How Well Do You Know Your Dessert?

Nothing signifies the onset of warm weather like that single strand of ice cream running down your hand as you savor the creamy frozen deliciousness.  As a kid I always had a problem with it dripping from the tiny hole at the bottom of the cone.  To celebrate the ice cream and ice pop season I’ve come up with a little quiz to challenge you all (and get some people to post their answers).  The first person to post and answer all questions correctly will be the winner!!  And (depending on where you live) I’ll make you a fresh batch of homemade ice cream – your choice of flavor!

I will post all the correct answers and explanations two weeks from today.  Good luck!

1. What is the origin of the name: Häagen-Dazs?

         a. It is simply two made up words

         b. Derives from the North Germanic          language

         c. The names of the two founding          brothers from Scandinavia

2. What were the original three flavors of Häagen-Dazs ice cream?

         a. vanilla, chocolate, strawberry

         b. vanilla, chocolate, mint chocolate

         c. vanilla, chocolate, coffee

3. What are the three main differences between ice cream and gelato?

         a. sugar content, percentage of milk fat, churning time

         b. churning speed, churning time, serving temperature

         c. percentage of milk fat, churning speed, serving temperature

4. Which first lady is closely associated with the early history of ice cream?

         a. Dolley Madison

         b. Abigail Adams

         c. Eleanor Roosevelt

5. What historical New York landmark is associated with serving vanilla ice cream?

         a. Ellis Island

         b. The Statue of Liberty

         c. The Chrysler Building

6. Who invented the first Popsicle®?

         a. Grandpa ‘Pop’ Sicle

         b. An 11-year-old-boy

         c. A test kitchen at the Good Humor company

7. In the 1960s Good Humor experimented with many different flavors for their weekly specials.  Which of the following flavors was NOT part of the weekly promotion?

         a. Tomato sherbert

         b. Caramel corn

         c. Oregon prune

8. Which movie actress was known for her devotion to ice cream sundaes?

         a. Ingrid Bergman

         b. Donna Reed

         c. Judy Garland

9. Which geographical location holds the record for largest ice cream cake?

         a. Beijing, China

         b. Cleveland, OH

         c. Toronto, Canada

10. What is the basic definition of a brain freeze?

         a. Rapid cooling and rewarming of the capillaries in the sinuses.

         b. The pain experienced is a nerve reflex from sudden extreme cold          temperatures

         c. The cold sensation literally travels to the cranium and aggravates the          nervous system surrounding the brain

You can post your answers in by coding the question number with the letter(1.b, 2.c…)

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Eleven Vegetables Piping

What seemed like the 12 days of Christmas with all the prepping and organizing was wildly successful in the end.  We had lists, timelines broken up by day and ‘In the Oven.’  Thanks to my account management skills were we able to work right up until our guests arrived at 3:00 on Christmas Day.  It was literally ‘Utensils down Hands Up’ when that doorbell rang.  My carmelized onion tart just managed to slide into the oven in time.

Every year we have our staple Italian antipasto to start things off which for all the new comers can prove quite deadly if you don’t pace yourself.  Second course is the infamous Lasagna followed by two meats and the vegetable showcase.  This year there were eleven!

Mixed Root Vegetables

Thyme Mushrooms

Breaded cauliflower

Butternut Squash with dried cranberries

Corn Pudding

Potato Crisp (a new favorite, russet potatoes cut thin arranged like a ratatouli with shalots and thyme springs)

Bourbon Sweet Potatoes

Asparagus wrapped in prosciutto

Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta and golden raisins

Apricot, radicchio and spinach salad with goat cheese

Broccolini with homemade lemon breadcrumbs

For the meat, we had a filet mignon with a horseradish Dijon mustard herb mixture, and pork stuffed with dried mix fruits and chesnuts.

And of course this massive feast would not be complete without freshly stuffed cannoli’s, sfogliatelle, tiramisu, pistachio gelato, an assortment of pies, italian cookies, Aunt Laura’s famous ambrosia, and my new coconut rice pudding.

We had enough food to feed our guests a second time around the  next day and then some!

I have to say my right arm has toned up nicely from all the chopping, peeling, stirring and sauteing.  Work-out while you eat!

Follow your favorite Street Meat (and desserts) on Twitter!

For those of you unfamiliar with the term ‘street meat’ it’s those trucks that park all over the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn serving delicious and creative food!  Street meat has come a long way since the days of dirty water dogs and are catching on to the Twitter trend.  Just like you can follow world news from CNN find out where your favorite truck will be parked for the day!  Great way to develop brand loyalty and flood business.

Here are some 0f the popular ones I follow:

@LCBBurgerTruck serves all natural burgers from grass-fed cows of Montana.  The La Cense steakburgers are lower in calories and fat and higher in Omega-3 fatty acids and beta-carotene than the average burger.

@schnitzeltruck brings Austrian food to the streets.  Fresh to order, using all natural ingredients, serving three varieties including chicken, pork and cod, along with sides.  For those unfamiliar with the schnitzel, it’s a a hand pounded, lightly breaded thin cutlet fried to golden perfection. It is traditionally served with a lemon wedge and a side of Austrian potato salad.  (I can’t help but hum the tune from ‘Sound of Music’ …Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles…these are a few of my favorite things!)

@desserttruck speaks for itself.  Serving gourmet creations such as chocolate mousse with a peanut butter filling and carmelized poporn…maybe I shouldn’t follow this one!