We’re big fans of ice cream in this house. There is nothing quite like eating a fresh gelato from a street corner in Italy where you have 50 flavors to choose from. Unfortunately, we live in Germany and there is no ice cream stand in our little town. Not that it would help us at this time of year because all the ice cream shop owners head back to Italy during the winter to count their money. Once there they ponder whether they want to come back for another summer to rake in more cash or just retire now.

I love making our own ice cream. It’s really not difficult with a machine but it’s just one more thing I have to get done. I’d even like to try making an oh-so-creamy gelato one day. Unfortunately I have not made any ice cream in a month or three so I better get back on top of that project (this is where the photo of Stefan vigorously nodding his head would go). There was a period of time last fall where we had fresh ice cream every night. It was fantastic. Sometimes we would even have fresh strawberries or raspberries from our garden to accompany the ice cream. On the other hand, having lots of ice cream in the house isn’t exactly helpful for my workout efforts. But once that first bite is in my mouth, it will be totally worth all those extra crunches. Thank goodness I have fairly strong will power!

To supplement the ice cream deficit in the house, I sometimes buy ice cream bars or sandwiches at the grocery store. Any of the regular scoop ice creams available are either wildly expensive brand names which still are full of junk or the generic low end stuff that is just wrong when it comes to flavors and ingredients. Which is why I tend to prefer making my own.

But I’ve recently come to an unsettling conclusion about the ice cream in the sandwiches and other treats that we’ve been eating: instead of the basic flavor of ice cream being vanilla in most items, it’s just become white ice cream. I don’t know if the same is happening in the U.S. but here “white” ice cream runs rampant. You’ll especially find it in the generic ice cream brands, but even brands like Viennetta and Langnese have turned to this bizarre stuff. Never had Viennetta or can’t quite remember what it is? It’s fairly hard to find in the US now (Breyer’s apparently only brings it out around Christmas now) but you’re sure to remember this commercial:

If I have to give it a specific flavor, I’d say marshmallow. Actually, to really pinpoint it, it tastes like Cool Whip. And we don’t even HAVE Cool Whip here in Germany. Maybe that’s how they’re getting away with it. And it’s not that it tastes bad…it’s just strange. It seems to me that if there was going to be a light colored ice cream in something, it was always vanilla. This white stuff barely even has a flavor. Did vanilla fail the taste tests? I’m sure it doesn’t have to do with the cost of adding the vanilla…we all know that’s not REAL vanilla in there. So when did the flavor “white” officially become the standard? Have you noticed ice cream like this in your stores?

(Warning: this is turning into a somewhat unrelated rant now.) I guess what really concerns me about this is the continued distance we put between ourselves and REAL food as we consume things like this. I remember a day when foods were not laden with preservatives and flavorings. It was a time when kids knew that milk came from cows and not the supermarket. We didn’t have to go on field trips to see what a head of lettuce or bunch of tomatoes looks like at a farm…we could see that in our own backyard garden. Children could also still identify foods based on their flavors back then because they were eating yogurt with actual strawberry pieces in it–not just bacteria grown to resemble strawberries with an almost strawberry taste. Strawberries in the grocery store actually tasted like strawberries, not water. And they hadn’t been shipped in from half-way around the world, harvested long before they were ripe and then chemically ripened once they were ready to hit the shelves.

We’re heading down a very slippery slope here. Convenience and low prices do not make it healthier. In general, we’re only making it worse. And while I can certainly understand why so many resort to the cheap stuff (we’re guilty of it too), the more I hear about what is actually IN processed, pre-packaged food in grocery stores, the more I want to cook fresh and see my garden flourish. Yes, fresh and local is going to cost you more than those water-flavored “tomatoes” at the supermarket–but if you want real flavor and nutritional value, it’s something you’re just going to have to budget for. Or you’re going to have to start growing your own…which is the cheapest alternative but may require a little hard work.

How can you make a difference?

• Grow your own fruit, vegetables, mushrooms, nuts, meat, etc. Buy heirloom seeds whenever possible and learn to save your own seeds. Need seeds? Hometown Seeds is currently offering a 10% discount off any order. Just enter the word thanks in the coupon code field. Valid through February 28, 2010. (Just so you know, I’m receiving $35 worth of seeds for showing them some link love in my sidebar. There’s no kickback for me if you use this discount code.)
• Purchase what you can’t grow at your local farmers’ market or other local vendors. But make sure they are actually getting their goods locally and not just buying the same truckloads of garbage that the grocery stores are selling. LocalHarvest.org will help you find sources in your area as well as tell you what is in season now so you can plan your meals.
• Prepare your own meals at home–don’t rely on fast food chain or tv dinner from the frozen food isle. Yes, it’s more time consuming but if you break it down into stages (chop everything first, then prepare the rest later in the evening before you’re ready to eat) or make double and freeze portions, you’ll find you always have something ready when you just don’t feel like cooking. Keeping some chopped frozen veggies in the freezer will also help throw together quick meals without all the hassle.

Prepare yourself for another rant like this in the future…I’m going to be watching Food, Inc soon and I know that’s just going to add even more fuel to the fire. I’ve been rather disgusted by the fact that chickens in our local discount store ALL weigh the EXACT SAME AMOUNT. You can’t tell me that’s a coincidence or that they’re just going bird by bird to check them daily and make sure they’re plump enough. Those things are chemically enhanced and all pumped up on steroids. It’s about time we got us some chickens and rabbits around here. Ugh.