off the production line.

The 35,000-square-foot addition to its corporate offices and distribution center has already doubled Pierre's capacity, with extra room to grow. Equipped with state-of-the-art computerized ice cream-making machines, the expansion enables Pierre's to better control its production, mix-ins and sanitation processes, automating tasks previously done by hand. Inside the factory, workers monitor gleaming stainless steel equipment as a half-mile-long conveyer belt carries freshly made ice cream spiraling up and down an 18-foot-tall silo freezer and delivers it to the adjacent warehouse rock-hard.

The warehouse, kept at a frosty 25 degrees below zero, can hold 36 million scoops of ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet and sorbet. The previous 1920s-era factory, located more than 600 feet away, required workers to flash freeze the ice cream and truck it across the parking lot to the warehouse.President and Chief Executive Shelley Roth said the new building also conserves water and energy, reduces waste and makes Pierre's more competitive. All 85 workers had to take on new tasks and learn to operate new equipment.

"We are all excited about our new home, with our new kitchen and our new equipment," she said. "With this factory, we have the tools to make the most delicious ice cream anywhere right here in Cleveland, Ohio."

Recalling her late father, Sol Roth, she said in a quivering voice: "In case you were wondering what he would be thinking today, his voice is saying: 'Are you crazy? What do you think you're doing? "Do you know how much ice cream you'll have to sell to pay for this?'"The City of Cleveland contributed $6.9 million in low-interest loans, and Cuyahoga County gave a $60,000 grant. Pierre's isn't the only Ohio ice cream company that's expanding.

• Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams, a Columbus brand founded in 2002, opened its first Northeast Ohio ice cream shop to long lines in Chagrin Falls on April 15. "Our ice creams have been so overwhelmingly well received at our Chagrin Falls shop that we have to consider opening up others in and around Cleveland," said Jeni Britton Bauer, president and founder of Jeni's.

"We have received a number of requests to open a shop on the West Side of Cleveland. We are flattered by the attention, and we are considering ways to make that happen."Jeni's, whose best-selling flavor is Salty Caramel, is also sold at local stores, including Heinen's Fine Foods, Whole Foods Market, Constantino's Market, Miles Farmers Market, Nature's Bin and Pat O'Brien's Fine Wines & Gourmet Foods.

• Mitchell's Homemade Ice Cream, which makes its ice creams and sorbets at its Rocky River store and sends it to stores Beachwood, Solon and Westlake, just opened a summer location at Huntington Beach in Bay Village. Mitchell's is also sold at Zagara's Marketplace, West Point Market in Akron, Heinen's stores and in dozens of restaurants. Co-owner Pete Mitchell said he and his younger brother, Mike, are also scouting locations for ice cream shops in Avon and Strongsville. "We hope to move our kitchen to a new, bigger location in Cleveland in the next year," he said via e-mail.

• Honey Hut Ice Cream, with stores in Cleveland, Brecksville, Strongsville and Parma, just opened a store at Edgewater Park. W. Benoy Joseph, associate dean and professor of marketing at Cleveland State University's Nance College of Business Administration, said that despite our greater awareness of fat, calories and the need to eat healthier, sales of super premium ice creams have continued to surge.

He compares the trend to our growing taste for luxury foods such as fine wines, imported cheeses, single-malt liquors and gourmet chocolates. "There are people who drive across town -- and pass other brands -- to buy Mitchell's Chocolates in Cleveland Heights," he said. People tend to justify such indulgences by saying "if we're going to eat something rich once in a while, we might as well get the good stuff."
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Saturday, June 11, 2011

Cicada ice cream causes international buzz

Cicada ice cream causes international buzzIf you missed the cicada ice cream fiasco, you haven’t been paying attention. After the Columbia Missourian reported last week that Sparky’s Homemade Ice Cream had made a batch of ice cream full of the screeching insects, it snowballed into a media frenzy.

The Associated Press picked up the story, and things only got worse after the Missourian followed up this week and said the Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services had advised against making the flavor.

Then media everywhere — Google shows the story’s coverage spiked Tuesday with more than 100 outlets running it — began incorrectly reporting that the health department had ordered the store to stop.

But let’s take a step back. The original plan was to debut the ice cream, which was full of cooked, de-winged cicadas, June 2. The shop made a small batch of about 30 scoops, but it sold out June 1 because word had gotten out among some of the store’s patrons.

Before making a second batch, the store called the health department to ask whether there were any rules barring bugs in ice cream. Environmental Health Manager Gerald Worley said the department merely “advised” against it, and the shop’s inquiry was voluntary.

The department doesn’t have any guidelines on cooking bugs, but there was some concern about unknown pathogens. Sparky’s owner Scott Southwick said in an email that he had no problem with the health department’s advice. The store followed it.

The flavor did boost sales at the shop by about 50 percent, Southwick wrote, even after turning away the customers only interested in the very limited supply of cicada ice cream. But he also has had to deal with a horde of reporters asking for interviews, most of which he declined.

“The publicity-to-product ratio was just so far out of whack,” Southwick wrote. “Like, I’m going to go on the BBC, international radio, and talk about a product that we only made one tiny batch of? We really did intend to sell it if we had gotten the health department to endorse it, and I always thought it could go national if we could sell it. What I wasn’t prepared for was it going international in the absence of any product.”

Sparky’s does crazy flavors all the time, Southwick noted. Some, like the “unhealthy breakfast” flavor that contained Rice Krispies and Jack Daniels, only get made once. “Believe me, it wasn’t international news when we chose not to make a second batch of that flavor,” he wrote.

TIGER CHANGES IN WORKS: Three months after the Columbia City Council approved Glyn Laverick as the new developer for the tax increment financing-backed redevelopment project, changes are brewing over at the Tiger Hotel.

