The Buckeye State

For my first post, I thought it'd only be appropriate to feature a hometown favorite that's won over hearts, and taste buds, throughout the nation:

Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams

You know the question asking if you could have dinner with three people, living or dead, who would they be? Well, Jeni Britton Bauer would be on my list. 

She's basically an ice cream genius who isn't afraid to push the limits on flavor. 

Some of her ingredients? Cayenne pepper, sweet corn, goat cheese, and bourbon, to name a few. 

She opened her first shop in Columbus, and now has several throughout Ohio and Tennessee. But don't worry if you're not from either of those states, she now sells her ice creams throughout the country, and last summer, she blessed the nation with a cookbook including all the recipes to her famed treat. 

It's essentially an ice cream bible.

The best part is, they're actually easy to make!

I made a couple of the flavors last summer, including Roasted Strawberry & Buttermilk, Banana Ice Cream with Caramelized White Chocolate Freckles, and Lemon & Blueberry Frozen Yogurt. 

Is your mouth watering yet? 

This summer, I decided it was finally time to leave the fruit realm, and delve into all things chocolate. 

The Buckeye State is based off the well known candy to all Ohio State University fans, the Buckeye. It's essentially a soft, peanut buttery mixture dipped in chocolate to look like the nut. They're super sweet, and delicious. 

Jeni turned this into an ice cream and believe it or not, it's even better than the candy.

Try it out. Trust me, you'll want to visit one of her shops after you take your first bite.

 The Buckeye State

Adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home by Jeni Britton Bauer

INGREDIENTS

2 cups whole milk

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 1/2 ounces (3 tablespoons) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup unsalted natural peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (less if using saltier peanut butter)

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

2/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

2 tablespoons honey

4 ounces chocolate (55% to 70% cocoa), chopped

PREP

Mix about 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a small bowl to make a smooth slurry.

Whisk the cream cheese, peanut butter, and salt in a medium bowl until smooth.

Fill a large bowl with ice and water.

COOK

Combine the remaining milk, the cream, sugar, corn syrup, and honey in a 4-quart saucepan, bring to a rolling boil over medium-high heat, and boil for 4 minutes. 

Remove from the heat, and gradually whisk in the cornstarch slurry.

Bring the mixture back to a boil over medium-high heat and cook, stirring with a heatproof spatula, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

CHILL

Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese mixture until smooth. Pour the mixture into a 1-gallon Ziploc freezer bag and submerge the sealed bag in the ice bath. Let stand, adding more ice as necessary, until cold, about 30 minutes. 

FREEZE

 Pour the ice cream base into the frozen canister and begin to spin the ice cream.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Remove from the heat and let cool until tepid but still fluid. 

When the ice cream is thick and creamy and almost finished, drizzle the melted chocolate slowly through the opening in the top of the ice cream machine and allow it to solidify and break up in the ice cream for about 2 minutes.

Pack the ice cream into a storage container, press a sheet of parchment directly against the surface, and seal with an airtight lid. Freeze in the coldest part of your freezer until firm, at least 4 hours.