Thai Ice Cream Pr0n
Goodbye, Summer! It’s not you; it’s not me. It’s September! There is only one solution to this conundrum: Affogato!
September 25, 2011
July 13, 2011
The Remedy for Summer
That is what I call a Whiskey Bar!
Oh yes, that’s my idea of a whiskey bar all righty! And what’s more, it’s not just a figment of Tumblr’s imagination: you can really order these things. My own personal preference would be for rum, probably Mount Gay Eclipse Silver, which I had occasion to try recently and was impressed by, or Havana Club Anejo Blanco, which has tequla-like vegetal notes, and neither of which are very sweet.
In any case, it’s certainly worth trotting down to the dollar store (remember when they were five and dimes? No? Just me then? Everyone else this old is dead? Oh FINE!) and getting some molds and giving it a whack. Here’s a thumbnail recipe I’ve discovered online and haven’t tried yet, so if you do, let us know how it turns out.
each booze pop contains a full shot of liquor and a 3 to 1 ratio of mixer/juice.
Hmmm. Blackberry/tequila with mint? Mango/rum? Gin/blueberry? I may be busy quite awhile. When I moved to this godforsaken tundra, unrelenting heat was the last thing I was prepared for. Reporting back later this week; video of our latest Booze Swag Unboxing coming soon.
May 30, 2011
May 17, 2011
I Scream. No, really, I do.
Ice cream at the Office
NEVAH! Faithful Manolophiles know that the Master has long preached the gospel of Wear White Shoes Whenever You Damn Well Feel Like It, You’re A Grownup Now, and we here at the ol’ foodie/bevvie blog feel quite the same about tasty, frozen delights such as ice cream, gelato, sherbet, sorbetto, and even Vienetta, that magical, mass-produced filigree of creamy perfection. It’s so perfect and so factory-made that it can’t possibly be good for you, can it?
But ice cream is magical, so it actually is!
The ice cream coolers have moved closer to the front doors of the convenience stores here in Canuckistan, yea unto the very Arctic Circle (yes, Yellowknife has an ice cream truck: I saw it with my own eyes) and soon neighborhoods all over the northern hemisphere will echo with the tinny, obnoxious notes of Turkey in the Straw and the cries of “BUT MOMMY IT IS TOO GLUTEN FREE!” So here to celebrate the seasonal return of ice cream to the top of snack marketing priority lists is a photo roundup of vintage ice cream trucks from Flavorwire (and seriously it kills me there’s no “u” in there, but I’ll have a Creamsicle and it’ll be all better soon).
awwww, who's a cute widdle ice cweam twuck?
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April 3, 2011
Happy Sundae!
Happy Sundae from Google
Please join us in the Manolosphere as well as those who toil anonymously at Teh Googlez in wishing the Ice Cream Sundae a very happy 119th birthday. Darling, you don’t look a day over 110!
As befits a treat as impressive as the sundae, like the Queen it has both an actual birthday (shrouded in mystery) and an official birthday. Wired reports on the controversy:
There’s some dispute over when and where the term was invented (though there is general agreement that at first it was “sunday†instead), but Ithaca, N.Y. has the only claim with any sort of documented evidence, in the form of the first known printed mention of the term, in an 1893 newspaper ad.
Even though all that proves is that the term was invented at some point not too long before the ad was printed, Google has chosen to respect local lore that holds that the term was invented on April 3, 1892 by Chester Platt and John Scott at a pharmacy/soda fountain owned by Platt, in Ithaca.
Sure, why not? After all, if they were going to pick a completely artificial date, wouldn’t they have picked one in steamy August instead? Denny’s is celebrating with the introduction of the artery-clogging masterpiece, the maple bacon sundae. Here’s to the End Times!
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March 2, 2011
I scream
Does their milkshake bring all the boys to the yard?
It is with sadness (for we always enjoy having one more ridonkulous thing in the world upon which to snark) that we note that health concerns have turned off the tap on Baby Gaga, the ice cream made from human breast milk. It seems dairy livestock need to be raised in accordance with certain conditions which the new mothers of London were not as a rule encountering in their own lifestyles.