Last week, the hotel took over the operation of The Vault, the swanky bar in the basement of the hotel, prompting the exit of beloved bartender Aaron Brown. It’s unclear why Brown left, and he couldn’t be reached for comment. The new owners plan to start offering food and keeping the bar open all week, Tiger Hotel Operations Manager Brad Weiss said.

And plans are in the works for a new bakery, The Velvet Cupcake. Weiss said the plan is to have the bakery, operated by Jackie Putnam, open in two or three weeks. The Velvet Cupcake will make all sorts of baked goods, but the hotel owners especially want it to get into the wedding cake business. “We kind of want to make the hotel kind of a one-stop place for weddings,” Weiss said.

On July 1, the hotel will take over the catering space in the building. Travis Tucker, who owns the next-door Bleu Restaurant and Wine Bar, has been running his establishment’s catering business out of the Tiger. He’ll be moving the catering business out of the hotel, and Tucker said he is looking to find another space to house Bleu’s catering operations. Weiss said there shouldn’t be any disruption in catering services.

By fall, the owners hope to have two floors of rooms remodeled and ready for occupants. Work has already begun, Weiss said, but he cautioned that the fall opening could change.

“The historic nature of the hotel is a delicate process,” Weiss said. “I guess they would rather sacrifice the deadline to achieve the highest quality of the work they’re doing.”

MORE CENTURYLINK JOBS: Bad news for a Warrensburg CenturyLink office is good news for Columbia. The Internet and phone service provider closed a work force management center that employed 30 people there May 19, and many of those jobs will move here, spokesman Greg Gaffke said.

The closure there is part of the company’s consolidation as it finalizes the merger between CenturyTel and Embarq, which started in 2009. That process is expected to be completed in mid-July, Gaffke said. “Many of those employees who lost their positions as a result of the consolidation were offered opportunities in Columbia if they were able to relocate, and some of them have.”

The addition to CenturyLink’s Columbia work force comes on top of the 35 or so employees the company has hired since February. The Warrensburg office closure could add another 30 or so employees to Columbia, Gaffke said.
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Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Ice cream with a hint of beer, bacon

Ice cream with a hint of beer, baconForget chocolate versus vanilla, how about a dish of ale and bacon ice cream? Or maybe you'd rather stay old school and order some rocky road - but made with homemade marshmallows and a sprinkling of sea salt, of course. The inside scoop on ice cream this summer in the United States is classic-meets-culinary avant garde.

Take Salt & Straw Ice Cream, which just opened with an ice cream pushcart (a scoop shop will be opening later). Not only is it offering an ale and bacon ice cream, but it's also a farm-to-cone concept using local ingredients.

The beer is from Portland-based Laurelwood Brewery and the bacon from Olympic Provisions. Not artisanal enough for you? Other beer flavours (made from the offerings of various breweries) will include pear with blue cheese, lemon basil with sorbet, and sea salt with ribbons of hand-made caramel.

By the way, salted caramel is hot in the world of ice cream; it's popping up at creameries everywhere. Another big trend in ice cream is soft-serve. But we're not talking the pale, bland swirl of tonsil-chilling sweetness you may remember from childhood.

At Bi-Rite Creamery in San Francisco, soft-serve flavours include vanilla, of course, but also spicy Mexican chocolate, and balsamic strawberry. They also have salted caramel, which marketing director Kirsten Bourne said was "the most popular flavour by far".

The Creamery added soft-serve to its ice cream offerings last year after realising that the shop, with its retro-vibe, was the perfect setting for the classic dessert. Just like the scooped ice cream, the soft-serve is made from Straus Family Organic Dairy products.

The two daily soft-serve flavours, based on seasonal, local ingredients, can be combined in a swirl. The popular Kris's Combo features vanilla soft serve with blood orange olive oil and Maldon sea salt.

The dream of a better ice cream extends to restaurants. Candace Rowan, pastry chef at A16 restaurant in San Francisco, remembers working in Bay area restaurants 20 years ago and having ice cream brought in. These days, chefs are churning out their own creations.
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Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Hudsonville reveals spring, summer ice cream flavors

Hudsonville reveals spring, summer ice cream flavorsDeveloping a new ice cream flavor is a science all its own, and this year’s experiments by Hudsonville Creamery & Ice Cream Co. are about to be revealed. In June of every year, 35-40 new flavors land on the island of possibilities at Hudsonville Creamery & Ice Cream Co. in Holland. A seven-member development team considers trends, marketability, nutritional qualities and sales to come up with a list of ideas. The team includes a vanilla, culinary and confectionery expert. Ken Filippini, the company’s CFO and a key member of its flavor development team, helped me make my own flavor last year. “Gonzo’s Crunch” was a creamy vanilla ice cream mixed with mini peanut butter cups and chocolate-covered cashews, highlighted by a swirl of caramel.

I took it home for my wife and kids, and they loved it. So did my mom and dad, but I soon found out that it takes more than family members who like your flavor to get it behind the ice cream counter. For Gonzo Crunch or any flavor to go into production, it has to get enough support from retail outlets, parlors and restaurants to guarantee hundreds of thousands of servings. “If your friends and family members and associates step up to the plate, we might consider it,” Kratt said. “In your case, about 210,000 servings. Do you think you can do it?” Hmm. Probably not. But I would still love the chance someday.
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Friday, April 22, 2011

Norfolk ice cream makers call for VAT cut

Norfolk provides a vast range of premium, locally-produced ice cream products, which despite the tough economic conditions, have continued to tempt customers. But beyond the ever-growing queues outside ice cream vans and farm shops, things behind the scenes are not always so rosy with manufacturers battling against massive hikes in ingredient prices.

Alongside increases in fuel costs and VAT charges, coupled with the cumulative effect of recent wet summers and hard winters, there are fears that some producers could be forced out of business, according to The Ice Cream Alliance.

