THE PIE POLL PART II: Is "a la mode" A Must For Your Pie?

You knew I wouldn't forget the ice cream...

Feel free to vote in regards to keeping your favorite pie "nude" or adorned with this famous creamy companion.

Jeff

Vanilla ice cream, rich and creamy, with blueberry, apple or pumpkin. Most of the others nude.

It very much depends on my mood. As well as the quality of the pie. As the pie quality decreases, the likelihood of having ice cream with the pie increases. Like for most toppings in the food world.

As I said in the other pole, I rarely eat pie, however I have enjoyed hot apple pie with vanilla bean ice cream. I remember when I was a my late teens and working in the credit office of a large funrniture store, there was a little dive next door that made the best apple pies, served with caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream. About once a month, I'd indulge in pie for lunch. My husband loves warm apple pie with vanilla bean ice cream.

I never eat ice cream so pie on its own is my vote.

I prefer my ice cream pie-less.

[Jenise]

No ice cream. EVER. I feel ill watching ice cream melt around a piece of pie. Horrors!

No ice cream. EVER. I feel ill watching ice cream melt around a piece of pie. Horrors!

So serve it colder.

No ice cream. EVER. I feel ill watching ice cream melt around a piece of pie. Horrors!

... And yet, in my family, I don't think anyone doesn't prefer their pie a la mode. If offered. Maybe it's just how one comes to love it, by way of habit. And it seems it's that contrast of warmth with the cold that is precisely the seductive part (for many). I know with cobblers that's certainly the whole appeal for me - the sensual aspect of that warm dough with the cold cream.

However, for the record, with pie I usually don't have ice cream either.

Jeff

Sometimes I put ice cream on pie, but, as I noted in the other thread, I love a good apple pie with a slice of melted sharp cheddar on top.

I voted 'Oh, Yes' but was tempted to say 'Other" as I have had very many pies that can stand on their own. As I thought about, though, all of them would be improved with a little rich, creamy Vanilla ice cream. BTY - I like ice cream more than I like pie.

[Jenise]

BTY - I like ice cream more than I like pie.

Well now you've outed yourself. My preferences are similarly rooted, just the other direction. Ice cream must be very hard, on a sugar or waffle cone and generally containing some kind of coffee flavor and chocolate bits to be at all interesting to me. Putting it with a lovely fruit pie just insults the pie.

Well now you've outed yourself. My preferences are similarly rooted, just the other direction. Ice cream must be very hard, on a sugar or waffle cone and generally containing some kind of coffee flavor and chocolate bits to be at all interesting to me. Putting it with a lovely fruit pie just insults the pie.

I certainly eat ice cream more often than I eat pie. As we've already established in these threads, pie is best when homemade and that usually entails making an entire pie, which is a massive portion for just me and my wife (baby is still too young for pie!) Ice cream is pretty easy to buy in public, in smaller portions that are more manageable.

But what's all this about hard ice cream with coffee and chocolate flavors!!! Clearly fruit ice cream is superior, especially when it is creamy and melts in the mouth!

I like ice cream more than I like pie.

Same here, I would say.

I think of pie as more of a "winter comfort", a dessert I associate more with the holidays, alongside cookies etc. But fresh ice cream from the parlor in summertime is another joy unto itself. And I seem to be more "open" to flavors in ice cream than with pie. Your pecan pick is a great example. Pecan is not my #1 ice cream but I do enjoy it. Whereas, its manifestation in pie doesn't grab me for some reason. I'd rather just go straight to the blueberry.

But I'm more brave with ice cream, you might say.

We were pondering another visit to our local parlor before summer evaporates into Autumn. We've made one visit earlier this summer but that's been it. I believe they close for the season in mid-October.

Jeff

But what's all this about hard ice cream with coffee and chocolate flavors!!! Clearly fruit ice cream is superior, especially when it is creamy and melts in the mouth!

I'm with Jenise in that regard. I LOVE ice cream hard (when by itself). It's the "icy chew" I cherish with ice cream. It's not the same to me when it's melted (unless it's against hot fudge or a peach cobbler).

Fruit ice creams are my least favorite probably. I like fruit FLAVORED ones sometimes (peach) but not a fan of real fruit in the ice cream. I'd say flavors such as Blue Moon, Chocolate, Coffee, are my favorites. I even like the rainbow "Superman" flavor. I'm really just a big kid when it comes to ice cream.

Jeff

BTY - I like ice cream more than I like pie.

Well now you've outed yourself. My preferences are similarly rooted, just the other direction. Ice cream must be very hard, on a sugar or waffle cone and generally containing some kind of coffee flavor and chocolate bits to be at all interesting to me. Putting it with a lovely fruit pie just insults the pie.

You and Len are identically in your ice cream preferences. If we share a pie ala mode in a restaurant, it's a no go for him unless the ice cream is in a dish on the side.

No ice cream. EVER. I feel ill watching ice cream melt around a piece of pie. Horrors!

