#but it also has like a tiny bit of passion fruit puree in the ingredients list and a hint of peppermint

[autobahnmp3]

tasted the white chocolate poppy seed ice cream and i really like it but it has suuuch a subtle hint of white chocolate ahsnlhmf

[wtfevenismypage]

Maroon

request: Hey, could you do a Spence request where you're all at Rossi's mansion for the weekend for poker, pasta and cigars. Spence is getting Rossi's place ready with him, and the guys and won't shut up about how much he fancies you, and the guys all encourage him to tell you and you're at Emily's with the girls getting in the car for the weekend. They know how you feel about him, and how he feels about you. One evening, you're all super drunk and Spence blurts out his feelings for you. 🥰💕🥰

Warnings:Strong language, Pure fluffieness

A/N: This idea was absolutely adorable! I had a lot of fun writing it down!

Spencer wasn’t exactly subtle about his feelings towards you, anytime you were around, all he could focus on was you, the way your nose scrunched up when you laughed, the face of euphoria you made when you eat McDonald's after a long day, the frustration that exuded when you had a disagreement with Hotch (you’re the only one with the balls to argue with him) but he ended up ordering you to give up.

The only person on the team who didn’t know about Spencer’s love for you, was, well, you. You were too busy trying to keep your eyes off of him to notice his endearment for you. You had the same issue Spencer had, only you noticed how he tended to dart his tongue over his lips when he got nervous, or when he smiled at the sight of Henrey or Jack, the way he stuttered when he rambled around you, or the passion in his eyes when he talked about his mom.

Spencer didn’t exactly appreciate when the other members of the team teased him about his love for you, so when he got trapped with the men, getting ready for a party at Rossi’s mansion he tried to keep silent as to not drag attention to himself.

It didn’t work.

“I wonder if Y/N will wear a dress or a suit?”

Morgan spoke out, smirking at how Spencer’s cheeks turned bright red at just the mention of your name alone. 

“I think she’ll wear a dress, you know she loves them, even if she wears suits to work. what do you think Reid?”

Rossi asked, all eyes turned to a blushing Spencer who was making fruit punch. He was avoiding eye contact, stuck at the thought of you in a dress, or a floral suit you would wear to a bar, either way you were stunning to him.

“She’ll wear a suit, she’s more comfortable in them, a dress makes her feel too fancy, she admires the idea of wearing dresses, but she doesn’t wear them because she doesn’t want people to view her as too feminine for being an agent. So she’ll wear a suit, most likely a black coat with a floral dress shirt and floral pants.”

He didn’t even notice the wide smile on his face that slowly spread as he spoke about you. He was lost in thought until Morgan and Hotch’s laughs brought hime back to the present.

“Dude, you are whipped for her.”

Spencer’s brows furrowed, stammering as his voice goes up five octaves.

“Shut up Morgan! I’m not!”

“You are! You’ve been staring at her for years! Every time she’s in the same room as you you just stare like a lovesick maniac! I mean come on man! You gotta tell her!”

“Reid, do you love Y/N?”

Spencer doesn’t even know how to answer Hotch’s question. Did he love you? He knew he liked you at least, but he wasn’t sure if he was ready to admit he was in love again. He hadn’t said it since Maeve... However, just by thinking of you again, he was sure.

“I do...”

--At Emily’s apartment (the girls)--

“I do! I love it so much! Thank you Penelope!”

Penelope had purchased personally designed dresses made for each of the women, yours was a simple, dark maroon silk dress, it ended right above your knees, flowing freely around your cleavage.

“I knew you would like it!”

“It kind of reminds me of that red suit that Spencer wore to Rossi’s party at that one bar that one time, remember that?”

The girls look at you confused, No one has ever remembered every outfit Spencer has worn, except for Spencer.

“You seriously don’t remember? C’mon! That was one of his best looks!”

“I beg of you just confess your undying love for him tonight.”

You click your tongue. The girls were more straight-forward with you than how the men were with Spencer, yes they teased you endlessly, but they also begged you to confess your love to him constantly. Sometimes they would even text you on the jet when you were sitting right next to him.

“Can’t. You see, Spencer’s an intelligent man, he would know that I’m lying.”

Groans all around the room. You, unlike Spencer, are great at hiding your feelings for the man as long as the man himself is no where to be seen. However if he was around, you became a rambling mess, Spencer just thought you were embarrassed that everyone was insisting you liked him.

“C’mon Y/N, you may be able to hide it when Dr. Genius isn’t around, but honey oh honey you do not see yourself when he’s around. You get all blushy and flustered and it’s adorable and it’s killing me that you won’t admit it!”

“I’m very sorry for killing you my dearest Penelope, but I can’t. Even if I did like him, which I don’t, I don’t even begin to compare to him in any way. He wouldn’t go for me if I were the last girl on earth.”

Your mood clearly decreased to a sad lump of emotion, your back slumping as you lean against a wall, looking down at your heels. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t stop loving him.

--At Rossi’s mansion (tha bois)--

“Oh my god we finally got him to admit it! You love Y/n Y/L/N!”

The men at Rossi’s mansion (which were somehow finished with getting the party ready) wouldn't stop messing with Young Dr. Reid. The poor man couldn’t even sit down without being teased.

“We finally did it boys! We got him to admit it!”

“Now we need him to tell her!”