The late lamented publicity magnet was offered at London ice creamateria The Icecreamists for a cool £14 a serving; a serving which was delivered to you by a waitress dressed up as, yes, Lady Gaga. Apparently, it tasted like vanilla. And desperation.
We much prefer the new (and, yes, real) Ben & Jerry’s Late Night Snack ice cream, another vanilla variant, this one with salty caramel swirl and fudge covered potato chip clusters. All that’s missing is the salsa and it’s a late night meal in a carton!
Late Night Ice Cream: Beer and/or pot not included
Apparently Jimmy Fallon is involved in the product, but presumably not as a “donor.”
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December 10, 2010
Affogato: Suprisingly Easy, Yet Elegantly Snooty
Affogato, easy and snooty to boot!
When I was asked to do a guest post by the Manolo I was stunned by the compliment. The Great Manolo Blahnik asking me to write a piece for him. Awesome! Sadly, my joy did not last when I learned that it was Manolo the Shoeblogger.
So, back to reality. Mostly I write about alcohol related items. This is a food blog, though. So, we need to combine the two.
I remembered years ago being taken to an Italian restaurant in the Marina District of San Francisco. We apparently went there because our companions did not cook. I found out how much they could not cook when they ordered plain spaghetti. When I say plain, I do not mean with a simple marinara or a nice putanesca, but boiled pasta. Just boiled. For God’s sake, learn to boil at least!
The dinner was good, though, and the dessert menu had an item I had never eaten, affogato. Affogato is Italian for “drownedâ€. It is a simple dessert where you pour a shot of hot espresso over a scoop of good gelato or vanilla ice cream. We loved it and were also suitably impressed by their ability to charge so much for a scoop of vanilla with coffee on top.
So, make this dessert to impress your friends. First, always refer to it as affogato, never “coffee and ice creamâ€. You can even buy good espresso at a coffee shop and reheat immediately before serving. Make sure that you use gelato or a very good, dense vanilla ice cream such as Ben & Jerry’s or Godiva, or, if you are lucky, the Holy Grail of ice cream – Dr. Bob’s.
And now to pimp the alcohol. To make this dessert truly impressive, find a bottle of Firelit Spirits Coffee Liqueur. This is simply the best coffee liqueur ever. It truly tastes of coffee and is not overly sweet as Kahlua or Tia Maria or others. Our review on this wonder beverage is here. Find a bottle of this, heat it, pour it over Dr. Bob’s or gelato and it will be almost impossible to top you in the dessert department. (For those poor souls who cannot find this spirit, try mixing Amaretto and espresso. It is good, just not divine.)
There you have it, an easy dessert that takes little time but will impress your Christmas or New Year’s guests just the same.
N.B. Guest blogger Erik Nabler blogs regularly about drinks and drinking at the Liquor Locusts.
March 12, 2010
Color Theory
When considering a balanced meal, Mrs. Henry thinks of complementary colors.
Composing a menu she employs a palate fully as pleasing to the eye as to the tongue. This is not a casual belief. She maintains firmly as an article of nutritional science that color and taste are linked. Good color matches make for good flavor matches and even for good digestion.
During the last snowstorm, when forced to prepare dinner from whatever happened to be in the fridge, Mr. Henry served his family chicken, mashed potatoes, and cauliflower, an all-white menu for which he still suffers recriminations.
When the Duchess and her family came to dinner last week, the meal became a feast not only because peers of the realm were seated at high table, but also because duck breast, potatoes au gratin, and green beans were enlivened by the vivid scarlet of red cabbage. (The astringent sweetness of the cabbage prepared with red wine vinegar and a touch of sugar cleansed the mouth, as well.)
For taste and for color Mr. Henry likes the marriage of duck and orange, but he didn’t think a classic duck à l’orange would pair well with red cabbage. Instead, for dessert he elected to serve sliced navel oranges (Moroccan style – topped with a touch of ground cinnamon) along with two ice creams from Grom – dark chocolate and stracciatella with candied orange, grapefruit, and pistachios.