I can't help but notice your distaste for white creamy things, mayonnaise, ice cream and others you have mentioned. It it a texture issue? Or did you have a childhood dream of drowning in a vat of melted vanilla ice cream?

[Jenise]

But what's all this about hard ice cream with coffee and chocolate flavors!!! Clearly fruit ice cream is superior, especially when it is creamy and melts in the mouth!

If it hadn't been for the singular flavor of Baskin Robbins Jamocha Almond Fudge, I would probably be able to state that I hadn't had ice cream in 20 years.

[Jenise]

I can't help but notice your distaste for white creamy things, mayonnaise, ice cream and others you have mentioned. It it a texture issue? Or did you have a childhood dream of drowning in a vat of melted vanilla ice cream?

Not quite. It had to do with this hand cream that my mom and grandmother both kept jars of in their respective kitchens. I hated the smell of it, was repulsed by the feel of it and was overly concerned that they would use it and then touch my food. I spent a lot of time in the kitchen monitoring this situation and based a lot of what I would eat or not eat on my suspicions. Then mom, ever onto the next health kick, switched us to a raw milk dairy. I was about five. And so I asked mom why it was two colors, and she pointed to the upper layer and said "That's the cream, it rises to the top." Cream? CREAM? DEAR GOD THERE'S HAND CREAM IN MY MILK!, went my thinking. And that was it for me and cold, creamy white food. Never drank milk again either.

Not proud of any of this, mind you, except perhaps as an early example of my ability to acquire and maintain a resolute commitment , it's just the way it went. I've overcome about 75% of the aversion, though admittedly some remains.

If it hadn't been for the singular flavor of Baskin Robbins Jamocha Almond Fudge, I would probably be able to state that I hadn't had ice cream in 20 years.

Well I do like nut ice creams. This summer I have enjoyed some phenomenal hazelnut and walnut ice creams that I cannot get out of my mind.

But for some reason while chocolate ice cream can be good, it doesn't seem to me to be the best way to display the glorious nuances of chocolate.

Last night I was out for dinner with friends but happened to be near Grom, one of NYC's better ice cream shops, so of course I had to stop. The peach didn't quite live up to the platonic luscious ideal of a cone I had earlier this summer in Germany, but the white fig was perfect. Clear yet rich, with the tiny fig seeds playing a perfect textural role.

Did I mention that I love fruit.

[Jenise]

But for some reason while chocolate ice cream can be good, it doesn't seem to me to be the best way to display the glorious nuances of chocolate.

Last night I was out for dinner with friends but happened to be near Grom, one of NYC's better ice cream shops, so of course I had to stop. The peach didn't quite live up to the platonic luscious ideal of a cone I had earlier this summer in Germany, but the white fig was perfect. Clear yet rich, with the tiny fig seeds playing a perfect textural role.

Did I mention that I love fruit.

I do too! But fruit + cream dulls, rather than accents, what I want from fruit and most fruit ice creams leave me wishing for even more fruit. I would never eat plain vanilla ice cream any more than I'd eat a plain chocolate or, for that matter, a plain chocolate bar. But for some strange reason I just adore chocolate as an accent. Think chocolate chip cookies, Reese's p-butter cup or the Jamocha Almond Fudge ice cream I mentioned. It's coffee ice cream with fudge swirls and whole almonds.

Love the sound of the white fig ice cream, though.

I can't help but notice your distaste for white creamy things, mayonnaise, ice cream and others you have mentioned. It it a texture issue? Or did you have a childhood dream of drowning in a vat of melted vanilla ice cream?

Not quite. It had to do with this hand cream that my mom and grandmother both kept jars of in their respective kitchens. I hated the smell of it, was repulsed by the feel of it and was overly concerned that they would use it and then touch my food. I spent a lot of time in the kitchen monitoring this situation and based a lot of what I would eat or not eat on my suspicions. Then mom, ever onto the next health kick, switched us to a raw milk dairy. I was about five. And so I asked mom why it was two colors, and she pointed to the upper layer and said "That's the cream, it rises to the top." Cream? CREAM? DEAR GOD THERE'S HAND CREAM IN MY MILK!, went my thinking. And that was it for me and cold, creamy white food. Never drank milk again either.

Not proud of any of this, mind you, except perhaps as an early example of my ability to acquire and maintain a resolute commitment , it's just the way it went. I've overcome about 75% of the aversion, though admittedly some remains.

Very interesting story, and so classic on how a child's mind processes what adults say to them. My mom told me the story once of friend of hers who came to visit, when I was four. She had not seen me since I was about 3 years old. After the big hug that I always hated strangers doing to me, she stepped back and announced, "my, you've grown a foot since I last saw you!" Mom said I looked down at my feet and declared, "Now I haven't, I've always had two of them!"

nothing for me

I do too! But fruit + cream dulls, rather than accents, what I want from fruit and most fruit ice creams leave me wishing for even more fruit.

After my recent ice cream making efforts I have come to this position, too. I will happily, gleefully, greedily make fruit sorbets and granites but no more dairy bases.

Cream works very well with nuts, chocolate, and spices.