From: D Yuniskis on
Hi,

I'm looking for ideas on good "complementary"
flavorings to pair with *coconut* in ice cream.

Keep in mind the nature of the tastes -- as well
as textures. E.g., "coconut - banana" wouldn't
fare well as the banana flavor is too subtle
to stand up against the coconut.

So far, the best ideas I've come up with are
coconut almond and coconut (chocolate) chip.

While there is really no such thing as *bad*
ice cream, the calories involved are such that
I *really* don't want to be making too many
"experimental batches"! (figure 5,000+ calories
per quart?)

[so this doesn't degenerate into even *more*
OT traffic, I probably won't reply to individual
suggestions :< But, I'll post the results of
any efforts I make in this regard. Thanks, in
advance!]

--don
From: George Neuner on
On Tue, 27 Jul 2010 19:55:17 -0700, D Yuniskis
<not.going.to.be(a)seen.com> wrote:

>I'm looking for ideas on good "complementary"
>flavorings to pair with *coconut* in ice cream.

Pineapple. Think Pina Colada.

George
From: D Yuniskis on
Hi,

Rather than reply to individual messages, I'll
address them in this reply to "myself"...

D Yuniskis wrote:
> I'm looking for ideas on good "complementary"
> flavorings to pair with *coconut* in ice cream.

Single flavors (e.g., toffee) are easy to come up with.
Just put a LOT (more generally *is* better!) of
"whatever" in the cream mixture, freeze and eat.
Increase amount, repeat. :>

The more interesting flavors (IMO) are combinations
of two (or more) flavors (e.g., my personal favorite
is almond chocolate chip with almonds). Here, you
get to play with *two* flavors *and* (often) textures.

Maple walnut
Butter pecan
Almond chocolate chip (with almonds, of course)
etc.

It seems that most of these work best if the flavors are
rich and subtle (e.g., orange+whatever would probably
be a real loser as the orange is too dominant).

> Keep in mind the nature of the tastes -- as well
> as textures. E.g., "coconut - banana" wouldn't
> fare well as the banana flavor is too subtle
> to stand up against the coconut.

I see coconut as "rich and subtle" (think about coconut
vs. other flavorings like raspberry, orange, lemon, etc.).
Likewise, banana is "rich and subtle" -- making it a poor
companion for the coconut (IMO).

> So far, the best ideas I've come up with are
> coconut almond and coconut (chocolate) chip.

Here, a big part of the appeal is the textural
differences -- the "crunch" that comes from the
almond/chip. And, the fact that the taste of
those "companion flavors" is confined *to* those
items (i.e., the chocolate flavor doesn't leech into
the rest of the ice cream but stays confined *in*
the chip).

> While there is really no such thing as *bad*
> ice cream, the calories involved are such that
> I *really* don't want to be making too many
> "experimental batches"! (figure 5,000+ calories
> per quart?)

George's pineapple suggestion was an *immediate*
win! But, it will be hard to get the proportions
right (without the pineapple becoming too dominant).

And, figuring out how to incorporate the pineapple
will be an issue, as well -- any raw fruit is bad
(IMO) as the concentration of water *in* the fruit
ends up leaving you an "ice chunk" in the midst of
what should be a nice, *smooth* confection. I
suspect I will use crushed pineapple and reduce it
(stovetop) to remove most of the water and intensify
the flavor & texture.

Using "real" (raw) coconut is a bad idea. First,
much "shredded" coconut is (heavily) sweetened.
And, even using the raw *meat* of the coconut
results in lots of fibrous tissue in the ice cream
(ice cream should be smooth!).

I'll use coconut cream (not coconut milk) for the
coconut flavor (though *real* coconut cream -- not
the Coco Lopez type stuff that is mostly sugar!).
This will give me better control over the individual
flavors *and* sweetness.

Finally, George's comment re: Pina Colada is an
even *better* idea -- add rum to the mix! (no,
not a lot). This would be a good way to help
replace the sugar and keep the same overall
consistency of a "non rum" variety.

[making sugar free ice cream for friends is a
challenge: most sugar substitutes are sweeter
than sugar so you lose *bulk*. Plus, the loss
of the sugar itself means the ice cream freezes
"firmer"/harder which makes it harder to store
for anything longer than overnight. And, ice
cream that is frozen *that* firm results in
increased consumption -- as you end up "chipping"
little bits of it out of the container and
*eating* them while you are chipping the *next*
little bit out of the container!! :< ]

> [so this doesn't degenerate into even *more*
> OT traffic, I probably won't reply to individual
> suggestions :< But, I'll post the results of
> any efforts I make in this regard. Thanks, in
> advance!]

Probably not until next week. I want to get started on
the coconut - almond this weekend (I suspect I can
get that Rx "pretty close" on the first attempt; the
pineapple variation will require a lot more planning).

And, Dimiter, *no*, it won't survive shipment across
the pond (and then some). It barely survives a 15
minute drive to a dinner party! :-/

Thanks!
--don
From: Dennis on

"D Yuniskis" <not.going.to.be(a)seen.com> wrote in message
news:i2o61n$k9o$1(a)speranza.aioe.org...
> Hi,
>
> I'm looking for ideas on good "complementary"
> flavorings to pair with *coconut* in ice cream.
>
> Keep in mind the nature of the tastes -- as well
> as textures. E.g., "coconut - banana" wouldn't
> fare well as the banana flavor is too subtle
> to stand up against the coconut.
>
> So far, the best ideas I've come up with are
> coconut almond and coconut (chocolate) chip.
>
> While there is really no such thing as *bad*
> ice cream, the calories involved are such that
> I *really* don't want to be making too many
> "experimental batches"! (figure 5,000+ calories
> per quart?)
>
> [so this doesn't degenerate into even *more*
> OT traffic, I probably won't reply to individual
> suggestions :< But, I'll post the results of
> any efforts I make in this regard. Thanks, in
> advance!]
>
> --don


This is what you need:

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/newinventors/txt/s2960196.htm

That way you can pretest the flavours without wasting ingredients!


From: Joerg on
D Yuniskis wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I'm looking for ideas on good "complementary"
> flavorings to pair with *coconut* in ice cream.
>
> Keep in mind the nature of the tastes -- as well
> as textures. E.g., "coconut - banana" wouldn't
> fare well as the banana flavor is too subtle
> to stand up against the coconut.
>
> So far, the best ideas I've come up with are
> coconut almond and coconut (chocolate) chip.
>
> While there is really no such thing as *bad*
> ice cream, the calories involved are such that
> I *really* don't want to be making too many
> "experimental batches"! (figure 5,000+ calories
> per quart?)
>
> [so this doesn't degenerate into even *more*
> OT traffic, I probably won't reply to individual
> suggestions :< But, I'll post the results of
> any efforts I make in this regard. Thanks, in
> advance!]
>

Since nobody had suggested it: How about rum?

--
SCNR, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

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