Chocolate Freezer Pie

 Summer is coming...

At least I hope it is. Right now I'm sitting inside under a big blanket as a Nor'easter dumps a ridiculous amount of rain on New Jersey. Spring so far has been cold and wet.

I'm ready to wear sun dresses and sandals, grill out on the patio and eat lots of ice cream!

The weather forecast for next week is looking up and I'm hoping that means I can break out the chiffon dresses and ice cream maker! Not at the same time, but maybe! We'll see where the summer takes us!

To get ready for the warmer weather, I'm putting together some fun ice cream recipes. This Chocolate freezer pie was incredibly easy to put together but it totally impressive to look at! Plus, you get ice cream sandwiches in each slice!

I made my crust out of Cool Mint and Sweet Cream ice cream sandwiches. It was a nice way to use up a box of ice cream sandwiches, because otherwise I would definitely eat the entire box myself. You should definitely give this pie crust a try! To be completely honest, I saw it on Facebook and thought it was a great idea. Admire and acquire! 

Source: Perry's Ice Cream Instagram

Disclaimer: As a member of Perry's Ice Cream Inside Scooper's program I receive seasonal flavors to test out! I receive no financial compensation for recipe development or posting. Perry's is made in my hometown and I've been enjoying their ice cream since grade school!

One year ago: Raspberry-Lemon Soda
Two years ago: French Toast Crepes
Three years ago: Quiche with Sweet Peppers and Sausage
Four years ago: Banana Bread French Toast
Five years ago: Spring Penne Pasta
Six years ago: Fruit and Yogurt Jars

Double Coffee Affogato

Apparently the big food trend is all about bold flavors. If you see something on the menu that has a "hint of..." just pass it up. That's so 2016. This year you want to be hit in the face with the flavor! That is why we are indulging with a double coffee affogato for dessert today. For this recipe you need two items - strong coffee and rich coffee ice cream.

But first, a story...

The boyfriend and I went to Cambodia last year and stayed in Siem Reap at the adorable Heritage Suites. The people were friendly, the pool was serene and above all, the coffee makers made top notch coffee. European style coffee.  Tiny cups.

This espresso was so amazing, that the boyfriend would constantly reminisce about our time in Cambodia and how really liked the coffee. At least once a month (usually when we'd pass the Nespresso shop), he'd talk about how good it was and how he wanted to find a local alternative. American coffee just isn't the same.

After listening to this for about a year, I decided to try and bring a bit of Cambodia home for Christmas. First, I e-mailed the Heritage Suites Hotel and asked about their coffee machines. Turns out they use a French brand called Malongo. Next, I looked up the Malongo website and determined that they were located in Paris, France. I emailed them to find out if they made a US-friendly machine (i.e. 110 volts)... They do not. What else don't they do? They don't ship to the US!

After much googling, I located a legitimate-sounding third party that would buy the coffee machine (and coffee pods) on my behalf. FAOPS (not sponsored, I was just really impressed!) will purchase goods from French websites and have them shipped to their warehouse in France. They then repackage your goods (into smaller boxes) and ship them wherever you are!

The package with the coffee machine and pods arrived in just two days from France and I had the best christmas present ever. Since the machine is European and I live in the US, I had to buy a heavy duty voltage transformer to power the thing, but it is totally worth it. Even with the extra fees in shipping, I was able to get the coffee machine and 300 pods for less than the price of a nespresso machine. And now the boyfriend can enjoy a little taste of Cambodia (France?) whenever he wants.

The Malongo machine is the source of my strong coffee that I paired with the newest ice cream flavor from Perry's - Cold Brew Coffee & Cream. Sticking with the 2017 trend of bold flavors, this coffee ice cream is no joke. The coffee flavor is incredibly rich and intense, you really only need a scoop to satisfy your craving. The swirls of sweet cream help to balance out the whole thing.