The not-for-profit organisation, which supports the production and vending of high quality ice cream, has now written to chancellor George Osborne calling on the government to classify ice cream as a food 
rather than a luxury item – thus ending its VAT loading which is currently 20pc.

Zelica Carr, chief executive officer for The Ice Cream Alliance, said: “The ice cream industry plays a major part in the economy of the UK with sales of around £1.3bn a year but many businesses are fearing for the future after being hit by a succession of swingeing price increases.

“I have written to Mr Osborne asking him to reconsider the classification of ice cream as a luxury product and re-classify it as a food and reduce the VAT levied on it to zero. “Ice cream plays an important, if often under appreciated, role in British life. It provides an affordable feel good factor which in today’s economic climate is sadly lacking for many families.”

According to the organisation – which has more than 600 members –producers have seen sugar rise from £460 a ton in January to £800, with fears that it could rise to £1,400 in June. Skimmed milk powder has increased from £1,800 per ton in January to £2,900, while cocoa powder has virtually trebled from £1,250 per ton to £3,600.

Manufacturers in Norfolk said despite the sunny weather providing a healthy kick-start to sales, any help to counteract the spiralling production costs would be welcomed. Simon Edye, director of Ronaldo Ices, based in Lothian Street, Norwich, said the shelving of the VAT loading would do a “tremendous amount of good” for his business, but was sceptical that whether the reclassification of ice cream as a food would be successful or even correct.

“I think nowadays ice cream is a luxury and the fat value of some ice creams is so high is it food?” he said. “The ingredients prices are soaring. They are up about 17-20pc in key foods such as cream. Chocolate prices are going up 20pc. It’s a nightmare. I think we’re all worried about the price of chocolate.”Mr Edye, who formed the company in 1983, said he has been forced to pass on some of the cost to his customers through increasing sale prices by 3-4pc, although this is still not enough to cover the full cost of the ingredients.

But he added: “We’re busier than we have ever been so I’m not complaining about business. If the sun keeps shining then it’s boom time here.”Bosses at Norfolk’s oldest family –run ice cream producers, Parravani’s, in Chedgrave, near Loddon, which was founded in 1898, said they have also had to increase prices to combat rising costs but this had not put off loyal customers.

Dominic Parravani said: “Within 113 years we have seen quite a few recessions but still ice cream is something that has lasted. “We go to a lot of events and fairs and people do bring pack lunches because they do not want to pay for food but they will pay for an ice cream. We’re very lucky – we have fantastic support and very loyal customers.”

He added that the loss of local dairy herds was also putting a strain on ice cream producers and wanted more help directed towards farmers. Producer Judy Clarke, of Clarke’s Ice Creams, based at Manor Farm, in Wattlefield, near Wymondham, welcomed an idea to shelve the VAT loading, although the four-year-old company is able to keep some costs down through having its own dairy herd.

“VAT does cause us problems – it adds such a lot to the cost. I don’t think people realise there is VAT on it,” she said. “We are busy and we have got a premium product that people are prepared to pay for but there will come a point where there is only so much they can take on.”
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Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Scrap VAT on ice cream, ICA urges Osborne

ICA chief executive Zelica Carr is calling for ice cream to be reclassified as a food, rather than a luxury item, exempting it from VAT, after duty rates rose to 20% in January; the sector is also facing unprecedented input costs and seasonal difficulties.

“You will be aware that the ice cream industry within the UK has suffered a number of setbacks in recent years,” she wrote in her April 8 letter to Osborne, where the ICA represents around 600 UK producers. “Such a move would be welcomed by a struggling ice cream industry, and would have a significant and positive impact upon the spirit and morale of the nation,” she said. Restore profitability.

Sugar now costs £800 per tonne, up from £460 in January, the ICA said, and it warned that prices could hit £1,400 in June. Skimmed milk powder now costs £2,900 per tonne, compared to £1,800 in January, while cocoa powder is up from £1,250 to £3,600.

But would scrapping VAT solve the problem of high commodity prices for food manufacturers, given that there was no guarantee supermarkets, for instance, would raise the prices they paid producers for ice cream?

“I guess there are different sectors, and that some would benefit less than others, who as you rightly suggest, are quite heavily squeezed by the retailers anyway,” an ICA spokesman told FoodManufacture.co.uk.

“Beyond retail there are also artisan producers and dairy farmers, guys with mobile ice cream vans, ice cream parlours, etc.

“If VAT is not levied on the final product, then perhaps the big producers would see some benefit as well, if the supermarkets gave them a bit more leeway.”

Swingeing price increases

Asked what realistic response Carr expected from her letter, he said: “You’ve got to at least try and raise awareness. To a certain extent people take ice cream for granted, and not everyone appreciates the problems faced by the sector.”

Carr wrote that many ice cream businesses “fear for the future after being hit with a succession of swingeing price increases”. She also blamed wet summers and extremely cold and prolonged winters that have adversely affected sales in what is an extremely seasonal business.

Speaking to FoodManufacture.co.uk last week , one food sector M&A expert noted that a number of ice cream firms have gone bust in recent years, and blamed a highly cyclical market coupled with retailers turning the screw on producers.
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Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Ice Cream Daze

Ice Cream DazeSure, it’s rainy and windy out there, but spring is in the air. Note those daffodils poking their heads up and the restaurants that are already setting chairs out on patios. It’s undeniable. To ring in the new season, how about marking your calendars for some sweet treats?

Thursday (April 7) is the anticipated opening of Pinkberry in Harvard Square (1380 Massachusetts Avenue). Stop by from 7:30-9:30 p.m. for free swirls. And be sure to try the new for spring, limited-edition lychee flavor. April 12th marks the return of Ben & Jerry’s free cone day (it’s a holiday in my book). Line up early for free scoops of ice cream, frozen yogurt and sorbet.

