Ben & Jerry's That's My Jam Core Review

It's been so hot in Houston... and humid - like a sauna you can't run away from. I've gotta admit though that summer this year hasn't been nearly as bad as other years. It only started getting really hot in August instead of the typical all summer long heat that occurs. I am trying to enjoy it though after the never-ending winter this past year.

So to cool down, I got some ice cream! Ben & Jerry's apparently has a new line of ice creams out - "core." Normally, I would go for anything nutty, like peanut butter, but this for some reason caught my eye since I was craving chocolate chips. I grabbed the That's My Jam flavor which has chocolate and raspberry ice cream (with chocolate chips in the raspberry half) and a raspberry jam core.

That is raspberry jam with seeds. I know a lot of people who hate the seeds but I love them. I don't know how people will feel with seeds in their ice cream though. It didn't bother me much. The so-called raspberry ice cream didn't really taste anything like raspberry, probably because the chocolate chips overpowered the flavor. But I tried it without the chocolate chips and I would say the raspberry flavor is very very light, almost non-existent. It didn't bother me though because the raspberry core does all the work.

The jam is soft straight out of the freezer and pairs nicely with the chocolate notes here. Chocolate and raspberry is such a great combination - just thinking about it is making me crave a chocolate cake with raspberry filling. This is the ice cream version of it and I've yet to see this combination offered by any brands. The core idea is brilliant, it's like a real sundae in a pint. Sure, there are banana split flavors, sundae flavors, etc. offered by many brands, but everything is all swirled together and just becomes a pint of mish-mash. I like tasting the components individually instead of having everything mixed together. Texturally, this ice cream is pretty firm - it's not soft out of the freezer like Blue Bell. Growing up on Blue Bell, I'm used to a fluffier texture and Ben & Jerry's is pretty dense. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I'm impatient when it comes to eating ice cream and having to wait for it to thaw a little is painful.

I always have a habit of looking at the nutritional label of all packaged foods I buy. Not like it matters here for ice cream, but I do like to see what kind of ingredients are used - this helps me when I try to re-create recipes or adjust recipes to my liking.

Anyhow, I checked on the Ben & Jerry's website and found that currently have a total of four core flavors: Hazed and Confused - chocolate and hazelnut ice creams with fudge chips and a hazelnut fudge core (I am dying to try this one!), Peanut Butter Fudge - chocolate and peanut butter ice creams with mini peanut butter cups and a peanut butter fudge core (yeah, I wanna try this one too, but after the hazelnut one), Salted Caramel - sweet cream ice cream with blonde brownies and a salted caramel core (this didn't look interesting to me until I saw the blonde brownies component), and of course That's My Jam.

If you haven't tried their new core line, you're missing out on this new creation of packaged ice creams. It's really genius and takes the mess out of making a sundae. I found this at my local H-E-B, although they didn't have all varieties available. You won't regret it!

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Las Vegas: Payard Patisserie & Bistro

Wow. That is all I can say about this place. Just wow. On Saturday (05/10/2014), we went to Payard Patisserie & Bistro @ Caesar's Palace. We've been to the bakery before to buy desserts and coffee, but had never tried their restaurant or any of the savory menu items. We STILL have not tried their crepes, but I aim to next year. After a hot walk from our hotel at Aria, which took a good 30 minutes or so, we only had to wait about 15 - 20 minutes. The dining room is intimate and small, I think their maximum occupancy sign stated somewhere between 40 - 50 people. The kitchen is set up in the center of the restaurant and the dining area sort of wraps around, a circular restaurant setting if you will. Looking in to the right are sofas up against the wall - we didn't get an opportunity to sit on that side and instead sat at the same table two days in a row. We ended up on the left where the window facing some of the shops were.

I already knew what I was ordering for mom before we got here since she LOVES lobster. And since Francois Payard is well-known for his pastries and buttery croissants, I ordered mom the Lobster Eggs Benedict on Croissant. It comes with generous chunks of lobster atop a buttery croissant split in half with two poached eggs slathered in hollandaise sauce. I had a bite and the first thing I noticed was how crispy the exterior of the croissant was, but not dry. The butter aroma was so fresh! I mean, I have never tasted a true butter croissant until that day. It was the perfect balance of slight sweetness, crispy but yet flaky crust, and moist but not soggy inside. The eggs of course were perfectly poached, whites were not runny and yolk was not overcooked. And the hollandaise! I haven't had really good hollandaise but this was not too overwhelming and complemented the dish very well. Especially with the chunks of fresh and succulent lobster which was cooked to just done and not rubbery. Can you see how happy mom is with her plate?