If you are looking for a simple dessert that your coffee-loving friends will enjoy, give the affogato a try. Give them a few options with either vanilla, chocolate or coffee ice cream! Don't worry if you don't have a fancy, difficult to source, European coffee machine. Affogatos are delicious with every kind of coffee! Sprinkle on some miniature chocolate chips for a subtle burst of sweetness.

Disclaimer: As a members of Perry's Ice Cream Inside Scoopers program, they send me ice cream and I eat it! I receive no financial compensation for recipe development. I only work with companies that I love and believe in. Perry's Ice Cream is a brand from my hometown of Buffalo, NY. If you live in the Northeast and have access to a Wegmans, you can try Perry's yourself. Everyone else, you need to plan a trip to Western New York to get a taste!

Previously on WITK...

One year ago: Shakshuka
Two years ago: Spring Risotto
Three years ago: Peanut Butter Macaroon Brownies
Four years ago: Raspberry Macarons with White Chocolate Buttercream
Five years ago: Chocolate Malt Marshmallows
Six years ago: Maple Mousse

Sweet Break up

Happy Valentine's Day! Or Happy February 14th? However you are spending today, I'm happy to bring you another delicious recipe. Personally, I am spending this evening on my own because I am traveling for work. Bad timing for meetings this week mean that I had Chipotle for dinner, by myself in my hotel room. So romantic!

Though this isn't terribly different from how the boyfriend and I have spent many of our thirteen Valentine's Days. Eight of those years were spent as a long distance couple. We didn't even see each other for this holiday until four years ago. Needless to say, Valentine's Day isn't a big holiday for us!

One holiday that I didn't know was a thing? February 13th - National Break-Up Day! 

Apparently the reasoning behind National Break-Up day is this - You've made it through the winter holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years) and have made your parents happy by showing them that you aren't going to die alone. But here's the reality - you hate this person you're dating! In order to keep from wasting money on a Valentine's gift/dinner there is only one option - Break it off!

I haven't taken part in National Break-up day. I just broke up with boyfriends on random days for all the normal reasons - he showed up drunk to a high school football game, or he didn't support my plan to go to grad school, he didn't realize he was gay. You know, the normal reasons.

In honor of National Break-Up Day, Perry's Ice Cream has developed a new flavor - Bad Breakup. Sea salt caramel chocolate ice cream with fudge swirls and caramel-filled chocolate hearts. I'm so glad that it only comes in pint sizes. because I could seriously eat an entire quart of this stuff. If you haven't tried Perry's yet, hop in your car or get on a plane and fly to Western New York to get some.

Since every breakup needs lots of chocolate, I decided to make a chocolate and strawberry cake to enjoy alongside. Chocolate and strawberries has too long belonged to the lovers on February 14th. This chocolate and strawberry cake is for all the single ladies (and gentlemen!) who just want to indulge!

You don't have to be newly single to enjoy a big slab of chocolate cake and heaping serving of Bad Breakup Ice cream. I cleaned this plate while sitting on the couch with the boyfriend!

No matter your current situation, if you are in need of a little cake and ice cream I'm going to recommend this combination! The recipe is for a 6-inch cake, just enough for a little dinner party or a week's worth of cake for a singleton. My recommendation though? Bring it to the office and butter up your coworkers! They'll complain, but be really happy at the end of the day.

One Year Ago: Homemade Moon Pies
Two Years Ago: Homemade Girl Scout Samoas
Three Years Ago: Whole Wheat Pasta with Sausage and Leeks
Four Years Ago: Chipotle CopyCat Recipes
Five Years Ago: Chocolate-Peppermint Marshmallows
Six Years Ago: Homemade Butterfinger Bars

Tailgate Time! - Football Celebration Cake

Today I woke up to chilly temperatures and a definite Fall-like feel to the morning. While the days still feel like summer, the mornings and evenings are beginning to take a turn toward Autumn. In the US, nothing says Fall more clearly than the start of football season. 

This past weekend was the opening of regular season football. Last week I created a few recipes for your tailgating party, today I bring you something to get you ready for the end of the season! It's time to think big for your team and plan your playoff celebration cake!  Being a Buffalo girl I find it a little difficult to even think about calling this a playoff celebration cake, but you can always dream!

