Sun on your Chinny Chin Chin

It might have taken 6 months, but finally the skies have cleared and the sun has decided to rear its beautiful face amidst the pasty arms, legs, shoulders, faces, necks, hands, and feet that make up the English populous. I give these folks a lot of credit though. They wear their fair skin proudly. Short shorts and cutoff tanks for girls, and apparently, shirts optional for guys. Not only that, but the many parks of London transform into big old pale exhibition-fests, with one ghost-like figure more naked then the next! It was like a real-life Rubens painting, lumpy fair-skinned crowd and all. While I enjoyed the scene in the moment, my favorite part might have come when the sun went down, riding the tube later that evening, and seeing all the metamorphosed lobster people staring back at me. Bring on the aloe vera, these English folks will be hurting for days!!

So, in honor of the recently sprung Summer-time weather, I wanted to post about the savory sweet that is Chin Chin Laboratories. What is Chin Chin you may ask? Well, take your good old periodic table of elements and slam it full force into the refreshing, milky dessert you know and love. You guessed it - Nitrogen ice cream.

Located in the heart of the grungiest hipster neighborhood of London, Camden Market’s Chin Chin Labs is Europe’s first nitro ice cream parlor where the scientists behind the counter create icy deliciousness using liquid nitrogen. I’m not going to try and explain the process but from what I remember from AP Chem, liquid nitrogen is very very cold. How’s that for a public school education?

Nitrogen.

Cold.

Will freeze things.

My AP Chem teacher, Mrs. Silver, would be so proud. (or rather Mrs. Ag, the periodic symbol for silver – funny enough, her maiden name was Au-stein or Goldstein for those not so chemically inclined. Au became Ag! That joke writes itself right there!)

I was recommended the basil chocolate chip (pronounced Baaaa-sil, like the sound a sheep makes), which is their take on mint choco chip. I was not disappointed. I know it sounds like a strange combination, herb flavored ice cream, but trust me it was good. Topped it off with some chocolate syrup and white chocolate chips and you had one satisfied science eater. Move over Friendly’s sundaes!! The pale ones’ nitro ice cream is here to stay!

English word of the day: Sun cream = a special English lifeline used to preserve the aforementioned condition which has run rampant throughout the UK. Also known as pastiness. Be careful not to miss a spot!

Enter a World of Pure Imagination

To follow-up on the world’s largest Easter Egg Hunt, for a pre-Easter, secular celebration, London puts on a fabulous Chocolate Festival! Located on the Southbank I strategically placed my run to partake in all the chocolate goodies – with a very special recommendation for the Chili Hot Chocolate. While the weather here has done a complete 180 from Friday to Saturday, that hot cocoa with a kick sounded right up my alley.

The outdoor festival featured all my favorite British chocolatiers and chocolate companies, with dozens of stalls selling chocolate-related products – everything from chocolate covered coffee beans, nuts, berries, and fruits, to chocolate infused wine, to chocolate beer, to millions of egg shaped chocolate filled things (note: British are OBSESSED with chocolate eggs. Every day someone new comes into the office with a chocolate egg. And these aren’t tiny Cadbury eggs, these are huge, head-sized hollow eggs typically filled with something else equally delicious. Very strange.) and much much more! Making my way through the stalls I failed to stumble across the chili hot chocolate that was praised by my friends. But instead, tucked away in the back was my holy grail…

Chocolate ARANCINI!

Okay I will admit I was taken aback a bit when I saw the name residing next to the black turd that was allegedly “an arancini,” but my curiosity got the best of me. I had to have it. Anyone who has ever tried a SueCro rice ball will call this blasphemy, and I went into it thinking they would be proved right. Accustomed to craving the perfectly fried outside and equally gooey inside of risotto, cheeses, hams, and peas, this came as quite a palette shocker. Equally fried on the outside and gooey on the inside, but this time the gooeyness was the melted chocolate hazelnut with hint of orange peel and almond. I know what you’re thinking….how can my love for cheese ever be overcome, let alone by some mushy nutella like spread?! I assure you this lactose tolerant girl will never let that happen. Although I will say, my sweet tooth has grown significantly out here surrounded by all the buttery, chocolatey goodness on every corner. Despite its less than appetizing appearance, my chocorancini (trying something out here – go with it) was amazing. Might even try to make them myself and present them as the main course dessert to a Mrs. Susan Cronin next Sunday dinner I am in town for. (I understand it will still pale in comparison to her perfected Italian craft, but a girl can try!)

What else I ended up with…

Admittedly not as exciting as a chocolate rice ball but dark/white chocolate with PEPPER and chocolate bark with sea salt and nuts. All around win on the day for this guy.

Fairly successful day (minus the chili hot chocolate, but I don't want to talk about it). May even try to present my family with some of the spoils for Easter. That is if I can keep my paws out of the goods. Re: not likely.

English word of the day: VIT-amin, as in you should make sure to tak your VIT-amins so you don’t get sick. Pronounced like BIT-amin or PIT-amin. Same meaning, but this came up on the back of a separate conversation with one of my coworkers asking where in the states Ar-KANSAS was. Pronounced like KANSAS. Silly Brits, they say things all sorts of funny.