Unfortunately, I stuffed my face too much from the day before and did not end up ordering the lobster eggs benedict. I wanted to try their brioch french toast since it is one of their signature items, but I was too sugared and buttered out. Instead, I ordered oatmeal. I know it sounds boring, but after trying it with their sauteed berries, I was a super happy girl. The steel cut oats were cooked to a creamy consistency with the perfect bite. The portion was generous as you can see. The sauteed berries were a mixture of raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. I'm sure sugar was added and the berries were quickly sauteed to release the juices but maintain a slight bite and not turn into a pile of mush.

I absolutely loved this idea of sauteed berries over my oatmeal. I do have a bias towards oatmeal since I love it so much, but really, this was good even if you don't like oatmeal. We came here again on Sunday for Mother's Day! I had a feeling it would be booked, so I made reservations that morning and I'm so glad I did - I saw them turn away all those who did not have appointments. Annnnndddddd.... we ordered the same thing again lol.

Except this time I ordered the oatmeal with caramelized apples. The waitress then asked me if I had tried their sauteed berries... So when I did try the apples, I asked for the berries again! The apples were good, but I just like mine a little bit more tender and this didn't come out warm like the berries did. But I still ate both the apples and berries with my oatmeal. I'm still dreaming about the oatmeal and I'll need to force myself to order something else the next time I come back.

As per usual for breakfast, I ordered mom a cappuccino. I think Payard by far had the best cappuccino of all the restaurants we dined at in Vegas this year. The aroma was dark and bold, but not bitter or acidic. It had the light smoky flavor characteristic of a lot of french-style roasts. The milk was not overly foamed here, yielding a creamy consistency. I find some places over-foam their milk and the cappuccino ends up being dry. I had my oatmeal with coffee and was offered coffee to-go as well! Service here was excellent both days.

So I cannot just drop by Payard and not buy anything to take home. I browsed through their chocolate assortment and decided to buy this container of chocolate covered nougat. It was not cheap. But you get what you pay for.

I have a habit at looking of ingredients when buying anything, especially chocolate and sweets. I just really like to know I'm getting real chocolate and not PGPR or some kind of imitation. That's not something you really have to worry about with a lot of the french bakeries and chocolatiers, but I still like to look for my own entertainment (yes, I know I'm odd, leave me alone).

Enough babble about the ingredients - moving on to funner things - eating it! So I was a little taken by surprise when I bit into one. I thought it would be a soft nougat center, like the nougat I got from Jean Philippe. But it was crunchy with small pieces of nuts ground into it. It was still good mind you. The green ones were white chocolate and the brown ones were dark chocolate. This was a satisfying crunch of sweetness and I may be buying more of these types of chocolates as I find them. It's probably less unhealthy to get the crunch from an actual nut (like chocolate covered almonds), but that sugar rush from the crunchy sugar is just so much more fun. Not to mention it's got caramel notes to it.

All in all, my experience at Payard was amazing. Did I mention I saw Francois Payard on Sunday!? I am always starstruck when I see chefs. More so than when I see non-chef celebrities. Is that weird?

Anyway, you can find Payard Patisserie and Bistro inside Caesar's Palace. From the front lobby entrance, go towards the casino and go straight to the back. It is diagonally across from the buffet and directly across from Rao's. The bakery is obvious the but the restaurant is a little hidden - facing the bakery, go to your left and it's right next door. I recommend reservations as the restaurant is small.

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Las Vegas - Jean Philippe Patisserie

One of my absolute favorite foods. Sweet crepes! And only at the best place in the world - Jean Philippe - located in both the Aria and Bellagio. I have tried a variety of their crepes and opted for something new this time. Pictured above is their berries crepe, which contains marinated berries with fresh raspberries and whipped cream over their sweet crepe. This is a refreshing "light" crepe, but I don't really like my strawberries cooked. I think next time I will ask for their berries crepe with raw berries instead. The crepe batter yields a slightly chewy, flavorful, and thin crepe.

I ordered the passion crepe for my mom with marinated exotic fruit which includes mango and I think pineapple. This one does not come with whipped cream and instead comes with coconut sorbet. Their coconut sorbet is really good - not too sweet and has little pieces of dessicated coconut. I've yet to try any of their other gelato flavors but plan to the next time I'm there.