On April 27, Baskin-Robbins will be selling scoops of ice cream - up to three per person - for 31 cents each from 5-10 p.m. Part of a fundraiser for the National Fallen Fire Fighters Foundation, the shop is introducing a new flavor of the month with the event in mind. Firehouse #31 is “a crunchy atomic fireball ribbon laced throughout with hot cinnamon and packed with red hot candy pieces in vanilla ice cream.” Hot stuff.

Brigham’s ice cream is once again available in a local ice cream shop. Beacon Hill’s boYO (175 Cambridge Street) has added the frozen treat to its lineup of natural frozen yogurt and 50-plus toppings. Brigham’s flavors available now include chocolate, vanilla, chocolate chip, peppermint stick, strawberry and coffee.
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Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Yogurt won't be confused with ice cream

A national advertising self-regulatory group Monday determined that television ads for Golden Valley-based General Mills' "Yoplait Splitz" are not likely to confuse children into thinking the yogurt product is actually ice cream.

The Children's Advertising Review Unit of the Council of Better Business Bureaus was acting on a complaint from a consumer who teaches an after-school advertising literacy program. The commercial involves a boy who peels back the lid of Splitz, a new dessert yogurt aimed at kids, and hears ice-cream truck music. A bunch of other kids hear the music, too, and start yelling "ice cream, ice cream, ice cream." The boy with the Splitz then says "No, it's yogurt.

The Children's Advertising Review Unit noted that such techniques could potentially create a "misimpression" but didn't in this particular case. The Splitz commercial didn't show an actual ice cream truck or children eating ice cream, and the "animated visual" of an ice cream sundae at the end of the ad conveyed a connection to the yogurt's flavor, the review board said.
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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

New scrap metal, ice cream businesses may come to county

The Rowan County Planning Board voted to recommend two rezonings to commissioners Monday that would allow new businesses to run. The first was for Charles Blackwelder’s proposed metal recycling center at 11710 Bringle Ferry Road outside Salisbury that would accept scrap metals, catalytic converters and sealed car batteries. It would not accept cars or run demolition or disassembly.

Blackwelder said Monday that he has run a similar plant in Concord for 30 years. He decided to let his son take over that operation and open another center a little more than a mile from his home.

“I think it will help some people who are out of work by being able to come in there and sell a little bit of scrap,” Blackwelder said. “I’ve had people telling me they were glad I was there because I’m supplying grocery money.”

When a contractor working for the current owner, JEMM LLC, requested permits to install a new septic system, planning staff told the owner that the property needed to be rezoned to accommodate the operation. Staff later received an anonymous complaint on March 1 about a “junkyard for recycled metal” in operation and notified Blackwelder of the violation.

JEMM’s agent, attorney Sean Walker, then submitted a request to change the zoning of the 9.51-acre parcel from rural agricultural to industrial with a conditional use district. Walker said Monday that when Blackwelder began leasing the property, he assumed he could run his operation using the 4,600-square-foot building. The building is permitted for residential storage only, but the previous owners operated a mobile-wash and equipment-rental business there.

When told of the rezoning requirement, Blackwelder continued to get his business started while JEMM filled out an application. “He wants to be a good neighbor, he wants to run a clean operation and he wants to be in compliance as soon as possible,” Walker said. The part owner of an adjacent property, Jerry File, objected to the rezoning.

“Who would want to live next door to a junkyard?” File said. “My property would be unsellable.”He said his property consists of wetlands and a small stream that flows into High Rock Lake, and he is concerned about the impact of runoff. When Chairman Mac Butner asked if File’s property is registered as wetlands, he said no. Butner also asked if he had an appraisal performed to determine adverse effects of the business, and File said he had not.

Another neighbor, Thomas Moffa, said he’s fine with owning property next to Blackwelder’s business and doesn’t think it will hurt the market value of the house he’s selling there. “Mr. Blackwelder has done a very good job of cleaning it up,” Moffa said. “It was basically a junkyard before he got there.”

Ann Shepherd, who also lives on Bringle Ferry Road, said she doesn’t like the noise and traffic congestion the business causes. Trucks line up in both directions while waiting for it to open, she said, and metal debris sometimes scatters on the road.

Senior Planner Shane Stewart said the noise may annoy neighbors but likely would not exceed the county’s noise ordinance. John Linker, a board member, suggested limiting the footprint of the operation to address concerns from File and Shepherd about future expansion. The business currently consists of a building, storage containers and a parking lot and uses less than half of the property.

He also proposed requiring extra gravel or paving at the driveway entrance, because he has noticed mud and gravel on the highway. “I believe the other people who live by their have the same property rights as the person who wants this rezoning,” Linker said.

In addition, board member Rodney Whedbee asked if a screening buffer of trees could be added in front of the business to help create a shield. “I’m trying to create a balance to protect all property owners involved and protect Mr. Blackwelder’s business,” Whedbee said. “We really do appreciate you guys starting a business in Rowan County.”

Blackwelder said he wouldn’t mind those requirements. The board unanimously voted to recommend the request with conditions that the driveway is moved to improve sight distance and paved for the first 50 feet, a tree buffer is added and operations are limited to the front half of the property.

Also at Monday’s meeting, the board unanimously gave its recommendation to a rezoning request from Elizabeth Withers Smith, who wants to reopen an ice cream shop at 9010 Cool Springs Road in Woodleaf.

The 1,000-square-foot commercial building on a 1-acre parcel was previously Brightner’s Corner Ice Cream Shop and is currently being used for personal storage. Smith has applied for a rezoning from rural agricultural to commercial, business and industrial.
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Friday, March 18, 2011

Cannabis Food in Australia? It's High Time!

Who wants to smoke cannabis (aka pot/weed/marijuana) when you can eat it? Not some Australians! Their top food watchdog, Food Standards Australia New Zealand, recently said foods made with industrial hemp would be A-OK with them.