I made this cake to celebrate the Buffalo Bills. The layering of colors in this cake is reminiscent of the team logo, with a red stripe slashing across a blue buffalo. If you call yourself a fan of another football team, just swap out the colors for your own team colors! I made a custom blend of red, white and blue sprinkles from three bottles of single colors that I bought at a local cake supply shop. You can pick up your team colors at Michaels Arts & Crafts or online at Amazon.

The cake toppers are also super easy to make! I found a clipart image of a football and traced it onto wax paper. Melting some chocolate chips and transferring them to a zip-top bag with a small piping tip, I was able to draw out the chocolate football and endzone upright.

To keep the local spirit going, you should pair your celebration cake with a local brand of ice cream! Perry's is the local brand of choice in Western New York and I have paired my celebration cake with the "Sundae at the Ralph" flavor. The red and blue sprinkles in the ice cream go right along with my team color theme!

Go ahead and plan for the best, buy your sprinkles and food coloring and get ready to celebrate!  Or just enjoy practicing your layer cake skills and eating the delicious results.

One Year Ago: Pumpkin Mallomars
Two Years Ago: S'mores Cupcakes
Three Years Ago: Cookies Dough Stuffed French Toast
Four Years Ago: Southwest Chicken Burger
Five Years Ago: Baked Pears & Salad
Six Years Ago: White Chicken Chili

Tailgating Time! - Ice Cream Cookie Dip

The chilly days of tailgating are coming! Probably not this weekend, (it's going to be in the mid-80's this weekend in the tri-state area) but soon we'll be bundling up in layers and heading out to the game with thermoses of hot drinks.  If you are a football fan in the northern part of the country, this is your reality. There are approximately three weeks of comfortable football weather before the too chilly temperatures take over and make it impossible to enjoy a game without bringing a blanket. During these crisp Fall weeks, I think you should bring this to your outdoor tailgating party...

Yes! Ice Cream Cookie Dip! I'm sure you've seen the different types cookie dip floating around the internet. Most of these dips use cream cheese as a base and are all perfectly delicious. This cookie dip uses your favorite ice cream as a base! Basically, this is an excuse to eat a bunch of ice cream with an edible spoon.

The reason I suggest this recipe only to those in the northern states is because it will melt rather quickly at temperatures higher than 50 degrees! I used a bit of gelatin in this recipe to stabilize the dip, but it still is mostly ice cream and will turn into a pool of delicious melted ice cream if you sit it in the blistering sun. I suggest keeping this in a cooler until you are ready for dessert, then eat up! Unless you are in Buffalo, NY. You will have no problem setting this out on your tailgate in a few weeks! Winter is coming...

Continuing to celebrate my hometown and all things Buffalo Bills, I used the new Perry's Ice Cream - Sundae at the Ralph - to make my ice cream cookie dip. The ice cream has little peanut butter-filled footballs mixed in. These were a special bonus when scooping into the dip!

After working with this ice cream on several recipes, I find myself wanting to put on my old Zubaz pants. Unfortunately I haven't owned a pair of Zubaz since 1994. I think that either a. my mom has since donated them or b. I won't fit into my 13-year old self's pants. Disappointing.

Wait, I just checked... Zubaz still exists!  Time to go buy some and bring back the trend...

One Year Ago: Pumpkin Mallomars
Two Years Ago: Rigatoni with Pepperoni, Tomato & Mozzarella
Three Years Ago: Single Serve Stuffed French Toast

Four Years Ago: Ramen Vegetable Soup

Five Years Ago: French Croissants

Six Years Ago: Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Icing

Tailgating Time! - Ice Cream Pizza

Are you ready for some TAILGATING!?!???!!  Personally, I'm not really a football fan. I'm pretty sure my apathetic feelings for football come from being a child in Buffalo during the 1990's. While I don't really care for the sport, I'm all about tailgating. Actually, you can convince me to attend any sporting event as long as you promise me food.