In the past I've ordered their chocolate crepe which includes brownie pieces, chocolate shavings, and chocolate syrup. I was absolutely obsessed with this variation for the longest time! It really is decadent. Their apple and pecan crepe is also a favorite too, but it's just too sweet. In the past, we've ordered their bananas foster and it's the one crepe I would not recommend. The bananas are way too mushy and overcooked. If you like bananas foster, head over to Mon Ami Gabi at Paris and order it there. You can see a picture of it and read the review here. They also offer any of their crepes as a souffle crepe, which is really just a crepe with pastry cream folded inside. It's really rich and I would recommend sharing it if you opt for the souffle crepe.

If you try their candies here, you must try their nougat. Especially their chocolate nougat. It's surprisingly not too sweet and is loaded with hazelnuts, almonds, and pistachios. I've tried their plain vanilla, but it's not nearly as chewy as their chocolate. It's light on the chocolate flavor but adds another dimension to the nougat overall. It's addictive. I brought some back for my friends at the gym and they thought it was amazing. I have bought a lot of nougat brands in search for something comparable to Jean Philippe's nougat and nothing comes close.

This year, I noticed another nougat flavor. They had a raspberry one which I did not get, but I'm a sucker for pistachio anything. Especially when the ingredients contain pistachio paste. It's a bit more expensive than the bar, but I just had to try it! Oh and it's better portion control I guess (I can eat the whole bar in one sitting, really). It definitely has a good pistachio aroma and Jean Philippe is always generous with the nuts in any of his candies that contain it. I found that I preferred the chewiness of the chocolate nougat bar over this. Now if he can get the texture of the chocolate nougat bar and the pistachio flavor in one, that would be like a dream come true.

Since I stopped being vegetarian, I tried some gourmet marshmallows! I never bought them before because of the gelatin, but I was happy to try them now. I tried all of the flavors, which were vanilla, lemon, tangerine, and raspberry. My favorite is the raspberry. The vanilla tastes like those valentine heart candies for some reason. Not really vanilla-y. I like how the powdered sugar outside of the marshmallow creates a crust. When you bite into it, it's a lot softer than commercially-made marshmallows and moist. It's a lot more airy too. As good as it tasted, I think I prefer my vegetarian marshmallows over this. But now that I'm allowing myself gelatin, I'll have to try making a traditional marshmallow - I'm thinking coffee flavor.

Jean Philippe Patisserie has more than just sweets. Besides their dessert case and baked goods, they offer sandwiches. I also noticed that they offer omelettes now, cooked on their crepe machine. I always order the smoked salmon sandwich here. It is soooooo good. It comes on a dill infused bread and some kind of dill mayo with sprouts, onion, boiled egg, and of course smoked salmon. Their bread is so fresh and the dill really stands out. I wouldn't get it if you're not a fan of dill. The onions are pickled it seemed, or at least marinated in some kind of vinegar mixture. I always get this sandwich to go to eat at the airport on the flight home, although just keep in mind the onions in this sandwich. I don't know about eating it on the plane and make sure you have some gum handy. He doesn't skimp on the onions, but the amount in this sandwich pairs well with everything else going on.

You can find Jean Philippe Patisserie inside the Aria - as you walk in from main entrance near the check-in counter, walk down on the right towards the back across from their gift shop - and in the Bellagio - as you walk in from front entrance, go past the check-in area and garden area, stay on the left and go down the hall, it is across from the gift shop.

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Madecasse 80% Cocoa Review

I heard great things about Madecasse, including its fair trade practices and cocoa flavor. I got this at Whole Foods Market but also found it at World Market. 80% is the highest cocoa content they have while offering a lower 70% as well as a few unique flavors, such as citrus and pink pepper.

As you can see, the brand is proud of its fair trade practices which does a bit in enticing me to purchase this bar (not because it's chocolate, not at all). I always check the nutrition facts, mostly the ingredients, since there are certain ingredients that are red flags for me for poor-quality chocolate (e.g. partially hydrogenated oils, fats other than cocoa butter, corn syrup, etc.).

You can see here the ingredients are simple and minimal. I noticed the "Made in a factory that handles nuts" label and it's another brand to cross off the list to use for confections for my niece since she is severely allergic to both peanuts and certain tree nuts... for now. I'm determined to find a way for her to become tolerant of peanuts, so we can have peanut butter cakes and pies for every birthday! It's unfortunate she can't have peanut butter, she's missing out on the very essence of life.

