Scottie Mayfield has a pretty simple philosophy for life: “If you like something sweet, it’ll probably go well with something else that’s sweet.” Or maybe that’s his philosophy for desserts. Whatever the case, it’s simple, and I like it. Scottie is the president of Mayfield and a fourth generation caretaker of the dairy his great-grandfather, Thomas B. Mayfield, Jr., started in 1910.
He’s also the face of Mayfield, as he’s appeared in ads and on TV promoting his company’s products. So, when Scottie asks you if you’d like to eat a bowl of ice cream with him, there’s only one thing you can say: Can I have Moosetracks? No, that’s not it, although the thought did cross my mind. But I’m glad I kept it to myself, as Scottie wanted me to try Mayfield’s peppermint stick ice cream, which he assured me is a seasonal favorite. What’s more, he wanted to show me some of the delicious, waist-expanding desserts one can make with the frozen treat. I responded with an eager “yes,” closed my email, and headed to the gym to work off the calories I’d be consuming. (Full disclosure: One half of the preceding sentence is a complete fabrication.) When I arrived at the Mayfield Visitor’s Center in Athens, Tenn., Scottie broke all protocol for people as well-known as he is by showing up several minutes early.
In addition to his trademarked grin, he was carrying a tote containing all the accoutrements he’d need to create his smorgasbord of deliciousness. As Scottie pulled vanilla wafers, Oreos, pecans, chocolate syrup, whipped cream and other ingredients out of his bag, he extolled his philosophy on desserts. Or maybe it was his philosophy on life. Whatever the case, I was already drooling, although I did manage to ask if there’s such a thing as “too sweet.” Without missing a beat, he said, “If there was, no one would eat birthday cake.” Once he’d placed everything on one of the tables inside the ice cream parlor at the visitor’s center, he clapped his hands and said, “We’re going to mix it up!”
By this, Scottie meant he was about to take Mayfield’s peppermint stick ice cream and combine it with a variety of mouthwatering components to create new taste sensations.
First up was his peppermint stick ice cream pie.
While there’s a recipe for this indulgence on www.mayfielddairy.com, Scottie says he’s not good at measuring portions, so he just wings it. He started by pulling a fistful of vanilla wafers out of their box and smashing them up in a bowl. “I’ve got a cruncher-upper thing, but I like to just put ‘em in a bowl and smash ‘em up,” he said. Next, Scottie opened a bag of “chunked up” pecans and poured some of the nuts in the bowl. He then asked Donna, the girl behind the counter at the parlor, to nuke some butter (the real stuff) for him. Having created the “crust,” he spooned it into a glass bowl, added a few scoops of ice cream, and topped his creation with Hershey’s chocolate syrup and some whipped cream. “You’ve got to put it in a glass bowl so it looks good,” he said. Dessert number two barely qualified as a recipe, since it consists of “chunked up” (a phrase Scottie seems to enjoy saying) Oreos, peppermint stick ice cream and whipped cream. But I didn’t raise an objection, because it looked good, too. “I’ve discovered this is trouble. And the reason it’s trouble is because it re-introduces you to Oreos. And they’re really good. When you’re through making this, you’re going to eat some of what you didn’t use,” he said, demonstrating his point.
Before he’d swallowed the cookies, he asked Donna to heat up some TruMoo Chocolate Milk. When she handed him a steaming cup, he tossed a miniature scoop of peppermint stick ice cream on top. It bobbed like a big marshmallow while he topped it with whipped cream. His pièce de résistance, however, was something only a Mayfield could have thought up: peppermint stick ice cream doused with eggnog. “My wife makes this for me at home,” he said with almost boyish glee as he grabbed a spoon and dug in.
That was my invitation to try everything else he’d made, and I have to say, I was roundly impressed. None of the desserts required much effort, but they all tasted great and had that special something that qualified them as holiday treats. You can grab the recipe for the pie on the Mayfield Web site along with dozens of other ideas, seasonal and otherwise. Some of the desserts will seem surprising until you remember one important thing: “If you like something sweet, it’ll probably go well with something else that’s sweet.”
Email David Laprad at dlaprad@hamiltoncountyherald.com.