Want me to attend a baseball game? Buy me a salty soft pretzel. Your favorite team playing a hockey game tonight? Get me some nachos and I'll watch happily. Football? Invite me to your tailgate party and I'll dress in your team colors.

Over the next two weeks I am teaming up with Perry's Ice Cream to celebrate the beginning of football season with ice cream and tailgating treats! While ice cream might not be the most common tailgating treat, Buffalo fans are used to freezing temperatures and snow! Perry's created their newest flavor - Sundae at the Ralph - with vanilla ice cream, peanut butter footballs, chocolate swirls and red and blue sprinkles! It's so Buffalo.

Watching the game from home? You can prepare this ice cream pizza for your friends and let them choose their own toppings. Not in the WNY region and can't get your hands on Perry's? Simply use your favorite brand of vanilla ice cream and sprinkle on some candies in your teams colors.

Not a Buffalonian and wondering why it's called "Sundae at the Ralph"? Well, The Ralph is our football stadium! Or at least it was until about a week ago, when it turned into New Era Field. I don't know how I feel about the change...

Disclaimer - As a member of Perry's Ice Cream "Inside Scoopers" team, I receive samples of seasonal ice cream flavors. I receive no other compensation for recipe development and posts. I only work with brands that I love and as a hometown Buffalo girl, Perry's is in my blood!

One Year Ago: Homemade Snickers Bars
Two Years Ago: Watermelon Mallomars
Three Years Ago: Faux Fudge Rounds
Four Years Ago: Homemade Coconut milk & chili sauce
Five Years Ago: Congo Bars
Six Years Ago: Peanut Butter Pancakes

Raspberry-Lemon Soda Floats

With the unofficial start of summer here, it's time to celebrate all things ice cream! All this week we will be enjoying ice cream-based recipes to help keep you cool all summer.

Today we start with a classic summertime recipe - the ice cream float. I remember drinking many floats during my summer vacations. I think they consisted of cherry Crush poured over vanilla Perry's Ice Cream. For ice cream week 2016, I decided to amp up my ice cream float with a homemade soda and a new Perry's flavor.

The ice cream featured in my raspberry-lemon soda floats is called Lemon Chillo. It's a lemon ice cream with cookie swirls. If you don't have access to Perry's Ice Cream (i.e. you live outside of the WNY area) you can go ahead and use a lemon ice cream or sorbet.

The raspberry soda comes together really quickly too. The only ingredients you need are raspberries and sugar! I carbonated my soda with a siphon, but you can use bottled, plain seltzer water if you haven't bought a siphon yet!

What are you waiting for? Stop making boring ice cream floats. Mix up your flavors and toss chocolate ice cream into cream soda. Pour coconut seltzer over pineapple ice cream. Don't limit yourself to just plain vanilla! (And let me know what unique flavor combinations you come up with!)

Disclaimer - As a member of Perry's Ice Cream Inside Scoopers team, I received the new summer ice cream flavors to test out. I've been enjoying Perry's Ice Cream since I was a kid and I'm so happy to be able to support a locally owned and produced (and delicious) product. Other than free ice cream, I have not received any compensation for this post. All opinions are my own and I totally ate all of the ice cream they sent me. All by myself.

One Year Ago: French Toast Ice Cream Crepes
Two Years Ago: Quiche with Sweet Peppers & Sausage
Three Years ago: Funfetti Mallomars
Four Years Ago: Tarragon Chicken & Pesto Potatoes
Five Years Ago: French Baguettes

Christmas Cake & Ice Cream

With just a week left until Christmas, it's time to choose your dessert recipes and head to the grocery store. I'm going to recommend making something that looks fancy but isn't that difficult to make at all! A roulade!

A roulade is simply a thin sponge cake, rolled up with a buttercream filling. You can add any flavoring to the buttercream to change it up for the seasons. Instead of making a peppermint or chocolate roulade, I decided to pair my cake with an incredibly flavorful ice cream!