That made Spencer’s head shoot up, confess to his friends that he loved you? Sure, why not. Tell you?

Abso-fucking-lutely not. He wasn’t even remotely ready for that. 

“No. No! I’m not doing that! I can’t! Hotch, tell them I can’t!”

Hotch chuckles at the state of the fully grown man, the usually calm doctor had literal tears staining his eyes as he begged Hotch to stop Morgan and Rossi. 

“Okay okay, leave Reid alone. The party hasn’t even started and He’s having a mental breakdown.”

A small ding rings out in the laughter of the men, Rossi pulls his phone out. 

“Looks like the ladies are on their way over, finally, apparently there was a tiny issue so they might be a tiny bit late.”

--In Emily’s car (the ladies)--

“Intoxicate me now, with your loving now, I think I’m ready now...”

“I THINK I”M READY NOW!”

You and the rest of the women aggressively shouted the lyrics to Toxic while on the way to Rossi’s mansion. After your half-assed love confession to your girls, you had a nervous breakdown and broke out in tears for a solid ten minutes. 

Penelope managed to get you up though, lifting your spirits with the power of Britney Spears. 

JJ’s phone rings, and she pulls it up to her ear.

“Hey Hotch! Her outfit color? Why? Yeah it’s maroon, how did you-”

She pulls the phone away from her ear, looking at the rest of the dancing ladies. Y/n and Penelope were screaming random song lyrics while Emily records it, chuckling at the scene unfolding before her. 

You weren’t even drunk yet and you were already excited, poker nights at Rossi’s were the best. He would select one person (occasionally two) to help him cook pasta, and cooking with him was super fun. Music would play in the background, making you drag random team members to the ‘dance floor’ and forcing them to dance with you. 

They did end up enjoying dancing with you however, but they’ll never admit it.

“We’re almost there!”

--Rossi’s mansion (the entire team)--

“Oh boys! The party has arrived!”

Penelope yells out as the four of you walk in, champagne and beer resting in your hands. The others were probably in the kitchen, sat at the island as Rossi gets the ingredients for pasta out.

“We’re in the kitchen!”

You follow the sound of music and laughing Hotch to find three of four male team members sitting down. Spencer was missing. His absence immediately smacks the smile off of your face, looking around blankly for him.

“Where’s Reid?”

Smug, shit-eating smiles spread across everyone’s faces as you set the beer down, grabbing a handful of chips from a bowl and shoveling them down your throat.

“Pretty boy’s upstairs getting dressed. You gonna go join him?”

You fake a gag as a blush crawls up your neck. They didn’t know how much you actually wanted to.

If only I could...

You smirk before sitting down next to Hotch, bringing your hand to his hair and ruffling it around, laughing as he grimaces. 

“Hotch, you should try new hairstyles. The ol’ sweep back look ain’t doing you justice.”

“I’ll wear my hair as I want to thank you very much. Now stop messing with it, as soon as Reid gets down here, he’s announcing who’s helping him cook.”

You giggle and pat the counter excitedly, looking at the ingredients Rossi’s pulling out.

“Those don’t look like ingredients for pasta Rossi...”

He looks up at JJ’s question, smiling with a wink.

“It’s not pasta. tonight we are making a classic Italian pepperoni pizza.”

‘ooooo’s and ‘aaaaaaa’s fill the room. Pizza sounded wonderful, especially considering all of the drinking you planned on doing tonight.

“We’re having pizza instead of pasta?”

Your head turned to the stairs to meet the excited voice of mystery. Your lungs froze as you meet Spencer’s eyes. He was wearing that damned velvet red suit that made you so excited.

It was as if the world had stopped when the two of you saw each other. He was adjusting his hair, but his hands pause when he sees you, he couldn’t stop the smile that spread when he noticed the colors of your outfits matched. It all clicked as to why Hotch and Morgan yelled at him to get back to his apartment to retrieve the suit.

Meanwhile you were struggling to tear your eyes away from him, you didn’t notice the matching velvet pieces, instead you noticed the stars in his eyes, the way he paused at the bottom of the stairs to smile at everyone, the happy smile that reached his starry eyes. 

Neither of you noticed how everyone else snickered, or how they actually pulled their phones out, it wasn’t until Emily was shaking your shoulder and Morgan smacked the back of his head that you two snapped out of it, acting as if nothing happened and simply looked back at Rossi.

“Yep. And my helper will beeeeeeeeee...”

His finger moves around the room rapidly, before landing on you.

“Y/N.”

Groans and clapping fill the room as you walk to the other side of the island, wrapping an arm around Rossi.

“Alright, now the rest of you. Out.”

You say. laughing as they all leave, but you miss the way Spencer’s eyes travel over your body a final time before walking into the room with all the cold drinks.

“Alright,” you start, looking at Rossi with a wide smile, “Let’s get started.”

-

-

-

-

-

almost twenty minutes later you and Rossi were putting the uncooked pizza in the oven, the hooting and laughing of already-drunken FBI agents making you and Rossi laugh.

“Y’know, I’m shocked that Reid decided to drink. He never drinks around us.”

You say, smiling while watching the pizza darken. More accurately, Reid never drank around you in fear that Drunk Spencer would say something dumb. Or worse, that Drunk Spencer would confess his love for you.

“Yeah that is pretty weird.”