The decision resulted from an appeal by Dr. Andrew Katelaris, who is appealing against his deregistration for supplying medical marijuana to patients. (Poor guy.) It seems he also opened a can of worms regarding hemp foods when he said the seeds of industrial hemp contained more omega-3 acids than seafood.

So, then Food Standards investigated and found that industrial hemp is actually no big thing. It contains reeealllly low levels of psychoactive THC, so it's not like if you ate cannabis ice cream, cake, or beer, you'll end up stoned out of your mind. In other words, we're not talking about the kind of pot food that entails taking loads of actual pot and mixing it into butter that then goes into a brownie recipe.

The only people who are actually concerned about hemp becoming a part of mainstream food? "Various [Australian] government stakeholders," who are worried that high-THC seeds (um, how many of those actually exist?) would get into the food chain, fearful that some food manufacturers will make false claims about their foods getting you high, and nervous that hemp foods may lead to positive drug-test results.

On all accounts, it sounds like those "stakeholders" are making a mountain out of a molehill! According to the article about the controversy in The Australian, you'd have to eat a LOT of hemp food (eight teaspoons of hemp oil) to have anything show up in a drug test whatsoever. And if you're really that concerned, then steer clear. Go for soy or dairy.

Otherwise, it seems like there would be more benefit than harm by allowing more foods to be made with industrial hemp. Turns out the seed has lots of protein, polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs!), dietary fiber, and good nutrients like vitamin E, potassium, magnesium, iron, calcium, and zinc.

In Europe, Canada, and even here in the U.S., hemp's already in a good handful of foods, but it's not exactly mainstream yet ... I'd bet more people opt for soy ice cream, for instance, than hemp ice cream, which I've spied on occasion in the ice cream case at Whole Foods.

And I'm pretty sure no one is getting high off of the hemp ice cream. So it sounds like there's little argument that Australia would do well to just loosen up already and say "yes" to hemp foods.
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Thursday, March 17, 2011

Cannabis-derived ice cream, cake and beer given OK on health grounds

CANNABIS ice cream, cake and beer have been cleared on health grounds by Australia's food watchdog, despite fears the "marijuana munchies" could trigger positive drug tests.

A Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) investigation concluded that industrial hemp contained such low levels of the psychoactive substance delta 9-tetraydrocannabinol (THC) that anyone consuming the food would not feel its effect, The Australian reported.

"FSANZ has not identified any safety concerns relating to the consumption of hemp foods," a Food Standards report said. The Food Standards authority yesterday sought public comment on an application by deregistered Sydney doctor Andrew Katelaris to lift Australia's ban on food derived from cannabis. Mr Katelaris, who is appealing against his deregistration for supplying medical marijuana to patients, said the seeds of industrial hemp contained more Omega 3 acids than seafood.

"We're looking at making ice cream and health food bars," he said. "Our vision is that anything you can do with soy beans or dairy you can do better with hemp seed."In 2002, a Food Standards recommendation to approve hemp as food was overturned for fear it would "send the wrong message to the community".
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Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Former ice cream store manager arrested for embezzling

A former Las Cruces ice cream store manager has been arrested and booked into jail for allegedly embezzling money from her former employer. Las Cruces police say 23-year-old Crystal M. Serna faces one count of embezzlement. Detectives say Serna was employed by Caliche's Frozen Custard last August.

The Las Cruces Sun-News reports Serna told detectives the nearly $11,000 in lost deposits were most likely a bank error. The bank says it had no record of the deposits and Serna was unable to produce any receipts for the transactions she claimed to have made. A warrant was issued and Serna was arrested Monday. She was booked into the Dona Ana County Detention Center.
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Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Lady Gaga Might Sue over 'Baby Gaga' Breast Milk Ice Cream

Lady Gaga is not down with Baby Gaga. The pop performer has reportedly threatened to sue a London ice creamery over their human breast milk-flavored ice cream, Baby Gaga. Matt O'Connor, the owner of The Icecreamists, told the NYPost, "She's acting like a big baby who is crying over spoiled breast milk."

Gaga doesn't have all that much to worry about: no one's buying the frozen treat these days. The product is currently being tested for health code violations. The sugary treat is made with human breast milk, vanilla pods and lemon. Do you think Lady Gaga has much of a case? And isn't it sort of funny coming from the woman who supposedly wants her perfume to smell like blood and semen?
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Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Breast milk ice cream seized for safety tests

Breast milk ice cream seized for safety testsWestminster took the Baby Gaga flavour at Icecreamists and sent it away to test for viral infections. The ice cream consists of breast milk blended with vanilla pods and lemon zest. Founder Matt O'Connor, 44, today said he had taken "every possible precaution" over the recipe and that he was considering a protest if Westminster bans him from selling it.

Mr O'Connor, who previously led direct action group Fathers 4 Justice, said: "Our donor was screened at a leading medical clinic and then the ice cream mix is fully pasteurised. We have had a fantastic response and 200 women have come forward and offer to give us milk."

Brian Connell, Westminster's cabinet member for business, said: "Following two complaints from members of the public and concerns from the Health Protection Agency and Food Standards Agency, our officers visited the premises and removed all ice cream being sold as containing breast milk.

"Selling foodstuffs made from another person's bodily fluids can lead to viruses being passed on and in this case, potentially hepatitis."
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Friday, February 25, 2011

Breast milk ice cream: the healthy treat?

A specialist ice cream parlour plans to serve up breast milk ice cream and says people should think of it as an organic, free-range treat. The breast milk concoction, called the "Baby Gaga," will be available from Friday at the Icecreamists restaurant in London's Covent Garden.

Icecreamists founder Matt O'Connor was confident his take on the "miracle of motherhood" and priced at a hefty £14 ($22) a serving will go down a treat with the paying public. The breast milk was provided by mothers who answered an advertisement on online mothers' forum Mumsnet. Victoria Hiley, 35, from London was one of 15 women who donated milk to the restaurant after seeing the advert.