I'm happy to be working with one of my favorite hometown brands - Perry's Ice Cream - and bring you their amazing new Winter flavor! A few weeks ago, I received a package containing their traditional Fall flavor, Pumpkin Pie, and this new one, Gingerbread cookie. I was a little leery at first, I'm not a huge gingerbread fan, but one bite had me converted. Even the boyfriend took me up on the offer to try some and he wound up making a good dent in the container.

This ice cream is surprisingly complex. The gingerbread ice cream base is dotted with cookies and filled with ribbons of vanilla icing. I only wish that they sent me just one container, because I will inevitably eat both containers myself.

To make the roulade cake, I enlisted the boyfriend to help me. He generally avoids baking with me, it's not his thing, but this was my lucky day! After prepping all of the ingredients, the cake came together very fast. After cooling, filling and rolling, this cake really topped off our evening. It would make for an impressive and delicious addition to your holiday table!

Disclaimer: I received a box full of Perry's Ice Creams Fall/Winter flavors to try out. I have not received any other compensation for this post and all opinions are my own. I am so happy to partner with small, local companies and share them with the world. I grew up with Perry's and it continues to remind me of home.

One Year Ago: Wilde Cookies - A list of all the cookies I've made here at WITK!
Two Years Ago: Cranberry-Orange Soda
Three Years Ago: Eggnog Mallomars
Four Years Ago: Thai Chicken Curry
Five Years Ago: Chorizo & Vegetable Soup

Thanksgiving 2014 - Perry's Ice Cream Pie

Thanksgiving week is upon us! I thought that instead of bombarding you with dozens of pumpkin/stuffing/turkey recipes this year, I would give you a single, delicious one. Inspired by my favorite hometown ice cream brand - Perry's Ice Cream!

I'm sure you've all been seeing images of the snowstorm that hit Buffalo, New York last week. Houses buried under five feet of snow, snow drifts up and over cars, highways closed, grocery stores cleared out, people building beer fridges out of the snow, etc, etc, etc. I'm proud to hail from that part of the world and I'm all too familiar with that type of weather. Don't worry about Buffalo. They generally dig out in a day and carry on with their business.

Even with all that snow, Perry's Ice Cream continued churning and making tasty flavors for their local fans. (I'm loving the looks of this chocolate cookies and cream they just created!) Each fall, Perry's comes out with a few limited edition flavors. This year I was lucky enough to receive two containers of their new Maple Cheesecake ice cream!

I promptly ate one of the containers. If you are in the WNY region, be sure to pick up a container of this stuff. The cheesecake flavor is really mild and disappears behind the maple. It's not just maple, there's ribbons of maple crunch running through the ice cream.

The second container was set aside for my "Friendsgiving" this past weekend. I decided that in addition to the traditional pumpkin pie, I would make an ice cream pie. It's an incredibly easy pie to make. Just put together your favorite cookie crust, I made the Momofuku Milk oatmeal cookie crust, and top it with the ice cream! Freeze until solid and serve with some whipped cream.

When given the two options of pumpkin pie and Maple cheesecake ice cream pie, what do you think my friends chose? I'll let the entire pumpkin pie in my fridge answer that question.

Not in a Perry's region? This ice cream pie would also be amazing with butter pecan or toffee-flavored ice creams. Just keep it simple and you'll have a tasty Thanksgiving dessert in no time!

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by Perry's Ice Cream. I am a member of their Inside Scoopers program and via this relationship they occasionally send me their new flavors. I receive no financial compensation for these posts and all opinions are my own. That being said, I've been eating Perry's Ice Cream since I was a little girl. It is awesome.

Buffalo Summer

It's summertime! I'm just a few hours away from boarding a plane and flying home for a visit! I tend to go home to see my parents twice a year, Christmas and summer. That way I get to see both of the Buffalo seasons, winter and July. 

Well, that's how the old joke goes. I'm more in the camp that Buffalo has four distinct, yet unequal seasons. 

