Cream

What is the most unlikely career choice of a onetime high school and college basketball star whose NBA career was dashed by back injuries? How about cream-puff salesman? And not the used-car kind of cream puff - which might make sense - but the cream-filled pastry ball. Which is the new vocation of Brian Zoubek, the 7-foot-1 center for Haddonfield Memorial High and the 2010 national championship Duke Blue Devils. He's seeking profit in profiteroles. This week in his hometown, Zoubek, 24, opened Dream Puffz - "the Z is for me" - a spare, modern corner storefront next to Bread Board Plus.

The parade of retro treats marches on. And this summer it seems the foodie hipster scene has declared shaved ice is the hot "new" old way to stay - and be - cool. "We have lines. People are really excited about it," says David Carrell, one of the operators of the New York City-based People's Pops, which specializes in shaved ice, along with ice pops, both made with fresh fruits and herbs. Carrell, also a coauthor of the new People's Pops cookbook containing 55 ice pop and shaved ice recipes, thinks shaved ice is on the verge of becoming a mainstream phenomenon.

BRIGANTINE, N.J. - People who sit on the beaches of Ventnor, Wildwood, and Atlantic City - where the ice cream man will put his box down and hand over a banana Fudge Bomb without your even moving, except to find the money - might be shocked to learn that in Brigantine, people lack this fundamental Jersey Shore right. And that, for the most part, they do not care. But that, possibly as early as next week, when the City Council is scheduled to vote on a seven-page ice cream ordinance 15 years in the making, they could at last be granted the right of beach ice-cream sales.

BRIGANTINE, N.J. - People who sit on the beaches of Ventnor, Wildwood, and Atlantic City - where the ice cream man will put his box down and hand over a banana Fudge Bomb without your even moving, except to find the money - might be shocked to learn that in Brigantine, people lack this fundamental Jersey Shore right. And that, for the most part, they do not care. But that, possibly as early as next week, when the City Council is scheduled to vote on a seven-page ice cream ordinance 15 years in the making, they could at last be granted the right of beach ice-cream sales.

On a scorcher of a day, the hardest thing at the Taste of Philadelphia food festival was to keep the ice in ice cream. A team of 400 volunteers executed a precision plan that mapped out the move of chocolate and vanilla from refrigerated truck to standing dry-ice freezer to table to cup to outstretched hand. Yasu Nagi, of Center City, downed 15 scoops in an hour. "It's hot, but that's great for eating ice cream," said Nagi, 31. Nagi, who is originally from Japan, was among the crowds of people who came out to Penn's Landing on Saturday to sample the sweet and the savory at the annual Taste of Philadelphia food festival, part of the 10-day Wawa Welcome America!

Crowds came to sample the sweet and savory at the Taste of Philadelphia food festival Saturday, but it was the ice cream that seemed to rule the day. Under a relentless sun, the cool smudge of freshly scooped ice cream soothed the hot and sweaty who came to celebrate the Wawa Welcome America festival. The Taste of Philadelphia is one of many events in the 10-day freedom fest which includes fireworks, music, food, history, and plenty of red, white and blue. "It's a nice day. It's hot and you can't beat $7 dollars for all-you- can-eat ice cream," said Mia Allen, 30, of Northeast Philadelphia.

2 cups sugar ? cup water ? cup lime juice Zest of 2 limes Cream of coconut, to drizzle     1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, water, lime juice and lime zest. Heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow the mixture to cool completely. Refrigerate until ready to use. 2. To use with shaved ice, drizzle a bit of the syrup over a cone or bowl of ice, then drizzle cream of coconut over the top. Alternatively, to make granita, stir another 1 ?

I expected to hate this new product. I mean, chocolate cream cheese sounds like something we could all live without. But then I tasted the dark chocolate version, and, well, I stand corrected. It's rich and creamy, with a little bitterness from the Belgian chocolate, and a little tang from the cream cheese. Spread it on butter cookies, or use it to dip strawberries. And I'm sure there are baking applications yet to be explored. I can still live without the white chocolate or milk chocolate versions, but the dark chocolate is worth a try.   Philadelphia Indulgence, from the makers of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, 2.99 for an 8-ounce tub.   — Maureen Fitzgerald     A smashing souvenir   Just in case all the details of the sudsy insanity of Philly Beer Week are beginning to fade before it's over, here's a prime piece of festival swag that's likely to endure: a mini-Hammer of Glory bottle opener that Standard Tap co-owner William Reed had artist Warren Holzman cast in bronze.

Food: Handmade ice cream in unconventional flavors. Earl Grey Srichacha sounds like a bad idea. We assure you, it is not. There are usually six flavors, three Philadelphia-style (with 16 percent butterfat cream from Trickling Springs Creamery in Chambersburg) and three nondairy. Who's behind it? Founded one year ago by Pete Angevine, Martin Brown and Jeffrey Ziga. What's in that name? Ziga says: "It sprang out of the ether. It's emotional. I'm a little baby, you're a little baby.

Jordan Smart's name is perfect for a scholar. Or, for that matter, for the recipient of a scholarship. A cerebral Sicklerville resident who plans to become a mechanical engineer, Smart, 23, is among four Camden County College students awarded $1,000 each from the Riletta T. Cream Scholarship Fund. "I can't thank [them] enough," Smart says. Cream, a longtime educator who served for 17 years as a Camden County freeholder, was married to Arnold Cream, the boxing champion better known as Jersey Joe Walcott.