Hiley works with women who have problems breast-feeding their babies. She said she believes that if adults realised how tasty breast milk actually is, then new mothers would be more willing to breast-feed their own newborns. "What could be more natural than fresh, free-range mother's milk in an ice cream? And for me it's a recession beater too - what's the harm in using my assets for a bit of extra cash," Hiley said in a statement.

"I tried the product for the first time today - it's very nice, it really melts in the mouth."The Baby Gaga recipe blends breast milk with Madagascan vanilla pods and lemon zest, which is then churned into ice cream.

O'Connor said the Baby Gaga was just one of a dozen radical new flavors at the shop. "Some people will hear about it and go, 'yuck' but actually it's pure, organic, free-range and totally natural," he said. "I had a Baby Gaga just this morning and I feel great."
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Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Rich and creamy Oscar goodness

Rich and creamy Oscar goodnessOne of the best foods to enjoy while watching the Oscars? Ice cream! No other treat brings on passion, drama and delicious mouth sensation than this cold, tasty dish.

And just in time for the "Golden Guy"'s red carpet entrance this Sunday, the famous Cold Stone Creamery Custom Creations (with locations across North America) has created an exclusive series of recipes for QMI Agency to reflect the year's top movies up for "Best Picture."These cinematic creations were developed by Andrea Hughes, Cold Stone Creamery Canada's resident ice cream expert.

"By mixing nuts, fruits and candy into our smooth and creamy ice cream on a frozen granite stone - called 'the stone' -- we're actually more like ice cream artists," says Hughes. Cold Stone Creamery ice cream is categorized by industry experts as "Super Premium" because it's made fresh every day in every store - putting Cold Stone completely in a class of its own.

Headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz., Cold Stone Creamery operates more than 1,450 locations in 12 countries worldwide and Canadians can find them in select Tim Hortons across the country. Check out the company's Facebook page and enjoy these sweet interpretations of the top films up for Oscar:

THE BLACK SWAN - Graceful yet dark, keeps you on your toes: chocolate ice cream with cherries, fudge and dark chocolate shavings. THE FIGHTER - What an athlete would eat to fuel-up before a big fight: banana ice cream, bananas, peanut butter and almonds.

INCEPTION - This film is nuts and out there. It blows your mind: psychedelic green mint ice cream, brownies, almonds and fudge.

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT - Bright blue cotton candy ice cream, sprinkles and gummy bears - every child requests these!

THE KING'S SPEECH - Perfect end to a feast of bangers and mash - middle of the road English fare: French vanilla ice cream, brownie and a hint of decadence, fit for a monarch, with luscious caramel.

127 HOURS - The Sinless Smoothie has healing fruits that also harken the bloody gore of the movie: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, ice, - bright red and chunky!

THE SOCIAL NETWORK - A large take out container of sweet cream ice cream, lots of Oreos and fudge to share with your social network. Who wouldn't "like" this?

TOY STORY 3 - Yummy cake batter ice cream meets fudge, cookie dough and sprinkles.

TRUE GRIT - the White Hat (good guy) inspired creation: French vanilla ice cream, graham cracker pie crust, caramel, white chocolate chips and pecans. The cracker adds some "grit" and pecans and white chocolate chips bring a nice crunch to this light coloured creation.

WINTER'S BONE - a mountain girl is the heroine in this movie, why not a Rocky Road inspired creation? Chocolate ice cream, marshmallows, Snickers bar, fudge.
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Monday, February 21, 2011

Almond Ice Cream Recipe

Almond Ice Cream RecipeIngredients:

1. 500 g almonds (soaked and peeled)

2. 500 ml heavy cream

3. 4 tsp rose essence

4. 2 ½ liters milk

5. 500 g sugar


Almond Ice Cream Recipe Preparation :

1. Grind the soaked almonds into fine paste.

2. Boil milk in a non stick vessel until it is reduced to half.

3. Add the almond mixture, sugar into the boiling milk and keep stirring on simmer for at least half an hour. Allow it to cool completely.

4. Refrigerate the mixture at least for 3 hour and add heavy cream with rose essence

5. Stir all the ingredients and freeze the mixture until solid. Tasty almond ice cream ready to serve.
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Monday, February 14, 2011

Blue Bell Ice Cream coming to Colorado, along with jobs

Blue Bell Ice Cream coming to Colorado, along with jobsBlue Bell Ice Cream plans to open a branch and distribution center in Denver, where it will hire up to 20 local drivers and other staff. Blue Bell Ice Cream will be available March 14 in King Soopers, Walmart, Walgreens, Albertsons, Sunflower Market and other grocery stores, drugstores and convenience stores.

The company is building a 15,000- square-foot distribution center with a warehouse, office space and cold-storage facilities at 14258 E. Easter Blvd. in Englewood. Until the building is completed in the late spring or early summer, the company will operate out of leased space at 8001 E. 88th Ave. in Henderson.

The company will serve markets within a 100-mile radius of Denver, including Boulder, Fort Collins, Colorado Springs and Pueblo. "We get a lot of requests from Colorado, and we're really excited about coming to the state," said Ricky Dickson, vice president of sales and marketing for the 103-year-old Texas company. The brand has a devoted following, making it the No. 3 ice cream in the nation even though it is sold in only 20 states.
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Thursday, February 10, 2011

Ice cream fundraiser to benefit girl with cancer

Big Dipper Ice Cream will hold a fundraiser for McLain Thornquist, an 8-year-old girl with a rare form of bone cancer, from noon to 8 p.m. on Valentine’s Day, Monday, Feb. 14. Big Dipper will donate 50 percent of the proceeds to the family of McLain, who is suffering from Ewing sarcoma.

