I made my first ever non-dairy “ice cream” in my ice cream maker by synthesizing a couple of recipes while also using my ice cream chemistry spreadsheet to get the proportions right.

It’s important to note that the main thickener in this recipe was the tapioca starch that’s part of the Silk Creamer product, and additional corn starch added to the recipe to get the milks to thicken. Normally this part would be played by egg yolks and done in a more conventional light custard approach, but this was to be vegan, so no eggs!

See behind the cut for my recipe (which I’m honestly publishing so I’ll remember it).

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Some free advertising for CrushPad in SF. I happened to be surveying the market for quality hydrometers/saccharometers. Not for winemaking or beermaking (though aside from biochem suppliers, that’s where you have to look for them these days) but for ice cream and sorbet making. Turns out knowing the density of your mixture, especially in terms of sugar syrups, is important for making your own recipes and getting the right mouthfeel.

But I found CrushPad, which is an ultrapremium winemaking club, essentailly. You pay for your grapes (from ultrapremium vineyards), their transport, you rent space, equipment, barrels, and can monitor your fermentation remotely after the initial harvest, processing and prep. The FAQ says that the barrels go for around $6k to around $10k per barrel, which translates to about $20 - $35 per bottle.

I honestly had no idea, but having it be in SF totally makes sense.

To be clear, the concept, to me, is interesting. I don’t think I would do it, because I actually don’t like wine, but for those who do, I can totally see this being a very interesting vacation. And apparently the harvest is going on right now. Also, H says, and I think she’s right, that it would be a great thing for an IT executive type to do both from the point of view of a working-on-something-else vacation as well as from being able to have a hand in a really good corporate giftgiving type product.

Like the previous gourmand’s meme I already did.

Link to this new one’s original post.

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Last night, we had a wonderful protein rich dinner with silverbackbutch and biblespice, to celebrate various birthdays and victories!

It was a good time. They helped drink beer from our fridge that has been languishing and needs to be drunk before October.

They also brought cognac soaked peaches and fine chocolate. We got more than a little silly.

A meme!

via sparkymonster.

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The BBC on the recent University College London study on 5,000 twins (identical and fraternal) that demonstrates that “Obesity ‘may be largely genetic’”.

Additionally, Junkfood Science has a very well written summary of a seminal 1940’s study on starvation and physiological/psychological responses to starvation, as well as what happens when starvation is remedied and folks’ eating habits adjust. In fact, there seems to be very little cause to say that folks who eat a lot after going on starvation diets are “overeating”, and apparently body weights return to almost the same as before starvation within 9 months of returning to a situation where access to food is unfettered.

On request from folks I know, I now catalog all the foods I eat and/or try to avoid.

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