Fall starts rolling in immediately after Labor day. In mid-September, the leaves start to turn and the sweaters and jeans quickly reappear. I think it's Fall that WNYers live for. I always loved Fall because it meant going back to school. But then again, I'm a nerd and totally loved school. Feel free to make fun of me.

Yes, winter is long and snowy, but you'll rarely hear a local complain about it. "What is winter without snow?", they will tell you. I remember several Christmas eves, driving through blinding snow to get to my grams house. 

Spring is rainy and cool and it tends to last from early May until mid June. It gives you plenty of time to plant your gardens and clean up from the winter mess. 

Summer pops it's head in around early July and brings sticky, hot weather. We didn't have air conditioning in my childhood home. I was only ever upset about it for one or two weeks a year. You don't get 100 degree days in Buffalo, but humidity will make you wish you had a cold drink in your hand all day. 

One easy way to tell that it was summer in my childhood home? Check the freezer for ice cream. If it was summer, there was a solid shelf of Perry's ice cream. If it wasn't summer, there was probably just half a shelf. My dad seriously loves Perry's ice cream. (Remember, I took him to the Perry's ice cream factory last year? It was his birthday present, he loved it.)

You might remember that I'm lucky enough to be a Perry's Inside Taster! This means that once or twice a year, then send me ice cream! This is super important these days, because my Wegmans in New Jersey have stopped carrying the brand! (Worse day ever) This summer, I received a large box of dry ice and three containers of Perry's. Three containers of ice cream that were all destined for something different. 

First, the French Roast Coffee. I never saw this ice cream. The package arrived and I put the containers in the fridge. I left for a conference. When I came home, the ice cream was no longer in the fridge. The boyfriend may or may not have eaten the entire container of ice cream himself. He wouldn't fess up.

Next, Otto's Cupcake. I saw this ice cream a few months back, during Sweet 16 basketball time. It's chocolate ice cream, with pieces of chocolate cake and orange frosting swirled in. Let me be clear though, the frosting swirl is orange in color, not orange in flavor. My dad and I both had some and discussed this point for a good five minutes. We were both expecting orange flavor because we didn't read the box before we ate it. This ice cream was tasty.

Finally, All Natural Dark Chocolate. This ice cream made its way into those ice cream sandwiches you see above. I was inspired by these brownie ice cream sandwiches from Smitten Kitchen. 

I knew that I still had a container of chocolate Perry's in the freezer and thought nothing would pair better with the ice cream, than peanut butter. I whipped up a batch of my favorite peanut butter bars, divided the batter in two and sandwiched almost the entire container of ice cream between the two slabs of peanut butter bar. The boyfriend thinks my ice cream to cookie ratio is off. He's just crazy, these ice cream sandwiches are amazing.  Give them a try! Or come over, I have a whole pan of them to share!

Brownie Cupcake Sundaes

We are only days away from Christmas.  It's been really easy to tell how many days are left before the holiday weekend begins because of the following.  Each day this week...

My morning train has been emptier and emptier.  Friday morning promises to give me a three-seater all to myself!

There have been fewer and fewer people in the halls at work.  My company is closed next week for our winter shutdown and some people choose to extend this vacation by taking a few days this week as well.  I'm pretty sure there will be 10% of the people in the building and maybe 1% of them will be doing actual work.

My evening return to the city each night has become more packed with families.  They are all dressed up in their winter best, heading to the city to see the Rockefeller tree, shop at Macy's and view the holiday windows.  Oh yeah, and be loud and noisy on the train.  Shhhhh...

T minus five days - Boyfriend has fled the cold weather to visit his parents in Florida.  This is a good thing.  While we will be spending Christmas apart (I'll be heading to Buffalo this to visit my own parents), I get to use this time to shop and wrap for the guy. 

I finished my holiday shopping last night after work.  My antibiotics have helped me kick the bronchitis that took up residence in my chest.  And Perry's Ice Cream sent me two containers of holiday flavors.  It's time to celebrate!