McLain started third grade at Hawthorne Elementary this year with no signs of trouble until a few months into the school year. Her arm started to hurt to the point where she couldn’t attend school. Doctors eventually concluded that a mass on McLain’s arm was cancer.

The cancer isn’t isolated and has moved into in her lungs, but her mother, Cynthia, said doctors in Helena and in Salt Lake City have given McLain a good prognosis. After the surgery to remove the mass on her arm, McLain is expected to have more rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatment. The fundraiser will be at the ice cream shop at 58 N. Last Chance Gulch, on the Walking Mall at the corner of Sixth Avenue.
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Sunday, February 6, 2011

Banana Ice Cream

Banana Ice CreamBanana Ice Cream Recipe -

Ingredients:

1. 2 bananas, mashed

2. 2 cups skimmed milk

3. 1/2 can evaporated milk

4. 1/2 cup white sugar

5. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

6. 1/2 cup Cashews (chopped)

7. 1 tsp honey (garnish)

8. Basil leaf (Garnish)

Banana Ice Cream Preparation:

1. Combine skimmed milk, evaporated milk, sugar and vanilla well. Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker, and freeze it according to the specified instructions.

2. When the ice cream is ready, mix mashed bananas and cashews and freeze it for another time. Tasty Banana ice cream ready to serve.

Before serving freeze the ice cream to obtain a good texture. Garnish a scoop of ice cream with teaspoon of honey and basil leaf.

Make the delicious banana ice cream recipe in your very home this summer and surprise your kids with tasty ice creams.
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Thursday, February 3, 2011

Cold Stone Creamery® Warms up with New Plated Desserts

Cold Stone Creamery® Warms up with New Plated DessertsCold Stone Creamery, known for super-premium customizable ice cream Creations™, is adding an innovatively delicious new line of treats in locations nationwide, the Plated Desserts line. Debuting today at an introductory price of $4.99, the Plated Desserts line combines classic indulgences, such as brownies, churros and funnel cakes, with Cold Stone’s premium ice cream in four tempting Creations.

The Plated Desserts are an extension into Cold Stone Creamery’s ice cream novelties, joining the popular ice cream cupcakes and cookie sandwiches. Adding a different element and seasonality to Cold Stone’s menu, Plated Desserts are served warm and are sharable, creating a parlor feel.

“The Plated Desserts brings desserts that are rarely seen in the restaurant space, such as churros and funnel cakes, and brings elegance and a whimsical flair to these decadent treats,” said Suzanne Schutz, vice president of marketing for Cold Stone Creamery. “The four Plated Desserts options are the perfect indulgence a la Cold Stone.”

Through April 30, 2011, the Plated Desserts will be available at an introductory price of $4.99. The four Creations are detailed below:

* Brownie A La Cold Stone: A rich, warm chocolate brownies smothered with French Vanilla ice cream and topped with whipped topping, caramel, hot fudge and pecans.
* Churro Caramel Crave: Crispy churros rolled in cinnamon and sugar, smothered with French Vanilla ice cream and topped with caramel and whipped topping.
* Chocolate Lava Meltdown: Warm chocolate cake filled with hot fudge, then topped with French Vanilla ice cream, fudge, whipped topping and shaved chocolate.
* No Fair Funnel Cake: Freshly baked, sweet funnel cake dusted with powdered sugar, surrounded by strawberries and topped with French Vanilla ice cream, strawberry puree and whipped topping.

In addition to the new Plated Desserts line, Cold Stone Creamery is also extending the Gold Cone collection, a monthly rotation of ice cream flavors, into 2011. The first Gold Cone flavor of the year is back by popular demand from last Valentine’s Day, Chocolate Dipped Strawberry, for February. In March, Cold Stone is introducing a new flavor of the unique no-melt ice cream line, Pistachio JELL-O Pudding. Perfect for the spring season, April’s Gold Cone ice cream flavor is Peach Iced Tea.
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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Publix Recalls Ice Cream Flavor

Publix Recalls Ice Cream FlavorPublix is voluntarily recalling some of its ice cream in five states, including South Carolina and Georgia. The Publix Premium Light Tiramisu Ice Cream may contain Publix Premium Coffee Almond Fudge Light Ice Cream. People who have an allergy or severe sensitivity to almonds run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they eat the ice cream.

The UPC number is 41415-13343, and the lot code found on the bottom of the carton is SEP 12 2011 B7 PLT 12-444. There have been no reported cases of illness. The ice cream is also being recalled in Florida, Alabama and Tennessee.
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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Nation's first fish and chip ice-cream

Fancy salt and vinegar with your ice-cream? If so you'll love Australia's first fish and chip ice-cream unveiled yesterday by its creators Fremantle fish and chip magnate George Kailis and local ice-cream chain Il Gelato.Mr Kailis says he was inspired by the famous British chef Heston Blumenthal's internationally famous bacon and egg ice-cream.Kailis and Il Gelato left no stone unturned in their search for the perfect fishy ice-cream.

They flew in two Italian flavour scientists from Italy's Bigatton company - makers of the majority of the world's gelato pastes and flavourings - to taste Kailis' fish and chips before heading back to Italy to experiment and taste for five months in the laboratory.And the taste? Not fishy at all.
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Friday, January 14, 2011

Snow Ice Cream Recipe

Ingredients:

1. 1 gallon Fresh clean snow

2. 1 cup sugar

3. 1 tsp vanilla extract or rose water

4. 2 cups milk or cream

5. Eggs (optional)

Method:

1.Beat 2 eggs in a bowl and add 2 cups of milk, 1 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla and mix together.

2.Add fresh snow into the mixture and whip until stiff. Serve the tasty snow cream immediately.

