Organic Indulgence!

Last night Brian and I ventured into the Short North.  It's been ages since we've been able to go out of "date night" and this was a spectacular evening that ended with this incredible find. 
If you live in the area, and need some "grown-up cream" (it's not that I don't think the kids would love it, but they don't have the usual Cotton Candy and Superman on the menu- so unless you have kids like mine, this may be an adult experience), I highly suggest an excursion to Jenni's Splendid Ice Creams on North High St. (they have other locations, but this is where we visited).  Upon arrival at this parlor, Brian and I noticed a line all the way out to the sidewalk.  In our culinary opinion this is always a good sign.  If people are willing to wait in a line that long, then this must be something spectacular.  Jenni's is a locally sustainable organization that uses Ohio Grass Fed Organic Dairy to make it's ice cream.  What a concept!  Ice cream that you can feel a little bit less guilty about eating....hahaha.  If only organic meant zero calories...sigh.

As we take our place in line, I am inclined to read the chalkboard easle that is on the sidewalk.  It is a for a Manhattan Float: bourbon soaked cherries, dark chocolate ice cream, exotic fizzie drink, topped with real whipped cream.

I finish reading and then just pull Brian's arm and say, "Read that."

"Ohhhh wow!" he says in his French Chef accent.  "I can't wait to see the rest of the menu!"

We continue to stand in line.  As the anticipation grows, wafts of freshly made waffle cones tantilize our nostrils, and we are reminded again of why we are waiting for this Organic Grass Fed Ohio Dairy treat.

Finally we step across the threshold and are greeted with a chalkboard menu the size of the back wall.  On it are flavor combinations that are a chef's dream:

Salty Caramel
A traditional French-style caramel, with caramelized sugars, butter and sea salt.

Bourbon Buttered Pecan
A big bourbon bite with toasted, buttered and sea-salted pecans.

Pistachio
Toasted pistachios with Ashland County honey.

Black Coffee
Cream steeped with just-roasted coffee from Stauf's, a local roaster. No water — which makes our coffee ice cream rich and dark, not icy and bitter. It tastes the way coffee smells

Thai Chili
Krema Peanut Butter (a Columbus company since 1898), with toasted coconut, cayenne and coconut milk.

Goat Cheese with Roasted Red Cherries
Blue Jacket Dairy goat cheese with roasted Michigan cherries—like a fluffy cherry cheesecake, but even better.

Wildberry Lavender
Complex. Intense lavender with hints of exotic spices and lots of brambly berry flavors.

Berries and Burgundy Sorbet
Deep, dark berries with growing hints of red wine; sophisticated and grown-up.

I know what you are thinking...these sound a bit extreme. Yes, but that is the beauty. If you are a true coinsure of ice cream, then you get it.  It's not about the fact that these flavor combinations are extreme, but how they taste within the realm of the cold creamy deliciousness and a flaky vanilla crusted waffle cone.

Therein lies the mystery. Go ahead, take a sample, don't be afraid. What your mind is saying and what your tongue is saying may contridict eachother in the first moment the ice cream meets your pallet.

I chose the Bourbon Buttered Pecan that yes had quite a bite of Bourbon, but then the salty pecans broke through the alcohol and took me to a land that was coated in ice cream goodness. 

Moooove over Grater's, I think you have met your match!

Jenni's also ships!  Click here for more information!