August 2008 | Healthy Living :: Tastebuds

Cool Comfort

Local ice-cream makers take the single scoop to a delectable, new level

BY AMY PENNINGTON

I once made a homemade version of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia ice cream for an old boyfriend’s birthday. I feel pretty confident that the hand-stirred, chocolate-flaked, Bing cherry–laden ice cream I made with my own bare hands (and some raw cow milk from Vashon) added another year to our now-defunct relationship. And really, what I mean by that is…ice cream is powerful stuff.

If recent ice-cream parlor openings in Seattle are any indication of ice cream’s power, we’ve had a near energy surge in our city this summer. It all started earlier this year when a table full of young men stood scooping up ice cream at the annual Farmer-Chef Conference in February. Normally, a buffet lunch is served, but this year we were graced with hand-scooped ice cream for dessert, compliments of never-heard-of-’em-before Empire Ice Cream. What I didn’t know then is that these gentlemen were the start of an absolute snowball effect. Or seemed to have been, because ever since local ice-cream makers have multiplied by the minute.

Molly Moon’s Homemade Ice Cream in Wallingford opened with a free scoop for kids on the first day and a long line down the street that seems to be a permanent fixture, regardless of the day of week or time of day. Complete with business investors, Molly’s shop serves as a sleek grown-up ice-cream parlor version, featuring a minimalist interior design, a fancy neon sign and hipster music. You can often find 30-somethings and empty nesters anxiously waiting for elegant flavors like salted caramel and balsamic strawberry. Miss Moon is committed to using local produce and organic ingredients when she can. Lavender for the honey-lavender is from Vashon Island, and her strawberries are compliments of Skagit Valley Sun. On my last visit, I smelled the waffle cone griddle from three doors down, which whetted my appetite for a big scoop of Scout Mint on a sugar cone. Good stuff.

Full Tilt Ice Cream opened last month in White Center and doubles as a pinball arcade. Pinball and some “vintage” video games line the back walls of the shop while ice cream takes center stage up front. Flavors are influenced by the neighborhood’s dense Latino and Asian population — Mexican chocolate, mango chili and Thai tea. Free spoons and samples are happily handed out. I had Mexican Birthday Cake (tasted like Carvel), Memphis King (banana, peanut butter and chocolate-covered bacon) and one of the most extraordinary things I’ve ever eaten — VEGAN MOCHA. That’s right…vegan mocha, made with coconut cream. Coconut touches the corners of your taste buds while a mocha-licious flavor dominates. A must, even for a dairy-lovin’ ice-cream purist such as myself. Another winner was the paletas (a Latin American ice pop made of fresh fruit). The one-dollar pops are made specifically with kids in mind. I had the blackberry cinnamon paleta and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. So where does all this flavor inspiration come from? “He’s a major food geek,” said Ann Cline, wife of owner, Justin Cline and occasional ice-cream scooper.

Recent openings aside, the granddaddy of them all is Snoqualmie Ice Cream in Maltby, Wa. Not only has Snoqualmie forged the way for all eco-friendly frozen cream, they now share the wealth by helping out other small shop owners who don’t live next to a dairy cow pasture. The ice-cream mix for both Molly Moons and Full Tilt is made from local and organic milk and put together by the folks at Snoqualmie. From there, the shops add their flavors and use smartly sourced ingredients. Snoqualmie features nineteen flavors, each made in small batches. I recently called Snoqualmie’s headquarters and the CEO himself politely answered the phone. Turns out that they were the first commercial sustainable development project in Snohomish County when the factory was built three years back. “What we have found is there is always more to learn and more to do and more we wish we could do,” said Barry Bettinger. In addition to energy efficient design, Snoqualmie began composting last year as a personal commitment to keep our landfills from filling. This year they added a rain catchment system. New flavors to watch for (at most Seattle grocery stores) this summer are salted peanut butter, crème fraîche gelato and a mango frozen custard.

You don’t have to travel far, however, to get your hot little hands on some homemade ice cream. A handful of independent ice-cream makers are popping up at farmers’ markets throughout the city. The Lake City (Thursday) and Broadway Farmers’ Markets (Sunday) are home to Half Pint Ice Cream. Owner and sole employee, Clé Franklin, hand makes small individual batches using organic milk, sugar and eggs the old-fashioned way. Scooped for cup or cone, standout flavors include Earl Grey chocolate and toasted coconut. You can find four to six flavors of Empire Ice Cream at the Ballard Farmers’ Market (Sunday) and the University District Market (Saturday). Needing only to look over their shoulder at neighboring farmers for what fruits and veggies are ripe, Empire ice-cream makers grab their flavor inspiration from the market weekly. Sweet pea with mint and strawberry sorbet were two of the recent additions. Over on the eastside at Juanita Beach Farmers Market (Friday), sits Poco Carretto Gelato, a project of chef Holly Smith, winner of a James Beard award. With an elegant gelato cart and refined flavors, Poco Carretto elevates market scooping to a new masterful level. Using milk from Fresh Breeze (organic) and Sea Breeze Farm, the gelatos and sorbettos are served with biodegradable cups and spoons. I tasted the burnt sugar (not too sweet), toasted rice (unbelievable) and the Lillet Blanc sorbetto (boozy and refreshing). The cart can also be found at the new Mercer Island Farmers Market (Sunday). This month, as the heat of the summer rolls in, look for upcoming flavors: watermelon and tomato (yes, tomato), to cool you off and sweeten your days.

Amy Pennington recently grew and harvested her own purple sage for a batch of ice cream to be served alongside blueberry hand pies. To see what else is cookin’, visit gogogreengarden.com