Should I Eat That? Ice Cream Edition.

I recently had the pleasure of making a nifty new friend. That person is none other than the lovely Zeena, who also happens to enjoy writing. Since we both enjoy writing, as well as eating ice cream and being silly, it seemed a good idea to combine these into an activity. We put our heads together and came up with the idea of reviewing ice cream. After the review session, we decided that expanding the idea to include other foods sounded equally fun. Without further ado, here is the first installment of our food review series, Should I Eat That?

Safeway’s Super Premium Blackberry Chocolate Cookie Swirl
Description: Delicate blackberry ice cream, swirled with a crumble of crunchy chocolate cookie.

Trevor: This is quite tasty. I wouldn’t have immediately thought of this flavor combination myself, but it works well. The cookie pieces are the right size, and the texture is just right. They aren’t too big or crunchy, and complement the smooth blackberry ice cream. However, while the flavor is delicious, it’s on the wimpy side. It’s clearly a blackberry flavor, which is good, but I do wish it had more potency.

Zeena: It reminds me of black forest cake, but in a good way. While I like it, I am getting a sense that it is the cookie that makes this particular flavor what it is. The flavor of the berry needs to be more enhanced. The blackberry takes the backseat a bit on this one.

Ben & Jerry’s Dublin Mudslide
Description: Irish Cream Liqueur with chocolate-chocolate chip cookie and a coffee fudge swirl.

Trevor: The description made it sounds delicious, but the truth was less pleasant. This ice cream is just too busy. While eating it, I kept referring back to the description, attempting to identify the flavors. There’s simply too many flavors happening at once. There’s not enough Irish cream flavor, and instead, you’re assaulted with chocolate. It’s not bad, but it’s definitely not a favorite. It would probably be better if it wasn’t trying to be so many things.

Zeena: If they had balanced the sweet with something that was perhaps more savory, maybe a nut, it might be a bigger hit for me. It’s chocolate overload, for something that’s not a chocolate ice cream. It needed something to provide a little bit of contrast. I understand it’s a “mudslide” but why coffee-fudge? Why not just coffee, since it already has chocolate chips and chocolate cookie in it?

Ciao Bella’s Blood Orange Sorbet
Description: Refreshing and overflowing with blood orange flavor, a perfectly balanced sweet and tart citrus fruit sensation.

Trevor: I’m a bigger fan of ice cream than sorbet, though I can also appreciate their tart deliciousness. I’ve had a variety of orange sorbets in my time, and this one doesn’t stand out. It just tastes like a standard orange sorbet, and while the flavor is certainly enjoyable, it’s not interesting or distinctive to me.

Zeena: It has a wonderful aftertaste—a tinge of tartness after the orange flavor subsides. This to me is the epitome of what a sorbet should be. I’m especially blown away by the texture of this one. I want to even say that the texture outweighs the taste. People should write literature about this texture.

Gelato Classico’s Crème Brulee Gelato
Description: Inspired by the dessert, Creme Brulee has a custard-like gelato with a swirl of burnt sugar. This all natural gelato has a taffy-like texture and intense flavor…almost too good to share!

Trevor: They didn’t take any risks with this flavor, and I’m not impressed. It’s an incredibly vague ice cream. It’s delightfully sweet at first, but I’m sure I would have grown tired of it quickly. The sweetness should have been toned down a little. I suppose it would be okay if you were just having a bit, but the flavor is still indistinct, and in the end, forgettable.

Zeena: This tastes way better than it looks! It’s so smooth that I could eat it all day. The creaminess really complements the sweet taste. However, it does taste like any other vanilla caramel ice cream, or a pralines and cream flavored ice cream. They almost had me. Taste-wise I could enjoy it, but you’re right—it’s forgettable.

Ben & Jerry’s Bonnaroo Buzz
Description: Coffee and malt ice creams with whiskey caramel swirls and English toffee pieces.

Trevor: Meh. This one won’t be on my shopping list again anytime soon. I had high hopes for it, given that I love coffee flavored things. I especially adore coffee ice cream to no end. While you can taste the coffee, it’s a strange flavor and seems as though it’s old or stale. I think it was ruined by the introduction of the malt flavor.

Zeena: This is….I can’t believe you. This is where we are divided. I can’t be with you on this one. I don’t understand you at all. The coffee and whiskey flavors are the perfect pairing. You can really taste the whiskey essence come through. And the technique in which the malt ice cream is layered on top of the coffee ice cream…it just folds together without tasting muddy. I’m taking this one home!

Bottom Line:

Trevor’s Pick: Safeway’s Super Premium Blackberry Chocolate Cookie Swirl
Zeena’s Pick: Ben & Jerry’s Bonnaroo Buzz

We hope you’ve enjoyed this tasty little diversion. Please let us know what you thought of this entry. We would like to conduct more food review sessions. If you have any fun ideas for foods to review, please let us know. Thanks!