Delicious Desserts

Butterscotch Pudding

Honestly I’m not 100 percent sure what it is that makes this pudding so darned good. I don’t really eat much in the way of sweets, but I surely do love this. And so do loads of other regular customers. When it’s not on the dessert list it evokes loads of requests; it’s definitely one of the most oft requested items we make (understanding of course that the frequency of request is tied directly to the frequency at which we’ve …

The Christmas Cookie Club Collection

The storyline of how we at Zingerman’s connected with The Christmas Cookie Club isn’t quite as romantic as that of the book, but it’s certainly a nice one and one that seems fully in synch with everything Ann Pearlman’s written about. It starts back in the summer of 2003, when we were getting ready to open the Roadhouse. Melina Hinton was one of the first servers we hired. Over the years Melina became an ever more important part of our …

A Guide to Good Gelato

How does gelato does differ from ice cream?
Gelato has a bolder flavor than ice cream. When you put a spoonful of coffee gelato in your mouth, the first thing that strikes you is an intense coffee flavor. If you think of coffee ice cream as a cappuccino with its coffee-flavored milkiness, then think of coffee gelato as espresso; a concentrated and intense flavor experience.

Why are the flavors more intense?
For starters, gelato has less air than ice cream. …

Sorghum Syrup and Biscuits

The Maple Syrup of the Upper South

This October, I’m going to speak at the annual Southern Foodways Alliance symposium in Oxford, Mississippi, about the state of Southern food and why it seems to be so special. I’m not sure yet what I’m going to say, but one of the things that’s starting to dawn on me is that it’s not just that Southern food is really good; it’s that Southerners are way more poetic and emotional about their eating …

Askinosie Chocolates: From the Bar to Beans, to Better Bars

Sorry, I couldn’t resist the puns—Shawn Askinosie is a now retired (because he tired of it) trial lawyer who left his very well paying work at the bar to pursue his passion for chocolate making. Working to buy amazingly good beans at the source and then to bring them back to his hometown of Springfield, Missouri (you read that right) and make them into incredibly good chocolate bars. I say “better bars’ both because the chocolate itself is exceptionally good, …