Rossi looked at you, you were laughing while watching him, a wide smile on your face as Emily and Spencer dance drunkenly together.

“So, just between you and I,” You turned to meet Rossi’s gaze, watching his shit-eating smirk spread, “How do you feel about the kid?”

You freeze up at the question, letting it bounce around in your brain as you watch Spencer laugh happily. Your heart ached at the sound of his gorgeous laugh. Like, it physically hurt. 

“I love him... Oh god... I’m in love with him Rossi.”

You giggled a giggle of pure fear as you finally admit your love to yourself and to someone else. It felt scary, it felt so real all of the sudden. 

“You finally admit it huh? Well, you should go after him before some other girl who isn’t nearly as brilliant as you sweeps him up.”

You laugh and shake your head, doubt swimming in your brain.

“Nah. There’s no way he would go for someone like me. He has three P.h.D’s and is literally a genius. meanwhile I can barely remember what I ate last night. It won’t happen.”

Rossi sighs. How dense could the two of you be? You two were in love with each other, yet you were so fucking blind.

Meanwhile in the other room, everyone was trying to get Reid to confess his love to you. He was like a drunken puppy that tried his best to listen to commands, but just couldn’t.

“Just go up to her and tell her you love her! I’ll steal her away if you don’t.”

That was Emily. 

“Nooooooo! Don’t touch her! I love heeeeeeer!”

Spencer cried out from the floor. He was laid out like a starfish with an empty beer can in his hands. He didn’t know why he started drinking, but once he started, he couldn’t stop.

“Then gooooo!”

Spencer stood reluctantly, groaning as they all pushed him towards the kitchen.

You and Rossi watched in shock as Spencer ran into the kitchen, breaking out into tears when he met your eyes.

“Woah woah woah... What’s wrong Spencer?”

You ask, mama mode taking over at the sight of his tears. However you really weren’t expecting what happened next.

“Y/N!”

He yelled out before running into you, falling onto his knees before you while clutching your lower back and resting his head on your tummy.

“Wha-”

“I looooooooove you! ‘m in looooooooooooove with you!”

You froze up, not noticing how everyone was recording this from the couch, Rossi clamping a hand on your shoulder. You just kept petting his hair as he sobbed against your stomach.

“Hey, Spencer, bud, why don’t you stand up and tell her properly?”

He listens to Rossi’s advice, standing on his feet and grabbing your face in his hands before leaning in.

“What-”

He cuts you off with his lips, melding the two of you together as everyone cheers and claps. You were momentarily frozen, but you quickly kissed him back. You were eager to take whatever love you could get from him, even if he doesn’t remember in the morning. 

When he pulls away, you simply stare in shock as he tries to pull you away from the kitchen, your gaze flashes over to Rossi, who simply ushers you off with the young genius.

“C’mon! We gotta get out of here!”

You giggled and laughed the entire train ride back to Spencer’s apartment, cuddling in his bed the entire night.

You weren’t sure what was going to happen in the morning, you only knew that you were spending tonight in his arms.

“Hey Spencer?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you too.”

He smiles against your skin, pulling you closer against his bare chest. He was warm against your semi-cold skin, making you smile into his neck. 

You really didn’t want this moment to end ever.

[ofcloudsandstars]

✨ Magic in Soaked Oats Smoothie Bowls ✨

 (These pictures are all mine) 

 There's ways to incorporate magic into everything in your life. It took me like a while to realize I should maybe make a post about this cause I do this almost every single day (unless I'm craving something savory in the morning). The key to this is preparing and in the preparation is magic!!  ✨

Before I get into the magic part I'll get into how to make this and tips!

How to make this  The night before take a cup of raw oatmeal and leave it in a bowl covered with water to soak in the night. In the morning blend a smoothie, strain the oats, and mix it in with dried fruits, fresh fruits, nuts, whatever you like. To make a pretty top layer just leave a tiny bit of smoothie in the blender to pour on top and smooth out for an even clean top coat. Decorate with nuts, fruits, make sigils with syrup, chocolate or nut spreads.

 Smoothie Tips  For a nice thick smoothie that blends well with the oats use banana or an avocado in the smoothie. You don't need a lot of liquid in this, just enough like a little splash of juice, water or milk to help it blend. Adding protein powder helps to make it more balanced and filling and of course you can add other vitamins and supplements like spirulina or vitamin C.

Supplies Tips Buy frozen fruits. Not only will they last weeks but they are way cheaper. Plus you will have bags of fruits that you can use like a few pieces in each smoothie. The cost will be incredibly inexpensive and practical, almost the complete opposite if you did this all with fresh unfrozen fruits. Fresh fruits like berries rot faster and for some reason cost more maybe cause if proper shipping to keep them fresh. If you don't want cold smoothie bowls thaw out your fruit by putting them in a bowl of warm water first for like 3 min. Also you can make a magical tea blend and add it to your smoothie. Also the texture of dry fruits really makes the bowl super pleasant and not as soggy as if you had a lot of fresh fruits mixed in there it's a personal preference of mine I guess. Fresh fruits are always pleasant to have for decoration but you don't need to buy a lot to do this weekly. Also vegetables like spinach and kale makes great smoothies a long with vegetable juices.

