sixty seconds with david reamer: A Perfect Pairing

This year I was tasked with putting some serious effort into the Union Wine Co. FIELD NOTES This is a part of their site that tells employee stories, showcases recipes and cocktails as well as a few cool How To’s…

This is one of those posts. Check them all out in the above link.

A Perfect Pairing:

Tillamook Frozen Custard & Underwood Strawberry Cooler Syrup

Strawberry season goes by way too quickly, but here at Union we aren’t quite ready to say goodbye just yet!

We have recently discovered (and fallen in love with) some of our local Tillamook Creamery’s Special Batch ice cream, gelato and custards. We thought it would be interesting to pair strawberries with their Sea Salt & Honeycomb Toffee Custard…. and it worked amazingly. To sweeten the deal, we created a simple yet very complex tasting Strawberry Cooler Syrup, which really highlights the salty crunchy bits of toffee in the creamy custard.

The syrup is very simple to make, and will stay good for weeks in the refrigerator.

Underwood Strawberry Cooler Syrup

Underwood Strawberry Cooler

3 ripe strawberries

3 sprigs of mint

1/4 teaspoon of black peppercorns

2 Tablespoons of sugar (optional)

STEP ONE:

Pour a can of the Cooler into a wide, heavy bottomed pot and bring to a boil. If adding the sugar, do so at this time. Stir until the sugar is dissolved so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot.

STEP TWO:

Immediately reduce to a simmer and continue to cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

STEP THREE:

After 15 minutes, place the strawberries (stems removed), mint and peppercorns into the pot and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes or until almost all of the liquid has been evaporated.

STEP FOUR:

Strain liquid immediately into a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use. Once cooled, scoop out some custard (or your favorite Tillamook ice cream flavor), add a few strawberries and a healthy drizzle of the syrup.