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While we were at Miles Market Saturday morning shopping for our weekly supply of vegetables, I indulged in a couple of snack items.

A pint of Jeni's ice cream ($10.00) from Columbus and a packet of Ines Rosales tortas ($5.00), olive oil crackers from Spain. I felt guilty while we were standing in line. As I anticipated, these two items accounted for half of our grocery receipt.

Ice cream and torta on ice

Checking out Jeni's ice cream has been on my mind since I first heard about it on Serious Eats and our trip to Columbus to meet up with Michael at Short North in July. We only had a few hours together, so I didn't want to spend our time together waiting in a ridiculously long line.

I was reluctant to purchase their ice cream at Miles Market in the past because of the price and offering. When they first began carrying Jeni's this summer, the flavors were lackluster. I didn't feel any urgency to shell out $10 for vanilla.

On this trip, there were ~10 flavors in their freezer, from blackstrap praline, chili pepper, to sorbet. The MacKenzie Creamery goat cheese and cognac fig ice cream stood out.

The skeptic in me boggled at goat cheese in ice cream when I saw it sitting on the shelf. It doesn't really deserve that extent of disbelief as I've tried durian and avocado shakes, not your typical soda fountain fare.

Ice cream and torta

My first bite was met with a subtle sweetness and slight sourness, similar to cheesecake. It swallows like custard egg nog, thick and creamy. The cognac fig reminded me of raisins lightly draped with alcohol with a granular crunch.

I enjoyed the ice cream, but did I $10 enjoy it?

Short answer: no

Long answer: Fig ice cream is available nearby at Flying Fig, but where else am I going to get goat cheese ice cream? I would be more apt to buy it again if it were $7. If I run across another unsual pairing, I may purchase a pint.

The olive oil crackers were an impulse buy. I'm a sucker for enticing packaging and unusual snacks.

Torta

The torta are wrapped in translucent wax paper, tucked like fragile ornaments, and look like delightful gifts. I wanted to try them out to see if they were worth giving -- quality control and all that.

I couldn't decide which olive oil crackers to get - savory or sweet. There was a selection of plain, sesame, Seville orange, two other flavors I do not recall. The Seville orange seemed the most palatable.

Similar to a well made palmier, there is a flaky crunch and a thick bite. Following the textural and auditory trek, a bittersweet orange essence makes its entrance, followed by a nutty, bordering on sesame, flavor.

Unwrapping

This felt indulgent, not merely due to the cost, but for its lack of utility. I can't see myself incorporating these in many dishes to justify buying them with any regularity. Where saffron, while fairly expensive, one is able to use it in numerous dishes. Maybe spices are an unfair example. Table water crackers can be used in soup, as appetizers, and breading.

Five days later and I still feel guilty.

- Cassaendra