 Preparation Tips  Preparation is important and you could do this daily with some thinking ahead involved. You can make a smoothie the night before, mix it in a jar of dry raw oats and let the oats soak in the smoothie over night so it's ready the next day to take out the fridge and eat on the run/at work/ wherever you gotta run off to. Without preparation this could take too much time in the morning for everything (sometimes I forget to soak the oats so I let it sit in hot water for 15 minutes, then I like to make pretty decorations etc.) with some planning this can be practical but without it it could cost a lot of time. Also you can even make sandwich bags with frozen fruits portioned for a smoothie so it's already organized in case you don't want a smoothie sitting too long in a fridge.

 ✨Magic✨ Now that the basics are covered let's get into the magic step by step!   A- Soaking the Oats  Raw oats need to be soaked for digestion reasons I believe it helps the body process the raw oats (I'm sorry I'm not a nutritionist so I don't know the specifics) but this has opportunities to infuse intent into it! You can soak oats in quartz water or place a plate over the bowl of soaking oats to cover it and put crystals/a crystal grid on top to charge it. If you have a glass plate you can leave it under moonlight or make sun oats by leaving it under sunlight. You can charge the oats with your intention also by placing a spell candle with a holder over the plate. You can also make a special tea and use special herbs and let the oats soak in that over night.  B- Smoothie Blends Smoothies are incredibly magical to me and are so pretty and colorful and have so much potential to be healing. There could be a whole other post for smoothie magic and potions. Smoothies are made up of a few parts    -the base to help it be thick. This can be a banana or an avocado and sometimes purees. Nut or chocolate spreads help it's texture (Like almond butter, nutella or speculoos even). Blueberries help it to be like gelatinous if layering is important to you. Yogurt helps to make it thick too.  -fruits and or vegetables.  You don't really need a lot and also pure fruit juice and vegetable juice makes great substitutes if you can't get the actual fruit (Like cranberry, pomegranate etc since they take a lot to juice. Also I love carrot juice and beet juice but sometimes we don’t have time to bust out the juicer too so having a bottle of that helps). Also same with jams and it helps make it a little sweeter!  -vitamins. You can add egg shell powder for calcium (please make it yourself. Dry used eggshells then blend them; wear a mask/bandanna so you don’t breathe in the powder after blending), vitamin C, protein (avocados are good sources of protein too btw), activated charcoal to absorb crap like if you're hung over from drinking too much alcohol it helps, fish oil etc. some supplements come in capsules, you can always break them up and add the same serving amount as you would if you were taking it by water.  -some liquid to help it blend Such as milk, tea, fruit juices, vegetable juices, a mix of both or all. You only need a splash!  With the basics of smoothie building it's easy to make a special spell. For energy and or motivation you can make a smoothie with mango chunks, banana, a splash of coconut milk and orange juice and/or vitamin c, some vanilla yogurt for texture (optional) and once blended add dried mango and candied orange peels to the bowl. Bonus to let the oats soak in rhodiola rosea herbal tea and charge with a citrine or crazy lace agate stone on a plate over the bowl overnight.  For cleansing banishing (which I do this one often during the waning moon and there’s a picture above) make a black moon smoothie with activated charcoal, blackberries, blueberries, almond butter, papaya and cascara degrada (though be careful since cascara degrada is a mild laxative). Soak oats with obsidian stone on a plate over the bowl for a bonus. I like to decorate the top with banana slices or almond slivers.  To relax, have less anxiety, make a smoothie with kava powder blended with banana, almond or hazelnut butter, cinnamon, valerian extract (or supplement) and almond milk. Bonus soak the oats in chamomile tea overnight with lepidolite (Rose quartz and blue lace agate can help here too) on a plate over the bowl.  For psychic enhancement make a smoothie with banana, blueberries, lemon yogurt, violet extract, Passion flower and valerian root extract and soak it in lavender tea with an amethyst charging on top on a plate. Decorate with walnuts and edible lavender buds. (I’m sure if you guys know some nutritional properties to these ingredients I chose blueberry and walnuts cause they are great for the brain lol and the others obviously for intuitive powers).  For a spell for growth make a smoothie with bananas, peach and spinach with milk, agave/honey and spirulina and soak with aventurine or jasper on a plate over the bowl. Mix and decorate with pepita seeds and dried or caramelized bananas.  The list can go on forever and you can of course enjoy these as smoothies as well!  C- decoration  The final step is that you can present your bowl in a magical way! Use dried or fresh fruits to create a sigil or image. Use simple imagery like a spiral for growth, a heart for love, a waning crescent moon for banishment, the face of your enemy you will consume with a voracious hunger for a curse, a star for luck, a sun for energy, a cross for protection. Especially using dried fruits, nuts and seeds it won't be too hard to create a simple symbol! It's very fun to decorate smoothie bowls and a lot of intent can be put into it!

I hope this post was informative and inspiring! I hope I have inspired at least a few witches with the idea of smoothie spells lol. Feel free to ask me any questions!

[meeedeee]

http://ift.tt/2rqlXx8

Ice cream has come a long way since the Good Humor truck. There’s nothing wrong with a simple cup or cone, but these days, you’re just as likely to find the ultimate creamy-cold treat rolled, sandwiched, flash-frozen or cloaked inches-thick in toppings right before before your eyes.

Bay Area scoop shops are leading some high-concept trends these days, and the variety of bold, Instagram-worthy creations is enough to give you brain-freeze — in a good way. As it turns out, the history of American ice cream has always been tied to a sense of innovation, says Amy Ettinger, ice cream historian and author of the new book, “Sweet Spot: An Ice Cream Binge Across America (Dutton, $26).

