The question when the sun starts beating down, lengthening the days and sparking the inner desire for something cool and refreshing is chocolate and vanilla. Ice cream, right? You think ice cream, and sure, there are limitless varieties and combinations of ice cream to be had. The thoughts begin here. I could go on and on, but I like coffee, and this time of year everyone talks ice cream. I just want to talk flavors. I have had discussions about the merits of vanilla, particularly in the savory realm, as well as chocolate and its uses. Currently, chocolate, in the guise of cocoa, is on the rise, while vanilla is looked at as yesterday or a never was. As I try and hold the balance of blind justice in the kitchen, I often need to defend both my uses of chocolate and vanilla in the savory kitchen.
I am searching to understand these flavors beyond mole and lobster with vanilla. These are complex flavors derived from time-consuming processes involving fermentation, drying, and more innovation in horticulture than I could comprehend. My point is that chocolate and vanilla are the two big flavors, mostly associated with dessert—this time of year with ice cream, though their underlying uses in the development of flavors and the inspiration of ideas are more important than their originally perceived roles. Think about coffee: fermented product, a drink, a dessert, and a key in barbecue sauces. And also wattleseed. Olive oil is another flavor and process destined to travel one road and often directed elsewhere. Miso, another culinary dark horse, and yet look at the applications. In fact, as I write, I plan to make miso-butter popcorn and miso caramel—I could combine the two.
There are many more flavors, ideas, and comparisons. It is not just chocolate or vanilla; it is the search for harnessing flavors.
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