Keeping cool in L.A.: Today is National Ice Cream Sandwich Day

Whether part of the food truck scene or as a creamery's menu staple, ice cream sandwiches are a frozen treat geniusly invented to get the best of both worlds -- cookies and ice cream -- in the realm of sweets. Angelenos can get their fix from local producers with flavors, from classic to wacky, to satisfy a spectrum of cravings during summer's warm months. Or, as it so happens, on National Ice Cream Sandwich Day.

Beachy Cream: Made in small batches with local and organic ingredients, Beachy Cream’s ice cream sandwiches are made with a spin on names and flavors sure to fit the SoCal scene: Key Lime Cowabunga, Strawberry Surfer Girl, Surfin' Safari Chocolate Chip and Ginger Wipe Out. These tasty treats can be found on the streets of Malibu, at select stores and online. Beachycream.com. 

Father's Office: A recent addition to the menu, ice cream sandwiches are now offered at the Culver City location. Creations include the hazelnut and foie gras ice cream on oatmeal cookies and the buttermilk ice cream and raspberry sorbet on lemon shortbread. 3229 Helms Ave., L.A., (310) 736-2224, fathersoffice.com. 

MILK: The brightly colored sandwiches are made of fresh macarons and ice cream flavors such as grasshopper (mint chip), Thai tea, rocky road, coffee toffee and red velvet. 7290 Beverly Blvd., L.A., (323) 939-6455, themilkshop.com. 

Sweet Rose Creamery: Located in the Brentwood Country Mart, the shop bakes its cookies on site daily, and ice cream flavors change regularly in accordance with what's in season at the farmers market. Classics include fresh mint with homemade chocolate chip and salted caramel while August's ice cream flavors include melon, summer corn, peaches 'n' cream and watermelon granita, among others. 225 26th St., Ste. 51, Santa Monica, (310) 260-2663, sweetrosecreamery.com.

More after the jump:

What's in the box at Father's Office?

If you've been to Father's Office recently and noticed small cardboard boxes showing up at nearby tables and have wondered what's in them, they're cupcakes. Yes, F.O. owner Sang Yoon makes cupcakes. Or his pastry chef John Park does. 

Until now, Father's Office didn't offer desserts, sometimes notoriously, because it also doesn't allow outside desserts to be brought in, such as a cake for a birthday. So now you can celebrate with cupcakes. Or ice cream sandwiches. 

Critic S. Irene Virbila cools it with an affogato

When Alto Palato, the late great West Hollywood Italian restaurant was still open and I lived around the corner, on hot summer days when the ceiling fan just wasn’t cutting it, I would sometimes slip over to the restaurant’s bar for an affogato. That would be ice cream "drowned" in espresso.

Gino Rendoni, longtime manager at Angelini Osteria, was the barista then. At the time, Alto Palato was practically the only place to get a good espresso. (L.A. has come a long, long way since those days.) And an affogato made with his espresso was superb.

Now I sometimes make it at home. The first requirement is a good vanilla gelato or ice cream. Don’t even think about using other flavors. Sometimes I have some I’ve made leftover, or if not, I’ll go with Ben & Jerry’s basic or Dr. Bob's vanilla. Put a scoop in a cup or small bowl and pour freshly made espresso over the top--not too much or the ice cream will melt under the onslaught, about the equivalent of a short espresso.

 That’s it. Consume immediately.

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—S. Irene Virbila

Photo credit: S. Irene Virbila/Los Angeles Times

 

Carmageddon Eats: Ben & Jerry's honor 405 Freeway closure with free scoops of What a Cluster

Carmageddon, so far, isn't all bad. Carmageddon made for a sweet Friday morning commute, and now comes news that Carmageddon brings us free scoops of a new Ben & Jerry's flavor called, appropriately enough: What a Cluster. Those shrewd marketeers -- I mean ice cream makers -- are offering free scoops from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Ben & Jerry's shop at the Promenade at the Howard Hughes Center.

One catch: The free scoops are located a short distance from Carmageddon's ground zero.

Carmageddon is scheduled to begin later this evening, when the 405 Freeway will be shut down between the 10 and 101 freeways for about 50 hours for bridge work. The Howard Hughes Center is located off the 405, a few miles south of the 10 Freeway.

