Today I had the most amazing ice cream. Ever. And I forgot my camera. Shame on me!
Despite leaving my camera, I can still tell you a little about it. It’s called Jeni’s Ice Cream, and was started in Columbus, OH. The business has expanded to almost 1 dozen locations, all around Ohio. You can order it online, and I also found it at our local Whole Foods. Jeni has created some of the most creative ice cream flavors I’ve ever seen. The stores offer signature + seasonal flavors. You must check out the flavor list!! I had about 6 samples [including a chocolate cinnamon cayenne pepper!] and was blown away by them all. I decided on salted caramel and Ugandan vanilla bean. I’m a sucker for vanilla ice cream. :)
This was the creamiest, milkiest + most perfectly sweetened ice cream I’ve ever eaten. The milk is fresh from Snowville Creamery, in Ohio. The quality of this ice cream surpasses all others! If there is a location in your area, you must check it out!! I’m hoping to get there one more time before I leave. I’ll bring my camera next time, as I love promoting outstanding small businesses!
In other delicious news….
I didn’t forget to take photos of Mama Pea’s Tamale Pie, that I made last week. I figured this would be a great recipe to stock the fridge with for Chris, while I was away. I think I ate 1/3 of it before leaving. In 1 day.
It just has that delicious, comforting, can’t-stop-eating, kind of thing going on.
It’s like a Mexican taco filling with cornbread on top. I mean, what could be bad about that??
Nothing!
Oh, and there’s cheese on top too. Are you making a shopping list yet?
With prep and initial cooking, it took about 20min to throw in the oven and then only 20min of baking.
I made only a few changes + additions for what I had on hand and was trying to use up!
The recipe calls for cornmeal + whole wheat pastry flour. I needed to make it GF, so I used a mix of corn flour + masa harina for the flour, and the hot cereal instead of some of the cornmeal. I thought the hot cereal mix would add a little texture, similar to cornmeal. It worked!
At the end of baking, I broiled the cheese, because what is better than melted slightly crusty cheese? Okay, salted caramel ice cream, might be better. ;)
I’m a sucker for cornbread and loved it as a topping for this meal. Definitely a crowd pleaser!
Head over to Mama Pea’s site for the full recipe + details.
my changes/additions:
- 25oz can black beans instead of 15oz pinto [I figured I would just use the whole large can]
- used 1, 15oz can organic corn + used added what was left after making the cornbread to the filling mixture – delish!
- added chopped red + yellow peppers [was trying to use them up!]
- added 1/2t cumin
- used 1/3c Mighty Hot Tasty Cereal + 1/3c corn flour + 1/3c masa harina
I made this the day I was leaving and ate it all day long! Even right out of the fridge. I almost packed it in tupperware to take on the plane, but it would have had to be out of the fridge for a little too long. :)
My craving was satisfied again tonight, when I made it for my family!
More cheesy goodness!
This time I made the cornbread mixture with 2/3c corn flour + 1/3 corn grits. It’s what was available in the bulk bins at WF and worked perfectly!! I also used the roasted frozen corn, Mama Pea mentioned finding at Trader Joe’s. I didn’t add any peppers or cumin but did add about 1/4-1/2t smoked paprika, which gave slight smoky flavor.
The family loved it!! It was everyone’s first time eating tempeh, and no complaints. It’s pretty well hidden in this recipe, but add delicious texture + tons of protein.
Can’t wait for leftovers!! Or maybe a midnight snack….
Relaxation time!
Ashley
June 29, 2011 
