We all scream for ice cream (Ben and Jerrys Ice Cream and Dessert Book - Ben Cohen, Jerry Greenfield)

Member Name: ermintrude

Product:	Ben and Jerrys Ice Cream and Dessert Book - Ben Cohen, Jerry Greenfield
Date:	08/08/00 (182 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fantastically delicious ice cream and an entertaining read

Disadvantages: Need US measuring cups (and an ice cream maker!)

I've been a fan of Ben & Jerry's ever since I first tried their ice cream in the USA. I've been known to take an hour's train ride to Cromer to buy B&J when the only supermarket selling it was Safeway. So, this book was an obvious choice for a Christmas present for me, and boy did my eyes light up when I unwrapped it.

But it was my downfall.

I had read barely 3 recipes when I knew. There was nothing else for it - I would have to spend all my Christmas cash on an ice cream maker.

This book is the bible of ice cream making as far as I'm concerned. You learn about what makes good ice cream and why, how your ice cream maker works and how to get the best from it. There's a philosophical debate on chunks (more? Or bigger? Answer: both!), top-secret methods for breaking up Heath Bars (whatever they are), and many many more interesting snippets of information.

There's also the story of B&J and how their enterprise grew (this is pre the recent Unilever takeover), which is an interesting and humorous little read. It gives a good insight into their philanthropic philosophy (try saying that with a mouthful of Phish Food ;) and I think it also makes you appreciate their ice cream even more!

And of course, there are the recipes - the whole point of this book. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and many of the other favourite B&J flavours are here, set out clearly for you to try. The recipes are for the most part a cinch, with the occasional need to melt chocolate or boil fruit down into syrup. There are also recipes for the basic "sweet cream" mixes to which you can add your own ingredients, and a whole section of recipes for desserts which use or accompany the ice cream, like fantastic fudgy brownies and chocolate fudge sauce (spot a theme here, guys?!).

The downside is that the book is North American, hence everything is in cups, and some of the ingredients are unknown here (like Heath Bars).
However, I have never seen a better reason to invest in a set of measuring cups, and you can use your initiative when replacing ingredients. And besides, as B&J say themselves - there is no such thing as an irredeemably bad batch of home-made ice cream!

It's not really a book for people on a diet - they explain quite firmly that it's butterfat which makes ice cream taste and feel good in your mouth, and although they give some lower-fat alternatives, most of the recipes are high in fat, sugar, and chocolate confectionery :) There are some "healthier" options including things like grape nuts (ugh) and dried apple, but I think if you're going to do ice cream, do it properly ;)

The whole book is written in a chatty, fun style, with the trademark cartoony illustrations and handwritten-style script familiar to any ice cream aficionado. It would be an ideal cookbook for kids, as most of the recipes don't involve anything hot or sharp, they encourage creativity with the ingredients, and ice cream is quite quick to make.

If you have an ice cream maker, and don't own this book, you should invest immediately. If you don't have an ice cream maker, and buy this book, prepare to be about £40 poorer quite soon...

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