Archive for Ice-cream

Famous Ice Cream Sandwiches at Diddy Riese – Major YUM

By Dessert Darling · Comments (1)
Thursday, January 26th, 2012

After indulging in the Pizookie at BJ’s in Westwood (post here) I sauntered across the street to try a famous Diddy Riese ice cream sandwich. Diddy Riese notoriously has a long line of UCLA students waiting for their buck fifty ice cream sandwich. As if that weren’t cheap enough for two delicious cookies encasing premium ice cream, a lone cookie itself is only 35 cents. Amazing.

I ordered an m&m cookie top with a White Chocolate cookie bottom and filled it with Butter Pecan ice cream. This sweet and buttery combination was Heaven. Mmmmmmmm- SO good! Ice cream sandwiches can be tricky to pull off: sometimes the ice cream freezes the cookie, thus neutralizing it of its flavor. Other times, all the  ice cream squirts out to the sides when you eat it, making it a messy and tricky ordeal. Somehow, Diddy Reise’s treats avoid these pitfalls, making them the quintisential ice cream sandwich. With superior ingredients, this cookie- ice cream delight clearly triumphs over the Pizookie across the street. While I grant Diddy Reise 5 cherries now, they will surely win the Golden Cherry by the end of the year! Delish!

My friend snapped this photo of me shooting the outside of Diddy Riese- there, you can see me in action. ;)

For more information on Diddy Riese, click here.

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The Pizookie at BJ’s Brewhouse in Westwood

By Dessert Darling · Comments (6)
Friday, January 20th, 2012

If you’re familiar with the BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse chain, you’ve surely had a run-in with the Pizookie. For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, a Pizzokie is a Pizza Cookie, of course! Also known as one of the greatest dessert inventions ever. However, as beautifully conceived as this concept is…a hot, melting, gooey cookie in your own little pan, topped with heaping scoops of vanilla ice cream, BJ’s falls short of brilliant by using crappy ingredients. I could tell that they didn’t use real butter in the cookies and the vanilla ice cream could not have been more bland. Really, it’s hard to mess up vanilla ice cream, people. Alas, I did nail the order by getting half Chocolate Chip cookie and half Red Velvet Cookie with White Chocolate Chips. The combo was awesome and the Red Velvet cookie better masked the poor quality of the ingredients. After the Pizookie, I went across the street to Diddy Riese for a good ol’ comparison. Ooooh, Very interesting. Tune in next week for the results!

PS: Freak-out alert- the Pizookie has roughly 1,120 calories. WTF!? I NEVER count calories or fat, but freaking BJ’s has it right there on the menu. I would have totally inhaled the whole thing had I not known. (Sigh) Ignorance is Bliss~

For more info on BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse, click here.

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Apple Tart and Chocolate Stout Ice Cream Float at Churchill on 3rd St.

By Dessert Darling · Comments (2)
Sunday, January 15th, 2012

I get giddy when a new establishment opens its doors on 3rd Street in my Beverly- Grove neighborhood. The other night I had dinner at Churchill, a rustic, two-story gastropub with a cozy and masculine vibe. Despite the hip environment though, the service and desserts were so disappointing, I wonder if I’ll ever return. When my order finally did arrive, I was greeted with this average, lemony Apple Tart enveloped in a bland blanket of thick crust. To improve upon this item they need to calm down on the lemon, add more apple filling, sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on the crust, and drizzle more of that caramel sauce on top.

Far more interesting, though not that much more palatable, was the Chocolate Stout Float. Don’t let the word “Chocolate” fool you. The stout was a hoppy beer with hints of caramel flavor and the saving grace of the operation was the vanilla ice cream. I attacked the ice cream spoon first, letting most of the beer spill off to the sides for just a hint of flavor and soupy texture. Otherwise, creamy beer? Not my thing.

((Sigh)).. I really wanted to love this place, but Churchill needs to revamp its dessert menu, hiring, and staff training to lure me back.