Actually, the container of ice cream pictured is not the original one that they sent me.  I accidentally ate all of that one.  All by myself.  Don't worry, it took me almost two weeks to eat the whole container.  BF and I had to make our way to the New Jersey Wegmans and buy the last container of peppermint ice cream.

Before I ate all of the ice cream, I had plans to make these little brownie cupcakes.  These dessert treats are really simple and perfect for a complicated holiday dinner.  Make some brownie cupcakes, top them with your favorite mint/peppermint ice cream and add a dallop of whipped topping.  Hello delicious.

Happy Holidays everyone!  I hope that you get to spend some time with the ones you love.

Many thanks to Perry's Ice cream for helping it feel like home, all these miles away from Buffalo.  I've also found that if people know about Perry's Ice cream, they love it.  If you can find it, give it a try!

Apple Pie Ice Cream Topping

Is there anything that reminds us of home more than food?  Whether it be your moms special dinner, your dads secret sauce, the local diners Wednesday night special or the family owned soda shops hand-churned ice cream, there is something about having a meal in your hometown. 

Western New Yorkers have a list of things that are near and dear to their hearts.  We have Teds Hot Dogs (and now the renegade spin-off, Theodores) with their traditional coal-fired grills.  Those in search of a greasy and delicious sub sandwich know to head to Viola's in Niagara Falls.  Looking for good wings?  Head to the Anchor bar when in the city, or Duffs when in the suburbs.  Want amazing chocolate?  I always head to Watsons.

There are also a whole bunch of local goods that ex-pat Buffalonians stock up on when visiting home.  We leave room in our suitcases for Chiavettas bbq sauce, Webers mustard and your favorite wing sauce.  I consider packing fewer clothes than I actually might need so that I can bring home the biggest box of sponge candy that I can find.

There has been one thing that I haven't been able to take home.  Something that I grew up with and spent many an evening enjoying with my dad.  Perry's ice cream.  If you are a Western New Yorker or currently live near a Wegmans grocery store, you know about Perry's.  It's the ice cream of choice for all local ice cream places.  There is a huge ice cream cone right new Niagara Falls that will gladly serve you your favorite flavor of Perry's.  It's called - The Twist of the Mist!

In the first twenty-one years of my life, I must have eaten gallons of Perrys.  I was so confused when I went grocery shopping for the first time in Wisconsin to find no Perrys.  And sadly, ice cream doesn't travel well.

I spent the next eight years enjoying my favorite ice cream only at home.  My dad is a bigger fan of the brand than I am.  I know there will always be at least four or five containers of ice cream in the freezer.  This all changed a few months ago.

I was feeling nostalgic for home during the hot summer months and tweeted Perrys.  It was something along the line of  "I miss you Perrys, come to New Jersey!"  The response I got?  "We are in New Jersey!  Head to the Woodbridge Wegmans!"  I nearly fell off my chair.  Boyfriend picked me up a container of black raspberry next time work took him to central New Jersey.

Life got even better this summer when I was contacted by Perrys and asked to join their "Inside Scoopers" team.  As an Inside Scooper, I get early access to new flavors and most exciting, a trip to the Perrys factory!  My dad is super jealous.


Why yes mom, my fingernails are green.

For my first task as an Inside Scooper, I had to test out the new All Natural flavors.  I know, tough job.  These flavors are made the old fashioned way, the way ice cream was made before science got involved.  No artifical flavors or colors.  The way you probably make ice cream at home!  Four simple flavors - chocolate, chocolate chip, maple walnut and vanilla bean - that just beg to be eaten.

Hello, my name is delicious.

Now I know most of you don't have access to Perry's, but if you're in the WNY area, be sure to stop and get yourself a scoop.  Until then, you can make (or buy!) your favorite vanilla ice cream and top it with heaps of this...  Apple pie topping.  Chunks of sweet apples in a caramely sauce, spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and clove.  It's like an apple pie, without the crust.  It tastes like fall and is just the thing to use up some of those freshly picked apples.