The bar is scored into 24 pieces. I personally like it when the bars are scored into smaller squares, rather than larger ones. Of course, this plays against me when people ask for a share. I have no excuse to say no.

Flavor - I didn't really like this chocolate bar and won't buy it again. I prefer dark chocolate with coconut notes but this one was more on the tangy rustic side with light fruit notes. It almost reminds me of Starbucks Pike Place roast, a little burnt and a little sour. I didn't feel it was as smooth and melt-in-your-mouth as a couple of other brands I've tried. The tang just really threw me off from experiencing what other notes were present in the chocolate.

I will try some of their other flavors though, the citrus and pink pepper (63% cocoa base) sounds unusual and their toasted coconut (70% cocoa base) as well as espresso bean (milk chocolate base).

On another note, I should be having some restaurant reviews coming soon from one of my favorite destinations to stuff my face!

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Bixby Bar Birdie Chocolate Bar Review

You can always count on Whole Foods Market to carry unique brands of... everything! Everything meaning especially chocolate. I came across this baby brick of a chocolate bar called Bixby Bar (say that five times). They have a couple of varieties which made it that much more difficult for me to choose just ONE. If I weren't on a dark chocolate kick, I would have automatically chosen the To The Nines bar, which is white chocolate with pistachios, almonds, goji berries, and cardamom. But alas, I chose the Birdie bar, which is a 72% cacao bar with hazelnuts, black currents, and fleur de sel.

Most of the ingredients as you can see, are organic. So that makes it healthy chocolate right? And it's dark... which is supposed to have a plethora of benefits...

Moving on. I was excited to try this since it was such a thick brick of a bar. It seems to be a trend lately, thick solid chocolate bars. Most chocolate bars are thin and scored to break into smaller servings. I just wanted to dig my teeth into this.

Well I did. It wasn't as solid of a chocolate bar as I had hoped. There were too many currants and I didn't really get a sense of the hazelnuts. You can see that it wasn't really hazelnuts and currants embedded into solid chocolate, but more like all mashed together to make a filling. Sort of like a truffle, but not nearly as smooth. It didn't really satisfy my chocolate craving.

That's not to say I have blown off Bixby Bar. I really want to try the To The Nines white chocolate bar and you can be sure I'll post a review of that when that happens. Gotta pace myself. Or else I'll be running forever and ever.

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Ulker 60% Cacao with Pistachios Review

I had a bit of dark chocolate cravings last week and went out and bought quite a few brands  I tried a 99% bar which has become my new favorite, but that's for another post. There is this amazing Mediterranean grocery store near me, Phoenicia Specialty Foods, and it's a foodie heaven. Their bakery has unique desserts and so many different varieties of baklava! I'll need to devote one full post to all the goodies in this shop soon so you can see how amazing it is. Last comment on the store, they have sooooooo many different brands and varieties of halva!

Okay, on to the review. I was browsing their extensive chocolate collection and happened upon Ulker Bitter 60% Cacao with pistachios  Pistachios is one of my favorite nuts (especially as flavors for cakes and ice cream) and since it was embedded in dark chocolate, I had to try it!

So apparently, Ulker is a Turkish brand. Phoenicia carries a lot of imported goods from Turkey and surrounding areas; they also carry a lot of German baked goods and panettone year round! I've tried a lot of German and French dark chocolates, but was curious as to how this Turkish imported chocolate would fare. Upon opening it, I noticed the sections were built a little differently from usual chocolate bars' squares. It was fun seeing this:

I flipped it over and was delighted to see how many pistachios were embedded in the bar, although it was a little uneven. This was a good amount of pistachios for a bar that was around $3 - $4.

The way it was shaped did make it break a little unevenly, but that didn't really matter since I ate the whole thing anyway.

My first bite... was amazing! It was so smooth and even though it is 60% cacao, it was not overly sweet at all, just perfect. It almost tasted like a dark hot cocoa with a slight hint of espresso, but no smoky flavor and to my surprise, I didn't taste any vanilla notes either. No sour notes (I hate sour notes on dark chocolate!), no harsh bitterness, and no chalkiness. I could taste the pistachio and the chocolate really complemented it.

If you come across this bar of chocolate, you should definitely try it! The only other variety I found was a plain 60% bar at Phoenicia. I've not seen this elsewhere (Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Central Market, etc.) so you might have issues finding it at any of the chain grocery stores.

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