That better be some good ice cream. Sure sounds like it, though: It's a peanut butter ice cream with streaks of peanut butter, marshmallow swirls and caramel clusters. It was a new flavor unveiled in shops earlier this year. The "nuttiness" in the free offering is especially appropriate given that everyone seems to be going nuts over the freeway closure. The latest: Bicyclists have challenged JetBlue -- an airline -- to see who can make the Long Beach-to-Burbank trek faster. Can't wait to see how that bike-versus-plane race turns out.

Here are some other ways that you can eat your way through Carmageddon.

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Gjelina ordered to cut number of seats

-- Rene Lynch
Twitter / renelynch

Photo: Ben & Jerry's

Today's no-bake dessert recipe: Green tea ice cream

 
Today's no-bake dessert recipe from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen: green tea ice cream.

If you try any of the recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen, we want to see the finished dish so we can showcase it on the blog and in print. You can upload your photos to this gallery.

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-- Rene Lynch
Twitter.com / renelynch

Photo: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times

Some sweet news: Carmela Ice Cream to open shop; Proof Bakery in Atwater; Sweet Lady Jane expands [Updated]

Small-batch ice cream company Carmela Ice Cream is set to open its new shop in northeast Pasadena and plans to roll out a vintage ice cream truck. Carmela Ice Cream Artisanal Creamery will produce ice cream and sorbet -- in flavors such as brown sugar vanilla bean, strawberry buttermilk and lemon basil -- on site, where co-owner Jessica Mortarotti also will offer goods such as custom toppings from Valerie Confections, teas and marshmallows by Sugarbird Sweets & Teas and cupcakes from Blue Cupcake. The store is scheduled to open this month. 

2495 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena, www.carmelaicecream.com.

Weeks-old Proof Bakery in Atwater Village is in full swing (Wednesday to Sunday). Owner Na Young Ma offers a full line of pastries -- financiers, palmiers, cakes such as caramel-apple spice with mascarpone creme, tarts, well, you get the picture. And Yeekai Lim, the architect-turned-barista behind the Cognoscenti Coffee pop-up shop, is serving Four Barrel coffee.

3156 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 664-8633. 

[For the record, Dec. 7, 5 p.m.: An earlier version of this post incorrectly identified Yeekai Lim as the owner of Proof Bakery.]

Sweet Lady Jane's Santa Monica location has officially opened on Montana Avenue. Founder Jane Lockhart has brought her cakes, pies, tarts, cheesecakes, cookies and more to the Westside (the original Melrose location opened in 1988). Expect to find all of Lockhart's hits, including the seven-layer chocolate cake and the marzipan-enrobed princess cake. And chocolate tacos (florentine cookies filled with chocolate mousse and covered with chocolate curls). 

1631 Montana Ave., Santa Monica, www.sweetladyjane.com, (310) 254-9499. 

-- Betty Hallock

Photo: Jessica Mortarotti with her Carmela ice creams. Credit: Karen Tapia-Anderson / Los Angeles Times

Video: Making homemade ice cream is E-Z

 

Consider this your warning. If you watch this video, you are going to want to make homemade ice cream. If you watch this video and you do not own an ice cream maker, you are going to run out and buy one.

If you do watch the video, you'll see L.A. Times Food Editor Russ Parsons demo just how easy it is. And he also offers up a super-smart tip about how he always remains prepared for those ice cream cravings.

Here are the recipes for ginger ice cream and cinnamon ice cream, and don't say I didn't warn you.

-- Rene Lynch
Twitter.com/renelynch

What we're reading now: iron chefs, paint chips, edible mysteries and the New Yorker

 

Wake up sleepy heads! Here are your morning must-reads, should-reads and wanna-reads:

-- Is "Pirates Cove Peach" a Ben & Jerry's flavor? Or a Pottery Barn paint chip? The cool kids over at Mental Floss.com put together this quiz that will challenge you to tell the difference. (I barely passed. I am taking it as a sign that I need to buy more ice cream. You know, to study the flavors.) 

-- Why cast iron is a "green" choice for cookware. I was especially intrigued by the detailed seasoning tips. Now, where did I put that lard ...