Smitten Ice Cream’s Brrr machine churns creamy ice cream before your eyes. (Photo: Audrey Ma) 

In the book, the Santa Cruz-based author delves into the legacy of extreme ice cream, starting with our Founding Fathers, who fancied oyster ice cream (yes, really), to the post-Prohibition novelty boom that gave birth to Eskimo Pies and Polar Cream Wafers, and on to Ben & Jerry’s, with its signature swirls and mix-ins.

“There’s always been this element of showmanship when it comes to ice cream,” Ettinger says. “It’s not just something you eat, it’s something you experience.”

Perhaps no Bay Area scoop shop is more synonymous with invention than San Francisco-based Smitten Ice Cream. To churn the ultimate from-scratch, made-to-order ice cream, founder Robyn Sue Fisher teamed up with a retired aerospace engineer to build a machine that flash-freezes ice cream at the time of sale using liquid nitrogen.

Today, Fisher’s Brrr machines and their signature fog fill seven shops in the Bay Area, including outposts in Lafayette, Oakland and San Jose, and yield ice cream with an ultra-rich, creamy texture — every time. Because Fisher believes that ice cream should be pure and made only from high-quality ingredients, she works with local and organic farms and purveyors to source everything.

“Ice cream should embody the definition of taste and wholesomeness,” she says. “That’s why we hand-churn every batch, so it’s fresh and we know exactly what’s in it.”

The Thai rolled ice cream craze has swept the Bay Area. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

But even discerning foodies can’t deny the joy that comes with a smattering of rainbow sprinkles or the Benihana-like show that goes on at Icicles’ five Bay Area locations. Icicles specializes in Thai-style rolled ice cream that is mixed by hand on large ice pans, then flattened into strips and rolled into cylinders in front of you. Toppings — everything from sugary cereal to gummies — are free and limitless, a perk that contributes to the shop’s mega popularity.

Like Icicles, the soft-serve giant Milkcow is also a cultural export — this time, from South Korea, where the popular franchise originated. At the busy Fremont and Castro Valley shops, co-owners and brothers Alex and Gordon Lai top the signature soft, milk-flavored ice cream with fantastical sweets, including raw honeycomb, cotton candy and the giant, wafflelike egg puffs that they remember as a popular street food item during their childhood years in Hong Kong.

“The quality and taste of our products are of the utmost importance, but our mission is also to create fond memories and bring smiles to people’s faces,” Gordon Lai says.

Especially when it reminds you of being a kid.

“At the end of the day, people can say whatever they want about purity and ingredients, but ice cream is about being transported to childhood,” Ettinger says. “Sometimes that means having something unexpected like a celery sorbet or being able to put whatever you want on your scoop of ice cream, because that’s what you did with your family —  or it’s what you longed to do.”

Whether you fancy savory organic ice cream or wacky soft-serve, here are 12 ice cream shops where you can find sweet and innovative treats this summer.

Churned-to-order

1. Smitten Ice Cream

These small, brightly-lit scoop shops specialize in ultra-premium ice cream that is made to order using founder Robyn Sue Fisher’s liquid nitrogen Brrr machine. Due to the smaller-sized crystals achieved with liquid nitrogen, Smitten’s ice cream has a super-creamy, smooth texture. Flavors have a culinary focus, change seasonally and are often gourmet updates on classics, including Brown Sugar with Cinnamon Shortbread, Blueberry Lavender and Strawberry White Balsmatic.

Must-order: Chocolate ($5-$6) may sound simple, but it’s actually a decadently rich ganache made with TCHO’s 60 percent cacao chocolate.

Details: Seven Bay Area locations, including 3545 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Lafayette, and 3055 Olin Ave., San Jose; http://ift.tt/1eMhsfb

2. Crafts Creamery

This brightly lit shop opened two years ago and offers a variety of made-to-order (via liquid nitrogen) options: organic ice cream made with the good stuff from Straus Family Creamery, coconut-based nondairy frozen dessert and granitas. Choose your flavor — there are over 20, including matcha green tea, caramel latte and mint chocolate chip — and any mix-ins and watch as they pop it into a blender-meets-metal-bowl device, squirt it with liquid nitrogen and freeze it in minutes. Complain about the high-ish prices ($5.36-$9.69 plus toppings) all you want, but this place has lots of seating and accommodates birthday groups at no extra charge. Just give them a few days’ notice, so they can round up extra chairs.

Details: 100 Railroad Ave., Suite D, Danville; http://ift.tt/2qLXdwL

Must-order: Burnt sugar tastes like the top of creme brulee — but thick and cold.

Rolled

3. Icicles

At Icicles, ice cream is rolled into tight cylinders, then topped with cream. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

Thailand’s rolled ice cream has hit the Bay Area, beginning at Icicles’ flagship shop in San Jose’s Willow Glen neighborhood. Choose from 11 flavors, including PB&J or Bravocado, or ask the staff to create your favorite combo by mixing the original custard base (made from farm-fresh eggs, milk, sugar and cream) with your favorite toppings. They’ll chop and flatten everything before your eyes on large ice pans, then scrape it off into pretty, finished 3-inch rolls. Unlimited toppings add to the fun. Also available: dairy-free “fruit roll ups.”

