Would you say you're "brand loyal?" Do you reach for the Honey Nut Cherrios and never go near the Great Value Honey Nut Spins? For the most part I'd say I definitely buy certain brands. Trial and error, I don't buy something twice that fails to meet my high standards! Well, unless it's on SALE and then I might be swayed! That's how I ended up with ice cream that was only slightly better than the stuff you get complimentary at the all-you-can-eat-buffet.
I bought a 1/2 gallon, it's not really a 1/2 gallon anymore... the brand I bought was 48 ounces. You have to look hard in the freezer section for 1/2 gallon sizes, prices for those are in the $5-$6 range. Last week when I was picking out a special treat for the two of us, I was swayed by a $3.98 container of Butter Pecan. Jerry had a love affair with butter pecan milk shakes the summer he was 15 years old and worked at Ronnie's Drive-in. He was allowed one meal on his shift and he would wait and get it right before closing. He'd choose Fried Something and a large butter pecan milk shake, take it home and eat it in bed... then go to sleep! He weighed maybe 120 and at 6 foot was hoping he'd gain a few lbs. It took years before eating like that caught up with him. Somewhere around 30 he was finally able to gain and somewhere around 50 he had trouble keeping it off!
Friday night I scooped out two servings and set down to savor the taste. It wasn't spectacular, it was just mediocre, I've had better. A little searching and I found an article on the
Ben and Jerry's Vanilla scored the highest with ultra creamy taste with a deep hazelnut aftertaste. Placing a close second is Haagen Dazs' Vanilla, creamy and smooth but with less vanilla flavor than the winner. Down the list was Wells Blue Bunny and Breyers, both had a pleasing vanilla taste but with textures like soft serve or ice milk. Yep, that was our complaint... it had that complimentary restaurant soft serve taste.
I'm afraid we are spoiled to the good stuff or a drive thru Andy's Custard. So tell me... which brand do you like best? And do you remember Big Dip? I don't think it's around anymore, but it was soft serve and they actually bragged about it on the box! Funny how times have changed from "New and Improved" to "Old Fashioned."
This is research that could get me in real trouble.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever has Blue Bell from Texas?
Oh my...
Laura
White Spray Paint
Oh yes, it's the Gold Standard! We can't seem to finish a big carton, so I buy the small pints. The bad thing is that they don't come in the really good flavors! I think it's a trick to get me to buy the big ones!!!
DeleteI love ice cream. Blue Bell is my favorite of course. My husband laughs at me because ice cream is the one food I cannot resist!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.memoirsofmeandmine.com/
My weakness is chocolate anything so I have a multitude of choices to be bad!
DeleteTry Mayfield's Snickerdoodle....oh yummmmy!!
ReplyDeleteNow you've done it... a brand I can't find here!
DeleteWe don't the same companies in Canada. For creamy soft serve we have Dairy Queen but for regular ice cream we have The Creamery and The Marble Slab. Expensive but amazing.
ReplyDeleteWe have more gelato places than ice cream places though and the flavors are incredible with hundreds of choices.
I love Marble Slab stores, you are right...PRICEY! Given a choice, I really like gelato over ice creams but there I go again with my champagne taste and beer budget!
DeleteSo interesting Joy! We adore Blue Bell Ice Cream and have found none to top their creaminess and rich flavor. We tried several in Maine and agreed, there was not a really good ice cream brand up there. We missed our Blue Bell and now you can find it in our freezer.....don't know if that is a good thing or a bad thing? LOL
ReplyDeleteThat's the truth! If it's there, it call's my name...
DeleteI'm lactose intolerant....whaaa....so I stick only with Hagan frozen yogurt....forgot...I can have Wendy's frosty.....but enjoy all that yummy stuff for me too please. One of my favorites years ago...was the black cherry flavored 'Dilly' bars from Dairy Queen.
ReplyDeleteWe just had a Dilly Bar last weekend at a DQ here! I don't remember the black cherry ones but I LOVED the Buster Bars! We got one of those on vacation this summer and it was HUGE! Never had any trouble eating it when I was younger!haha
DeleteI just remembered recently that I didn't even like ice cream when I got married but my husband loved it so I started having it. Well, 37 years later, I can recall over-indulging a lot!!! Now I am trying to remember who I was when we started out and my obsession has gone away. In my hey-day I relished Cold Stone ice cream. Now I'm back to cake - my original love. Lol!
ReplyDeleteWe have trouble eating a half gallon but if it's really good Starbucks or Dove ice cream, I can polish off a chocolate pint in about 30 minutes! I don't buy anything that is really tempting cause I'm a piggie!
DeleteWhen we go to Springfield, when we are returning home, we drive through Braum's in Nixa and get the chocolate-vamilla swirl frozen yogurt. I would never guess it's frozen yogurt. It tastes just like ice cream to me. But your Andy's picture reminds me of the one sitting on Campbell across from Sam's Club and I keep reminding myself to go there.
ReplyDeleteI thought that looked like vamilla when I was re-reading it, but then I thought, No, that's an n. My eyes are going. :)
DeleteOh, don't get me started on Andy's custard! Soooo good! We do Braum's every blue moon and I should buy their ice cream, it's really good. Now don't say I didn't warn you about Andy's!!!
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