For more info on Churchill, click here.

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A Darling Christmas Party

By Dessert Darling · Comments (3)
Wednesday, December 14th, 2011

LA makes it pretty hard to feel like the Christmas holidays, but damn if I don’t try! Every year I throw a holiday party for my book club and girlfriends, replete with delicious nibbles.

The dessert of the hour were these incredible, gourmet Cake Truffles by 95th Street Bakery.

Made with only the finest dark chocolate (versus cheap candy melts), these divine truffles had all the girls’ eyes rolling back into their heads! I wish I had taped their reactions to eating them- it was comical! We enjoyed unique flavors like Eggnog, Panettone, Red Velvet, Holiday Mint, Candied Orange, Cookie Dough, Peanut Butter, and Chocolate. GOOD LORD did you see all those flavors!? GOLDEN CHERRY Truffles I tell you! (Photo by Lynn Chen)

Allyson of 95th Street Bakery also brought us these delectable, homemade Ice Cream cups for everyone. How’bout them flavors?! Maple Whiskey Bacon, Nutella, White Russian Christmas, and my favorite, Mistletoe Mint Oreo. YUM-MERS!

And while  these Chocolate Peppermint Pretzels from Trader Joe’s were store bought, I couldn’t get enough of them. But horray! I just found out that Trader Joe’s doesn’t carry any items with GMOs!

Look at all the lovely ladies!

OK, I know this is a dessert blog, but I just have to share that this is the BEST Mac and Cheese in the WOOOOORLD. I got it at Erewhon natural foods store on Beverly. Mmmmmmmm. I die.

Check out Lynn Chen’s post from the Actor’s Diet on my little soire here. :)

I hope you are all having Very Merry Holidays yourself!

XOXO

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Choco Bon Bons, Delicious Ice Cream Treats for Any Season!

By Dessert Darling · Comments (2)
Monday, September 12th, 2011

5cherries

Perfection.

These delicious treats taste way more fun and decadent than something you’d purchase from a grocery store. And yet, there they are in the frozen aisle of Whole Foods and Trader Joes (under the TJ label though).

Mmmmm.

“Ice cream Treats with a cookie crust, dipped in rich chocolate!” says the Choco Bon Bon website. Aw, but they don’t specify that the chocolate layer is so good it could stand alone (unlike the waxy, thin shells on Dibbs and other ice cream treats), or that the vanilla filling is as luxurious as Haagen-Dazs, or that the cookie adds a unique dimension to the traditional bon bon, soaking up the ice cream and delighting all around.

Furthermore, these treats are 100% natural, and “only 60 calories per Bon Bon.” Which is great if you can limit yourself to a few at time!

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For more info on Choco Bon Bon and all their flavors, click here.

XOXO

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SCOOPS Gelato, Perfect for this HEAT!

By Dessert Darling · Comments (4)
Wednesday, September 7th, 2011

5 Cherries
The Heat is ON!  No complaints here! This just means I get to eat more of my favorite dessert… gelato!

The other day I finally checked out SCOOPS, a charming little gelateria that serves both traditional gelato as well as vegan, gluten and lactose-free options made with soy milk. This gelato holds true to the Italian tradition of using milk instead of cream, which results in a markedly lighter fair. This fresh rendition is incredibly desirable during a heat-wave (and a diet, for those counting cals)!

In addition to great consistency, Scoops boasts unique and original flavors like Mascarpone Butterfinger, Honey Lavendar, Red Velvet Cake (with cake and icing in it!) and their best selling “Brown Bread,” which is an incredible combo of brown sugar with crunchy Grapenuts! Mmm. Five cherries all the way!~

Gelato-crop“Brown Bread” on top of Honey Almond and gluten-free Pistachio

For more info on SCOOPS in Silverlake, click here and SCOOPS Westside, click here. 

