Soul Searching for Dairy Products

Something wonderful has happened. Something I've been waiting for a long time. It's simultaneously going to make my life amazing. Actually, it will probably make my life immediately fantastic, but the long term effects are still up for debate. But I'm so excited about it right now that I don't care.

That's right folks: Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams has been kind enough to open an establishment less than 5 minutes driving distance from my house (even in the snow). I am now making it my Winter Break Mission to try as many flavors as possible.

This is the story of the JAM sister's trip to Jeni's.

The shop is located at the corner of Powell and Liberty, in the heart of historical Powell (which is not all that exciting, except that now it has a Jeni's) and it is the most spacious of the lot of the Jeni's franchise. For more information, check their website.

http://jenisicecreams.com

I usually try not to be obnoxious with my ice cream tastings in Jeni's because of the respect I have for them, so I usually just try a few flavors to see if I will like them, and then pair them with old favorites. But since we went to an Ice Cream Parlor at 5 o'clock in a suburb in the middle of a blizzard, and there was no one else in the store, I figured it was fine to try as many flavors as I wanted.

Here is my Trio: (Clockwise from top left) Oakvale Young Gouda with Vodka-Plumped Cranberries, Bangkok Peanut, and Meyer Lemon Yogurt Sorbet.

Strictly speaking, everything at Jeni's is absolutely delicious. There are certain flavor's that aren't exactly my taste, but honestly, everything is really freaking good 99.9% of the time. Bangkok Peanut is my favorite flavor, and it was as spicy/sweet/superb as it always is. I was trying Oakvale Gouda and Meyer Lemon for the first time today, and they were both great. I have a soft spot for Oakvale Gouda cheese, because it is one of my favorites, and I appreciated its pairing with cranberries because I usually pair it with raspberry jelly, so these were similar. The Meyer Lemon is a very tart flavor, but I quite liked it, and it was a very interesting pair with the spicy/sweet Bangkok.

Here is Alexa, enjoying her 2 half scoops in a cone.

Close up shot. Sweet Potato with Torched Marshmallows on top, Dark Chocolate Peppermint on bottom.

She only gave me one lick of each (which in and of itself is a testament to how good they are) They tasted basically exactly like they sound (heavenly and sweet). On a later trip, I will likely pair one of them with one of the spicy ice creams, because they would make for a really good spicy/sweet play.

Monica all smiles because of her trio in this picture. And she is wearing sunglasses because she burst a blood vessel in her right eye and now kinda looks like a vampire. Which is hilarious and awesome. And she's totally fine. She went to the doctor and everything and they cleared her for take-off. She's just wearing the sunglasses for sympathy.

Close up shot (Clockwise from top left) Pumpkin 5 Spice, Oakvale Gouda, Olive Oil with Sea Salted Pepitas.

An interesting combination. The Pumpkin tastes just like creamy pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving. Melts in your mouth perfectly. The Olive Oil is unique, creamy and mild. Would also make an excellent pair with a spicy ice cream as a cooler. Should be paired with Queen City Cayenne in the future.

But anyway, the BEST part about this entire experience, was that while we were taking pictures of the ice cream for this blog post, the lady over heard us apparently, and then while we were eating, brought us over this tray FOR FREE!

She just came over and said "We thought you might like to try some of our ice cream sandwiches, in case you had never had any before. And you can put them in your blog if you want"

Talk about the best thing that has ever happened to me. Free Jeni's ice cream sandwich pieces because this crazy employee thinks that my blog actually matters. Somewhere in the blogosphere I hope it does, but I never in my wildest dreams thought it would get me free anything, let alone free Jeni's. If I could float on a cloud right now, I'd be on an ice cream cloud of happiness #9.

Overall rating, Jeni's is amazing. Whether you get it in pint form or in the store, it is always a good choice. And I'm not just saying that in hopes that someone from her business will read this blog and offer me free ice cream (although I definitely wouldn't reject them... that would be rude) And while I'm thinking about it, just because I've always thought it would be a good idea, if anyone from Jeni's IS reading this blog, please make an ice cream flavor involving cream cheese. That would be so perfect.