Must-order: Try Nutella and Chill ($6.50), custard base blended with bananas, graham cracker and hazelnut-chocolate spread.

Details: Five Bay Area locations including 222 E. Third Ave., San Mateo, and 600 Main St., Suite F, Pleasanton; http://ift.tt/2rejoPJ

4. Freezing Point Creamery

An unassuming shop tucked inside Chinatown, Freezing Point Creamery is a tiny, cash-only joint where you can choose from five rolled ice cream flavors: strawberry, mango, purple yam, red bean, cookies and cream, or matcha. They also offer housemade ice cream in several nontraditional flavors, including wasabi, durian and ginger. Toppings also available.

Must-order: Try the purple yam ($7), made with real bits of yam. Enjoy it with a cup of the warming — and popular — ginger milk tea ($4.95), made with organic whole milk and ginger juice.

Details: 349 Seventh St., Oakland

Soft-serve, with a twist

5. Milkcow

This South Korean export boasts creamy, not-too-sweet milk-flavored soft ice cream. Its facility in Southern California sources milk from free-range cows that are fed Italian ryegrass. Drizzles include various syrups, such as pistachio and honey — sourced from Marshall’s Farm in American Canyon — and fanciful toppings, like locally made macarons, waffle-sized egg puffs, and housemade cotton candy.

Must-order: Raw honeycomb with honey drizzle ($4-$6) offers the sweetness and slight crumble of real honey, the perfect complement to this ultra-creamy, milky soft ice cream.

Details: 5657 Auto Mall Parkway, Fremont, and 3223 Castro Valley Blvd., Castro Valley; coming soon to Pleasanton; www.milkcowusa.com

6. Curbside Creamery

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Now in its third year, Tori Wentworth’s Temescal Alley scoop shop is an all-inclusive ice cream lover’s paradise. It specializes in gourmet versions of classic flavors (hello, Creamsicle) available in both traditional dairy and cashew-based vegan options. But it’s the soft-serve that we melted over — especially the smooth Thai iced tea and a slightly nutty vanilla that was thick and delicious, without even one icy crystal to bum us out. Soft-serve flavors change on Thursdays.

Must-order: Both the Salted Caramel and Bicycle Coffee Co. ($3.25-$5.75) make us swoon. Dairy-free folks: Get your hands on the vegan chocolate or vegan earl grey tea.

Details: 482 49th St., Oakland; http://ift.tt/VispTl

Extreme pops

7. Gelati Creation

This two-year-old Alameda ice-cream-on-a-stick shop specializes in housemade gelato and sorbetto pops ($3.65-$3.80 plus toppings). The sorbetto is made in-house from fresh or pureed fruit (everything from guava and passion fruit to mango and peach), water and sugar while the gelato base comes from a supplier and includes whole milk and sugar. The pops are not too sweet, which allows for layering drizzles — milk, white or dark chocolate — and toppings, such as ground nuts, chocolate chips, coconut flakes or rainbow sprinkles.

Must-order: These creations are very personal, but we’re partial to the coffee gelato pop with milk chocolate drizzle and crushed almonds.

Details: 222 B South Shore Center, Alameda; http://ift.tt/2dZ4aEN

8. Milk and Wood

The concept at this kiosk inside downtown San Jose’s hip SoFA Market is similar: Choose your flavor, your drizzle — in addition to the chocolate drizzles, they also offer sweetened condensed milk — and your toppings, and stand back as the artists make your dream a sugar-laden reality. Milk and Wood handcrafts the pops daily in up to 25 flavors, including chocolate hazelnut, mango strawberry, and cookies and cream, and offers crushed pretzels and chocolate shavings among other toppings. Everything’s made in small batches, so they often run out by evening, especially on weekends.

Must-order: Customers swear by the Green Tea Kit Kat or Mint Oreo with drizzles and toppings galore ($4-$5).

Details: 387 S. First St., San Jose; coming soon to Santa Cruz; www.milkandwood.com

Sandwiched

9. Maven’s Creamery

These macaron ice cream sandwiches are as beautiful as they are delicious. Available in cold cases at multiple locations around the Bay Area, Maven’s Creamery macarons are made with almonds, egg whites, milk and other ingredients, and come in six flavors, including bright purple Ube Macapuno, Coffee Hazelnut and speckled Rainbow Crunch. The ice cream’s thick, creamy consistency is the perfect complement to the cake-y macaron.

Details: Available at 12 Bay Area locations, including Poki Bowl in Palo Alto and San Jose, and Hang Ten Broiler in Hayward and Alameda; http://ift.tt/2jXnsN5

Must-order: The best-selling Cookies ‘n’ Cream ($6) packs all the creamy-delicious nostalgia of childhood between pretty blue macarons.

10. Cream

This ice cream sammie shop first opened in Berkeley in 2010 and has since exploded in the Bay Area. You can’t deny the variety. Gluten-free cookies? Check. Dairy-free ice cream? Yup. And the always-premium ingredients are custom-sandwiched to your specifications. Choose from 20-plus ice cream flavors and 10 fresh-baked cookies, including toffee nut, chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin plus brownie ice cream sandwiches, the Cream Taco and Do’sant — ice cream between two glazed donuts.

Must-order: We’re partial to the Caramel Cinnamon Chill ice cream, sandwiched between snickerdoodles, but it’s all good.

