GeePawHill20h ago
myrmepropagandist

"Want anything from the store?"
(I'm feeling a bit sick and over stimulated)
"just some vanilla ice cream"

(later... phone rings)

"Uh... babe...there are six kinds of vanilla ice cream? French Vanilla? Vanilla Bean? Classic Vanilla? Cutting Edge Vanilla?..."

Why would they do this? Why did they take vanilla ice cream: the food of people who are feeling plain and simple and overwhelmed and make it complex?

Classic Vanilla
Vanilla Bean
French Vanilla
Country Style Vanilla
Poll ends at .
Mar 28 at 11:01pmWeb
Show threadbabbling20h ago

@futurebird

all six kinds! thank you.

Show threadmyrmepropagandist20h ago

@babblingaboutstuff

Yes, let's buy one of each and blend 'em

Show threadbabbling20h ago

@futurebird

was more thinking about trying each and fiinding the one one likes best or one likes for this or that occasion...

but blending works as well i guess 😅

Show threadJ. Steven York20h ago
@futurebird
I eat plain vanilla a lot, but my favorite flavor is "both" half regular vanilla and half regular chocolate. That's all the excitement I can handle.
Show threadDavid Smith20h ago
@futurebird I miss the local place that had Madagascar and Tahitian vanilla. It was so cool comparing them and seeing how such a “default” flavor can vary while still being itself.
Show threadGueule d'atmosphère20h ago
@futurebird
FWIW One lesson I took to heart, I don't remember where from, is never to linger on trivial choices. If there is little to lose, it's not worth spending precious time over. Just pick one.
Show threadHugo Mills20h ago
@futurebird "Classic" is probably just a one-note hammer made with a completely synthetic flavour molecule. "Bean" may have been shown a photo of a vanilla pod at some point during the manufacturing process. "Country style" is the same as "Classic", but wears chaps and a hat. "French" should taste better than the others, but only does so in some areas of France and Quebec.
Show threadHugo Mills20h ago

@futurebird Synthetic vanilla flavour: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanillin

Actual vanilla has loads of other stuff in it too, and definitely tastes better.

Vanillin - Wikipedia

Show threadDigichelle20h ago
@futurebird Not among the poll options, but—whichever one has real vanilla in the ingredients, rather than “vanilla flavoring”.
Show threadSarah E Bourne19h ago
@digichelle @futurebird That's the poll option I was looking for.
Show threadFelis_Catus_Domesticus20h ago

@futurebird

any and ALL

Show threadSean20h ago
@futurebird I kinda wonder whether it’s like toothpaste and half of them are the exact same recipe but with different labels so people can feel like they’re dialing in their particular brand of fancy.
Show threadaustralopithecus20h ago
@futurebird
fwiw "French vanilla" at least means with a custard-like ice cream base (ie includes yolks)
"classic" usually means Philadelphia style, ie not French
"vanilla bean" of course means it has actual vanilla bean in it rather than extract or artificial flavor
Everything else is inconsistent ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Show threadAstronot20h ago

@futurebird which one comes from beaver butts?

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/does-vanilla-flavoring-actually-come-from-beaver-butts-180983288/

Does Vanilla Flavoring Actually Come From Beaver Butts?

Despite internet claims, castoreum—a substance found in beaver glands—is rarely used today as a food flavoring

Smithsonian Magazine
Show threadBirch-o-matic20h ago

@futurebird

The only correct answer is Tillamook Old Fashioned Vanilla and don’t come back until you find it.

https://www.tillamook.com/products/ice-cream/old-fashioned-vanilla

Old Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream

Our Old Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream is made with extra cream for an unforgettable flavor bite after bite.

Show threadBill Seitz6h ago
@MrBirch @futurebird I bought this recently expecting the vibe of grandma-churned, and instead found 70s school cafeteria Dixie cup with a wooden spoon.
Show threadGorgeous na Shock!19h ago
@futurebird I voted for vanilla bean because I like beans. 🍛
Show threadChris Mills19h ago

@futurebird I go for the lowest priced, yet heaviest container of similar volumes.

We have fancy brands in NZ of 1L vanilla that weigh less and cost 20% more than the one I usually purchase.

Show threadlxskllr18h ago

@futurebird

French vanilla is what immediately comes to mind, but I might pick some other kind if the packaging looked interesting. Maybe a brand I've never seen before.

edit:
BTW, an amazing vanilla tweak is adding crushed candycanes to the ice cream, and mixing it in. Good way to get rid of them if you still have some around.

Show threadThat Old Guy with the Beard18h ago
@futurebird What in the name of my boring-assed white people is ‘Cutting Edge Vanilla’ when it is no longer in the hands of some hipster skater ridiculous moustache-wearing deviant?
Show threadBjørnar (he/him)18h ago
@futurebird any of them, the important factor is that it's not just vanillin (this matters for non-baked things where all the fancy volatiles of the vanilla bean stick around) and that there's no gum additives to change the ice cream consistency.
Show threadPaula Gordon16h ago
@futurebird Your significant other needs to make the decision without you. And not tell you about it, just bring you back vanilla ice cream, and not burden you with the choice. Right? As my dear departed dad used to say, Part of growing up is making your own decisions.
Show threadmyrmepropagandist8h ago

@dbaplanb

Earlier in our relationship this is what he would have done, but we've gotten to know each other very very well and he was absolutely correct to call his picky wife and just ask. Just as I would never in a million years throw out a motorcycle catalog that I found under the couch covered in dust and cat scratches. He did nothing wrong.

Show threadPaula Gordon2h ago
@futurebird
Yes, after I responded, I thought, oh, that was unfair!
Considering the vehemence of my reply, perhaps (just perhaps?) your post hit a nerve with me. :) I've had to grow up quite a bit in the past year, and a big part of that is owning my decisions. Thank you for your measured response.
Show threadS.T. Veje13h ago

@futurebird Meanwhile, if you're vegan, the choices of ice cream are:

* Cookie dough and raspberry crunch
* Sea salt chocolate and nut bonanza
* Banana-lemon-pie
* Truffle meringue and walnut whiskey

Or sorbet.

Plain vanilla? Plain chocolate? Plain anything? What are you? Some kind of weird-ass weirdo?

Show threadmyrmepropagandist9h ago

@stveje

I tried to be vegan for about two years and had to give up because as someone with a nuts allergy the vegans do not know when to stop adding things and making it complex. I understand that this can be about having complete proteins, but I already have a restrictive diet ordained by nature and allergies, so I guess I just can't add to it without being someone who lives on rice pudding and nothing else.

Show threadS.T. Veje8h ago

@futurebird Vegans do love nuts, it's true, especially when trying to emulate the creaminess of things like ice cream and cheese.

I'm sure it's possible to be vegan without nuts, personally I don't eat any nuts on a daily basis, but it certainly adds a lot more limitations to an already limited lifestyle.

Show threadRachel8h ago
@futurebird I'm confused, none of the available answers seem to match the question "Why would they do this?".