Starbucks Java Chip Frappuccino Ice Cream, reviewed

Starbucks recently launched a new, drink-inspired line of ice creams to grocery stores nationwide. The super-premium ice creams include flavors like Caramel Macchiato and Java Chip Frappuccino, the latter of which I picked up last week. Similar to its coffee shop counterpart, this flavor has a coffee ice cream base that is loaded with dark chocolate chunks. The Java Chip Frappuccino actually uses chocolate-covered espresso beans, but it’s a minor difference because the flavors of the ice cream and the frappuccino are very, very close. The coffee flavor is clear and smooth, and the chocolate adds a nice richness to the overall taste.

Unfortunately, it shares another characteristic with its namesake: a slight iciness that really isn’t desirable in a super-premium ice cream. It may get this from the relatively small amount of coffee concentrate that is used to flavor the ice cream, but wherever it comes from, you can’t just order it “double-blended” to eliminate the problem. So, in the end, the ice cream is almost too spot-on for the flavor and texture of the frappuccino. It’s good, but not better than some of the other coffee ice cream options out there.

Tea Code Cups

I’ve never liked the little strings that come attached to bagged tea. I appreciate that they make it easy to handle the bag, but more often than not the string slides down into the hot tea as it steeps and needs to be fished out – defeating the purpose of having a string in the first place. The reason for the slide is that the string is hard to secure. The design of these Tea Code Cups neatly solves that problem and makes string tea bags a lot more convenient to use. The cups have what looks like a button on their sides that you can wrap the tea bag string around to hold it in place. The sides of the cups, which come in various sizes, are double walled so they don’t get too hot to handle when you are drinking (or trying to remove the tea bag string). A spoon will work well for fishing out a tea bag, but this type of cup could be a nice addition to the collection of, say, a Lipton lover who wants to stick with the string-ed tea bag no matter what.

There is a cute little animation showing how these cups work here, although if you end up ordering some, I think you’ll find them to be pretty self explanatory.

Starbucks Brazil Ipanema Bourbon coffee, reviewed

I’ve been disappointed by a lot of the light roast coffees I’ve had in recent weeks. Many have been really lacking in the flavor department. I can safely say that Starbucks’ Brazil Ipanema Bourbon coffee was not one of these. The light roast coffee – categorized as a mild by Starbucks – is packed with different flavors. It starts off really clean, with a subtle hazelnut taste. There are also some sweet and vaguely fruity notes, and a finish that is a little bit darker, with a hint cocoa or chocolate. It is not woodsy or overly roasty (i.e. burnt) tasting at all. It’s low acidity and is smooth and easy to drink from start to finish. This is a really nice coffee overall and should be popular with all kinds of coffee drinkers.

Incidentally, the coffee is not not pronounced “BOUR-bon” like the liquor. Starbucks says, “Bourbon” (pronounced bur-BONE) refers to the specific variety of coffee plant from which these beans come. Arabica Bourbon is one of the world’s oldest and rarest species of coffee. The Bourbon tree is carefully nurtured to maturity, its prized cherries hand selected to ensure ripeness and peak flavor.

Chocolate Cappuccino Chip Cookies

Adding coffee or espresso to a recipe can infuse some coffee flavor, but it tends to be on the mild side unless the recipe can accommodate a lot of it, as Mocha Pudding Cake can. I find that it’s often better to use coffee extract, instant coffee or other coffee-flavored things, like Cappuccino chips. The chips are made by Guittard and have a distinctly milky coffee taste to them. They’re not too sweet, even though they’re made of white chocolate, and add a nice extra boost of flavor to a recipe.

These chocolate chip cookies have real coffee in the dough, as well as cappuccino chips, chocolate chips and white chocolate chips. They’re delicious when they’re still warm, served with milk or coffee, and have a nice chewiness to them even after they’ve cooled. Espresso can be substituted for the coffee, as well.

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What is an affogato?

An affogato is a traditional Italian espresso-based treat that you’ll find on the menu at many Italian restaurants, as well as at many cafes serving espresso and other coffee drinks. The full name is really “affogato al cafe” or “drowned in coffee,” in Italian. The name really suits the dessert, as it consists of a scoop of ice cream/gelato with a shot of hot espresso poured over the top.

The basic recipe is subject to an almost infinite number of variations – using different coffee drinks, different ice cream flavors and different ratios of the two items. Other desserts/drinks can also be made “Affogato-style,” which means that they have a shot of espresso poured over the top. Starbucks made the name fairly common by offering affogato-style frappuccinos, with the option to add a shot poured over the top of the milkshake-like drink.

You can make it at home with your favorite coffee, just brew it extra strong so you only need to pour a small amount over the ice cream. Start with vanilla, as it really suits the coffee, but feel free to experiment with chocolate or coffee-flavored ice cream, as well!