Details: 12 Bay Area locations including 2070 Salvio St., Concord and 2399 Telegraph Ave., Berkeley; http://creamnation.com

Eclectic flavors

11. Tara’s Organic Ice Cream

Tara Esperanza focuses on broadening your ice cream horizons. Her ice cream is made in small batches of two to four gallons at a time, using organic cane sugar and organic seasonal fruit, dairy and herbs sourced from local farms. The inventive flavors are like none you’ve likely tasted: Avocado and Baobab, for example, Butternut Curry, Chinese Five Spice, Orange Cardamom, Mocha and Lemon Verbena. For old-school purists, she also makes a killer chocolate chip ice cream.

Must-order: We love the saffron ice cream and, when available, any stone fruit flavor, including nectarine or white peach.

Details: 4731 Telegraph Ave., Oakland, and 3173 College Ave., Berkeley; www.tarasorganic.com

12. Salt and Straw

Sure, there are a lot of creameries in the Bay Area doing unique flavors, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t include this Portland export, which is already drawing 45-minute waits outside its new (and first) San Francisco scoop shop. Salt and Straw partners with local purveyors to create seasonal and unusual flavors that are OMG-good, like Arbequina Olive Oil, Pear and Blue Cheese, Avocado and Strawberry Sherbet, and Green Apple and Wasabi Flowers.

Talk about extreme: This month, Salt and Straw is featuring limited-edition ice creams made from food waste in San Francisco. Flavors include The Roxie Road (made with leftover popcorn from the Mission’s Roxie Theatre) and Roasted Sunchoke Mock Apple Pie (made with organic but misshapen sunchokes from San Francisco’s Imperfect Produce).

Must-order: Tough call. Seriously. We can’t help you. We dream of the Woodblock Chocolate at the SF shop, but the Olive Oil and Lemon Custard is also off-the-charts good.

Details: 2201 Fillmore St., San Francisco; http://saltandstraw.com

[catherindonald]

Harbinger of Spring Look-Alikes: Dead Nettle & Henbit

By Susan Belsinger

The first spring wildflowers, herbs, and weeds are popping out all over. Two that frequently appear together are both members of the mint family, Lamiaceae: dead nettle (Lamium purpureum) and henbit (Lamium amplexicaule). Since they often grow in a patch together, are about the same height, and both have bright green leaves and purplish-pink flowers  that bloom at the same time, at first glance, they are often mistaken as the same plant. However, held side-by-side and inspected a bit closer, they are very different in appearance. Similarities also include how and where they grow. Their early spring blooms are some of the first food for honeybees, and the tubular shape of their flowers attract hummingbirds.

Both of these spring harbingers prefer sunny spots where the land or garden soil has been disturbed, along roadsides and in meadows and lawns, and will tolerate some shade. They are often found growing side-by-side and intertwined together in patches in moist, fertile soil. I’d say that they grow anywhere from 8-to 12-inches tall, sometimes being the same height in a group together, though occasionally the henbit stretches just a little bit taller than the dead nettle. The henbit is a bit rangier and will even sprawl along the ground, whereas dead nettle is upright.

Henbit (left) and dead nettle (right) have obvious differences when compared side by side.

Harvest unsprayed, tender spikes early in the season—both the leaves and flowers are edible— and be sure of the correct identification of the plants before you eat them (dead nettle has some look-alike plants before it flowers). Both plants are easy to identify once they bloom. I find that many of our weedy harbingers taste green and earthy; I get strong mineral flavors from nettles and henbit similar to chickweed. Although they are members of the mint family, there is no mint to their flavors. If the stems are tough, then I remove them; if tender, I often add them to my Wild Greens Salsa Verde recipe (see below) since it will be pounded or pureed.  

Wild, edible greens are powerful, good food and offer a variety of flavors for free; they are nutritious and usually high in vitamins and minerals. In Europe, the gentle word “potherb” is given to wild greens that offer the knowledgeable forager herbs for the cooking pot. Both of these plants can be eaten raw in salads, sandwiches, wraps, and salsas, or cooked in soups and sauces, or combined in a mess o’ greens with other potherbs or green leaves like kale, spinach, chard, tat soi, etc. I prefer to combine them with other greens rather than eat them in quantity on their own.

Dead Nettle (Lamium purpureum)

Dead nettle

Sometimes called red nettle, purple nettle, and even purple archangel, it is thought that this is called dead nettle because its leaves resemble stinging nettle (Urtica dioica), though they do not have the stinging characteristic of Urtica. Spotted nettle (Lamium maculatum) is closely related, however its leaves have whitish spots or blotches. 

The foliage of purple dead nettle is wrinkled and hirsute (hairy), and the edges of the heart-shaped leaves have rounded teeth. The leaves grow opposite one another on their noticeably square stems, mostly on the lower stem and at the top (leaving the center stem bare), where they overlap and give the appearance of being overcrowded. Foliage is a medium, bright green although depending upon growing conditions, the leaves clustered at the very top are often purplish-red in color. It is quite attractive against the dainty, single, tubular, lavender-pink flowers. Beginning foragers might want to wait to harvest when the plant is in flower—that way there is no mistaking it for another plant.