XOXO

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Luna and Larry’s Coconut Bliss- Vegan, Organic, Gluten Free Ice Cream

By Dessert Darling · Comments (6)
Monday, August 1st, 2011

Cutting out refined sugars? Avoiding dairy? Are you Vegan? Gluten-free? Organic? But LOOOVE ice cream!? Fear not summer-time Dessert Warriors, I have the “ice cream” for you. Introducing Luna and Larry’s Organic Coconut Bliss. Wow, did these guys get ingenious with their crafty, healthy ice cream!? Luna and Larry have substituted refined sugar for low-glycemic Agave nectar and dairy for organic coconut milk. OOh? Tell you more? Why YES! These delicious pints even boast protein, iron, and dietary fiber in each soothing bite. This ice cream is Bliss indeed for the health-conscious dessert lover. However, if you’re an ice cream purist, you will note the icier consistency of the frozen Coconut milk.~

For more information on Luna and Larry’s Coconut Bliss, click here. Or to find a store near you that sells this Coconut Bliss, click here.

XOXO

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Tequila Ice Cream- Olé!

By Dessert Darling · Comments (0)
Monday, June 27th, 2011

My fabulous friend, the Valley Girl, brought me this awesome Tequila ice cream by Neveria Abel to enjoy this weekend. FUN! Overall the effect was like Vanilla ice cream with a mild Tequila warmth at the end. That said, there was technically no Vanilla in the ice cream, but the creamy ingredients had a similar result. If I were to improve upon this ice cream, I’d take up the Tequila a notch and perhaps add some granular salt flecks. I mean, if I’m going to have Tequila Ice Cream, let’s have Tequila ice cream! Olé

For more information on Neveria Abel, click here.

XOXO

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Make Regular Ice-Cream Gourmet w/ these Perfect Pairings

By Dessert Darling · Comments (2)
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

Today my friend, Jesse Draper (The Valley Girl), and I attended an ice-cream presentation on “Real California Milk.” As a native Californian, you don’t need to tell me to buy Californian dairy.  But in case you don’t know it, California has some of the most strict regulations on dairy farming, not to mention, it’s one of the greatest places on Earth- so you know, Happy Cows, Happy milk.  It’s the good stuff. Look for the seal! As they say~

That all aside, we got to taste some yummy and creative flavor combinations originated by Danielle Keene of Top Chef: Just Desserts. Yummers! Who knew you could escalate regular ol’ store-bought ice-cream to such a gourmet level by adding a few simple ingredients!?

Take these Chocolate diddies above. What looked like regular scoops of Chocolate ice-cream were actually a sophisticated experience, thanks to the addition of these special ingredients below.

Yep, Pink Peppercorns and Smoked Salt along with some bitter chocolate syrup in Humboldt’s Organic Ice-cream was Divine! The title of this concoction is Grown up Chocolate Sundae. Yum!

We also enjoyed the Kyoto Sundae made with Vanilla ice-cream here (but Green-tea ice-cream is also recommended), with sweetened Asuki Beans, Black Sugar Syrup, and a delicious Sesame Cookie.

Finally, the Peach Melba with Thyme, pictured above, delighted me with it’s Peach ice-cream on a disc of Thyme flavored Meringue, and roasted Strawberry Sauce.  Mmmm- the meringue really made this treat special.

Wow- how unoriginal have I been with my ice-cream all these years?!  Have you ever spruced up your Sundaes with fancy ingredients like these?? Do tell!

XOXO

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Ben and Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie Frozen Yogurt

By Dessert Darling · Comments (1)
Wednesday, May 25th, 2011

I’m sure you’ve all had Ben and Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie Frozen Yogurt before, so my apologies for not introducing anything earth shattering today. I’m in damage control mode from a string of all-you-can eat wedding festivities! I write about what I eat and today, I ate Ben and Jerry’s Low-fat Chocolate Fudge Brownie fro-yo. It’s light in fat but rich in flavor and has the added bonus of fudgy brownie bites. For this “dieting” DD it’s doing the trick!

For more information on Ben and Jerry’s, click here.

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