Try making snow cream this weekend and turn your kitchen to an ice cream parlor serving your kids with the tasty snow ice creams.
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Monday, January 10, 2011

New ice cream flavors are pretty cool

The newest flavor from Velvet Ice Cream? Why, that would be honey caramel. The flavor -- it's vanilla ice cream layered with honey and caramel -- was chosen from more than 800 entries in the creamery's annual Create-A-Flavor contest. It was created by Alex Grooms of Williamsburg, Ohio. When told he had won the contest, Mr. Grooms reportedly said, "That's pretty cool."

It should probably be mentioned here that Mr. Grooms is 13. Winning the contest is no small deal. The eighth grader at New Richmond Middle School, east of Cincinnati, will have his picture on every carton of Honey Caramel ice cream, plus he gets to sit on Velvet Ice Cream's tasting panel for a year. Best of all, he gets free ice cream for a year.

Competition for the contest was stiff. Second place went to Mark Shuliger, of Lewis Center, Ohio. His creation was Raspberry Truffle frozen yogurt, which includes fresh raspberries and chocolate swirls. Coming in third was Andrea Thrasher, of Cincinnati. She came up with the idea of mixing peaches and brown sugar clusters into vanilla ice cream and calling it Peach Crisp ice cream.

Both Mr. Shuliger and Ms. Thrasher -- who are adults, by the way -- will also receive free ice cream for a year. And they, too, will see their concoctions put into production.

Because Velvet is made in Utica, Ohio, part of the contest rules required that at least one ingredient be produced in Ohio. In this case, that ingredient is the honey. As you are undoubtedly already aware, Ohio produces 742,000 pounds of honey each year.

Honey Caramel Ice Cream is scheduled to hit the grocery store shelves in the spring. We all scream And in more new-ice-cream-flavor news (for all of us who just can't get enough), Baskin-Robbins last week announced its newest flavor, too.

The January Flavor of the Month is Chocolate Escape ice cream, a combination of regular chocolate and Swiss chocolate ice creams studded with pieces of chocolate ganache cake and chocolate chips.

That sounds tempting enough as it is, but check out the way the company's marketing firm puts it: "Chocolate ganache cake and chocolate chunks nestled within a velvety pairing of Baskin-Robbins' signature extra-rich, creamy chocolate and Swiss chocolate ice creams."

Wow. I want. And that is why Baskin-Robbins is the world's largest chain of ice cream specialty shops. Little chefs No doubt a result of the influence of food television, more and more kids these days want to learn to cook. And that can only be a good thing. Now there is a magazine just for them.

Ingredient Magazine is aimed at children from 6-12 years old who are interested not only in cooking but also in food itself. A sample issue for October included facts about pumpkins (and a recipe for pumpkin soup), an article about vegetarians (and a recipe for vegetarian chili), a story about Octoberfest (and a recipe for pretzels), instructions on how to mash foods (and a recipe for applesauce), information about foods eaten during the time of Christopher Columbus, recipes for everything from gumbo with shrimp and sausage to salsa eggs, and more.

The publication is set to come out six times a year, beginning with the current January/February issue. A one-year subscription is $35, and each issue has a cover price of $5.50.

Yes, we know. That means a subscription is actually $2 more than buying all of the issues individually. Sometimes, people who go into publishing aren't very good at math.
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Saturday, January 8, 2011

High pressure processing whips up thicker ice cream

High pressure processing whips up thicker ice creamA new study suggests that high pressure processing may enable ice cream manufacturers to reduce the use of additives and make better low fat products.

Writing in the International Dairy Journal, scientists from University College Cork, Nizo Food Research and the University of Guelph sought to assess the effects of high pressure (HP) treatment on ice cream and discover the mechanisms responsible for the changes.

HP processing is increasingly popular as a food preservation and sterilization method but has only recently attracted the attention of scientists as a tool to improve the functionality of milk proteins.

Potential benefits

In the new study, published online ahead of print, scientists said their research indicates that HP treatment could have several important benefits for ice cream manufacturers.

These include the improvement of reduced-fat ice cream and the possibility of making products without the additives that are normally included to prevent ice crystallization.

HP treatment may also allow ice cream manufacturers to cut raw material costs by reducing the protein content without compromising texture or mouthfeel.

These benefits are a result of the increased viscosity and higher resistance to melting induced by the HP processing.

Seeking to explain the mechanisms behind these effects, the scientists said: “Transmission electron micrographs showed the presence of a network of micellar fragments, arising from HP-induced disruption, in the HP-treated mix and ice cream prepared there from.

“The network of micellar fragments is believed to be responsible for the increased viscosity and reduced melting, and is hypothesized to occur as a result of calcium-induced aggregation of caseins on decompression.”

Commercially ready

Study author Thom Huppertz from Nizo told this publication that HP processing is ready for use by ice cream manufacturers, and that the necessary equipment is available on a commercial scale.

But from a research point of view Huppertz called for further studies on HP-treated ice cream mix to better establish sensory properties and shelf stability.

The Irish government agency Enterprise Ireland provided funding for the research.

Source: International Dairy Journal
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Thursday, January 6, 2011

Da Vinci Science Center declares Ice Cream war

Da Vinci Science Center declares Ice Cream warWho makes the best ice cream: a TV station, a newspaper, a pizza chain or a bunch of science whizzes? The Da Vinci Science Center plans to find out Saturday at its Ice Cream Wars 3.0. Teams from WFMZ, The Morning Call, Domino's Pizza and the science center will compete to make the tastiest treat.

The teams will make their own ice cream recipes and freeze them quickly with liquid nitrogen (Da Vinci says the ice cream remains safe to eat). Then visitors will taste and decide who has the best frozen confection. The "war" begins 11 a.m. Saturday at the science center, 3145 Hamilton Boulevard Bypass, Allentown. It ends with a "Supercoolness Show" at 2:30 p.m. Admission is $11.95 for adults. For children ages 4-12, senior citizens and veterans, admission is $8.95. It's free for children 3 and under and science center members.
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