In doing research on the medicinal aspects of dead nettle, there are many actions listed: antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, astringent, diuretic, diaphoretic, purgative, and styptic. Since it has astringent and styptic qualities, the fresh leaves are recommended for external wounds or cuts. Tea from the leaves is purported to aid in digestion and is used as a mild laxative. It is also used for women’s issues for heavy menstrual flow and cramps. Caution: dead nettle should not be taken while pregnant or trying to become pregnant.

Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule) 

This plant is often mistakenly called dead nettle (L. purpureum). I’ve read that henbit gets its name because chickens like it and seek it out, though I am not sure about that—the chickens that I know don’t pay it much attention—though they have lots of other plants and insects to forage. While dead nettle has petioled leaves (little leaf stems attaching the leaves to the central stem), henbit’s lower leaves grow on short stalks, and the mid-to upper, ruffled and scallop-edged leaves appear in a half-circle, clasped around the square stem.

Henbit

I love how Billy Joe Tatum perfectly describes the flowers of henbit in Billy Joe Tatum’s Wild Foods Field Guide and Cookbook: “The tiny flower buds look like beet-colored velvet beads, as small as a pinhead at first. As the buds open you see silken purplish flowers with long corollas, looking like Jack-in-the-pulpits in miniature.” Often upon close inspection, the tiny flowers are pale pinkish inside with deeper-colored spots; each flower turns into a four-seeded fruit.

Chickens in the dead nettle.

Henbit’s properties are somewhat similar to those of dead nettle and include: anti-rheumatic, diaphoretic, diuretic, febrifuge, laxative and stimulant. Henbit has been used to support good digestion, whether consumed raw or made into a tea, and has also been used  to reduce a fever.

To prepare foraged greens:

To quickly capture the best flavor and nutrients, bring the greens to the kitchen as soon as they are harvested. Assemble a salad spinner or washing bowl, a cutting board, and the compost bucket. Run one gallon of water into the spinner or bowl. Add about 1/4 cup distilled white or apple cider vinegar to the water.

Methodically pull the tips or tender leaves from the stems. Pinch off leaves with yellow edges, or brown or black spots. Place the edible parts in the vinegar water as you work and submerge the mass in the water, plunging up and down several times to loosen foreign matter. Let the greens soak in the water for several minutes and the grit will fall to the bottom of the container. Lift them out and drain them. Discard the vinegar water and spin or pat the greens dry. Use fresh or cooked. If not using all of them, wrap them in a kitchen towel and store in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator for a few days.

  Wild Greens Salsa Verde

(Makes about 2 1/2 cups)

This traditional green sauce goes well with any type of vegetable, whether it is grilled, steamed, oven-roasted, or crudités; it is also good with simply-prepared meat, chicken, fish, and pasta, or even tortilla chips. Vary the herbs that you have on hand or what is in season. When I can, I make this a wild green sauce by adding whatever I can forage: dead nettle, henbit, sorrel, chickweed, dandelion greens and/or flowers, purslane, lambs’ quarters, violet leaves, field cress, monarda, wild onions, or garlic. You can fill in with any seasonal greens from the garden if need be like parsley, fennel fronds, cilantro, arugula, spinach, etc. Sometimes, I add other ingredients—about 1 tablespoon of capers, a chopped boiled egg, or a handful of nuts, like pine nuts, walnuts, or pecans. The sauce can be made without the bread; it just helps to thicken it a bit.

1 1-inch slice country bread, crusts removed

3 large garlic cloves, slivered

About 1/2 cup olive oil

About 3 to 4 cups of mixed edible green leaves, picked over, washed and spun dry 

1/4 cup minced sweet-tasting onion

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Soak the bread in a little water for 10 minutes, then squeeze most of the liquid from it. Add the bread and the garlic to the mortar or food processor and pound or pulse to coarsely chop.

Rough chop the greens. Add them a handful at a time, and pound them in a mortar and pestle or chop in a food processor. Use a little olive oil to loosen them.

Add the olive oil to the herbs as if making a mayonnaise, a few drops at a time, blending or pulsing to incorporate.

When most of the oil has been added, blend in the onion and vinegar. If you want to add capers, nuts, or a hardboiled egg, now is the time; pulse or pound to mix. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, and taste for seasoning. The sauce should be a little thinner than pesto—add a bit more oil, vinegar, or even a bit of water if need be. 

Let the sauce stand at least 30 minutes before using—that way the flavors will develop and meld. Adjust the seasoning and serve at room temperature. The olive oil will not emulsify completely; a little will remain on top of the sauce. Store any leftover sauce in a tightly-covered glass container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Medicinal Disclaimer: It is the policy of The Herb Society of America, Inc. not to advise or recommend herbs for medicinal or health use. This information is intended for educational purposes only and should not be considered as a recommendation or an endorsement of any particular medical or health treatment. Please consult a health care provider before pursuing any herbal treatments.

Susan is a culinary herbalist, food writer, educator, and photographer whose work has been published in numerous publications. She has authored a number of award-winning books. Her latest book, The Culinary Herbal: Growing & Preserving 97 Flavorful Herbs, was co-authored with the late Dr. Arthur Tucker. Susan is passionate about herbs and her work, sharing the joy of gardening and cooking through teaching and writing, and inspiring others to get in touch with their senses of smell and taste.

Harbinger of Spring Look-Alikes: Dead Nettle & Henbit published first on https://marcuskeever.blogspot.com/