-- It's only Tuesday, but I'm already calling this my food blog find of the week: Mystery Lovers' Kitchen. Come for the foodie-ness of it all, stay for the books. Who knew there were so many food-related mysteries? (A few that caught my eye include author Cleo Coyle's coffeehouse mystery series or the White House chef series by Julie Hyzy, which has such catchy titles as "Eggsecutive Orders," "State of the Onion" and ... wait for it...."Hail to the Chef.")

-- The New Yorker' has a colorful and intriguing profile of John Mackey, the co-founder and chief executive of Whole Foods Market who defied the critics who said he'd never make it selling "hippie food to hippies." Or, as the current issue of the magazine puts it:

The man who has perhaps done as much as anyone to bring the natural-foods movement from the crunchy fringe into the mainstream is also a vocal libertarian, an orthodox free-marketer, an admirer of Milton Friedman, Ronald Reagan, and Ayn Rand. In the 2008 Presidential election, he voted for Bob Barr -- Ron Paul wasn’t on the ballot.

Save this one for breakfast. It will take you awhile -- but it's worth it.

-- Rene Lynch
On Twitter @renelynch

Illustration credit: Mental Floss.com

Sampler Platter: sushi fraud, Paula Deen hit with flying ham, Portland's food carts, 11 restaurants in 11 hours

The TV queen of Southern food gets whacked with a ham at a charity event while Food Marathon leads intrepid gluttons on an epic restaurant crawl. More in today's food news roundup.

-- Sushi fraud! DNA tests reveal that "tuna" is often fake or endangered species. Wired
-- 13 restaurants in 11 hours: the 11 in 11 Food Marathon 
-- Portland's food carts, from New Mexico to poutine. Los Angeles Times
-- Hershey needs over $17 billion to top Kraft's offer for Cadbury. Wall Street Journal
-- Salon launches a food section
-- Paula Deen hit by a flying ham! WHEC
-- Police drop theft charges against two students who didn't tip. The Morning Call
-- Ben & Jerry's makes Maple Blondie ice cream in honor of Olympian Hannah Teter
-- Gift suggestion for beer lovers: "The Naked Pint." Brand X
-- OpenTable unveils list of 70+ L.A. restaurants that offer private dining services
-- The four acts of Ondal's spicy crab soup. Eat, Drink & Be Merry
-- Six reasons bacon is better than true love

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo: Celebrity chef Paula Deen. Credit: Dr. Billy Ingram / Getty Images

Sampler Platter: Mignon coming to downtown L.A., Santa Monica resists food trucks, loads of contests

How is it possible that Farrell's is opening a location in Orange County before opening another location in Los Angeles? I have no idea, but it's true. This and more in today's food news.

-- Mignon, from the owners of Bacaro LA Wine Bar, is set to open this winter next to Cole's/Varnish. Eater LA
-- Santa Monica resists nouveau food trucks. California Taco Trucks
--Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour makes its Orange County return on Wednesday, opening a new location in Mission Viejo. Fast Food Maven
-- The New Yorker profiles Jonathan Gold (and mentions local food blogger Teenage Glutster!).
-- With the demise of Gourmet magazine, Jane and Michael Stern will now be e-mailing their Roadfood newsletter once a week. Eating LA
-- Mattatouille has some lovely pictures from his recent foodventures in Japan, Indonesia and Korea.
-- New York firm recalls ground beef due to possible E. coli contamination. Safe Tables
-- Challenge Butter recently launched its "Taste of the West" contest. Prizes include a seven-day / six-night trip to Montana and an $850 kitchen package from Spice Islands and OXO.
-- Check out this infomercial, supposedly the first one ever, made in 1949. It's from Vita-Mix and features founder William G. “Papa” Barnard and a blender. Make your own absurd video and you could win Vita-Mix's Pitch Me! contest.
-- Marly Billings of Newport Beach, Shelly Mayo of Brentwood and David Walter of Los Angeles won Wahoo's Fish Tacos' recent naming contest with the three following dishes: Power Chopper Salad, Wafu Bowl and Baja-ladas Platter.

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo: 28-year-old Justin Dervaes (right) secures a smoothie being blended as his sister Jordanne pedals in the backyard of the family's urban homestead in Pasadena. Credit: Al Seib / Los Angeles Times.