Most people can enjoy an ice cream sandwich without a second thought.

But people with gluten sensitivity can’t have that cookie sandwich. And people with lactose intolerance can’t have the ice cream or frozen yogurt. Unless they reach for Beachy Cream.

 
Beachy Cream of Malibu, California solves the problem by offering a classic ice cream sandwich: lactose-free vanilla ice cream sandwiched between gluten-free chocolate chip cookies.

Made in small batches with locally sourced, sustainable and organic ingredients, Beachy Cream’s other flavors include candied ginger ice cream on a molasses spice cookie, “hot” chocolate ice cream on a brownie cookie, Key lime ice cream on a coconut oatmeal cookie, strawberry balsamic swirl ice cream on a sugar cookie, and traditional vanilla bean ice cream on a chocolate chip cookie.

Beachy Cream’s handmade ice cream
sandwiches include a gluten-free, lactose-
free option. Photo courtesy Beachy Cream.

If you’re not local to Malibu, you can order the ice cream sandwiches from the company website. It’s a generous gift to soothe someone who is new to dealing with gluten intolerance.

The online store carries only an assortment of the regular line, but you can contact the store at youscream@beachycream.com, or 1.877.299.7557.

Other Ideas For Enjoying Gluten-Free Ice Cream Sandwiches

 
See our favorite gluten-free gourmet food products.

Turn out a great steak or burger with tips
from Del Frisco’s Steak House. Photo
courtesy Del Frisco’s.

Chef Thomas George Dristas offers a few no-fail rules for how to choose, grill and serve meat like a steak house chef.

For steaks, go for choice or prime grade aged 21 to 28 days; for hamburgers, go for a chuck/sirloin blend (also great for tacos!). Figure 6 ounces of meat per person.

Splurge-worthy cuts include a big, thick filet, prime rib eye and strip steak. For a cost effective cut, the hanger steak is a great choice, but make sure to ask the butcher how to handle it. Befriend your butcher: He can recommend the best cuts, cooking methods and marinade suggestions for your needs.

Make a purée of parsley, basil, garlic and olive oil. Combine the ingredients in a blender until bright green; brush onto the meat.

Relaxation is key! Always let refrigerated or frozen meat sit out until it gets to room temperature. This allows the proteins to relax. When the meat is finished cooking, let it rest for ten minutes so the juices run back to the center of the meat (or else they’ll run right out onto your plate).

Basic grilling tips from Bobby Flay.

Grilling tips from award-winning grilling team Smoke In Da Eye.

July 26th is National Coffee Milkshake Day.

We love coffee ice cream, but we never buy it. That’s because flavors we like even more beckon from the freezer case.

But today, we’re making a coffee or espresso milkshake to celebrate. You can be creative about it: In addition to coffee ice cream, Starbucks sells pints of Caramel Macchiatos, Java Chip Frappuccinos, and Mocha Frappuccino ice cream.

We like adding ice cubes because they keep the shake ice-cold for a longer period of time. We add them to our Ninja blender first.

The history of the milkshake began with alcohol, so we’ve included optional liqueur or spirits in the recipe below.

> Milkshake History

> Ice Cream History
 
 
COFFEE MILKSHAKE RECIPE

This recipe makes one large milkshake; alternatively, split the calories and share it with others.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. CRUSH the ice in a blender.

2. ADD the other ingredients and process for 30 to 60 seconds or until smooth.

3. POUR into a tall glass; garnish (if desired) and serve with a straw.

Variations

Celebrate with a coffee milkshake (photo © Dunkin At Home).

[2] Make your own coffee ice cream with this recipe from Baked By An Introvert (photo © Baked By An Introvert).

Luscious, creamy pomegranate ice cream
from Sheer Bliss. Photo by Victoria P.
| Fotolia.

Sheer Bliss is the mother lode of pomegranate ice cream, a flavor that’s lush and sweet with a hint of tartness on the finish. The company’s offerings seem like the ice cream equivalent of Bubba Gump’s:

 
The line is certified kosher by KOF-K.

Read the full review to see why Sheer Bliss sells its ice cream in metal cans.

Find more of our favorite ice cream brands.

As we both ordered from what we considered to be the “better-for-you” salad menu, Brother, an attorney, looked at the small print.

“Yikes,” he said, “My Cobb Salad has 941 calories. I thought salads were supposed to be low-calorie!”

Well, er, not when topped with blue cheese, bacon, avocado and 1/4 cup of dressing (which is 400 calories in and of itself).

But we are still perplexed as to how our Thai Crunch Salad added up to 1089 calories. It had lots of Napa and red cabbage, carrots, cilantro, cucumbers and scallions, with perhaps two ounces of grilled chicken and modest accents of edamame, wontons, rice sticks and peanuts. The lime-cilantro dressing was minimal.

It seems that if we wanted to count calories, we should have gotten half portions. But we left full of fiber and protein, and grateful that we hadn’t ordered the BBQ Chicken Pizza.

This morning, we read a Food Channel Trendwire email which announced:

At 550 calories, a better-for-you entrée.
Photo courtesy Applebee’s.

The article led with the bad news: A report issued earlier this month by Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation showed that the national obesity epidemic continues to worsen. Only one state showed an obesity rate below 20% (and just barely): Colorado at 19.8%. Twelve states have obesity rates over 30%. Mississippi was number one at 34.4%. Seven states have seen their rates double in the past 20 years.

But there is some good news: This year, a number of leading restaurant chains are finding significant growth in the better-for-you menu options.

 
Of course, the reports don’t count any beverages, bread, appetizers and desserts, but America is finally off to a good start.