Ice Cream's Newest Flavors
We're going ice cream crazy this summer. As the heat rises, Americans will be discovering some wild flavors of ice cream. Butter pecan and maple walnut, get out of the way. We're talking cilantro-lime, green tea-cardamom and icy plum infused with star anise.
Frozen ice creams and sorbets infused with herbs and spices are hot in restaurants from coast to coast. For at least a decade, top chefs have been piquing palates with frozen flavor combinations such as grapefruit-tarragon and cucumber-dill, and using them as both desserts and as elements of non-sweet courses, such as seared tuna drizzled with sesame oil and served with a tiny scoop of wasabi sorbet.
Even if you despise the idea of tuna and sorbet on the same plate, you can tap into the trend with an unusual flavor intended solely for dessert. The reason you should even bother is that some of these flavors are spectacular. Imagine the puckery sweetness of lime sorbet made from fresh-squeezed limes, spiked with a surprising note of grassy cilantro. The cilantro-lime sorbet is addictive. So is the plum sorbet with its warm undertone of spicy star anise, a Chinese spice that is sold whole -- they resemble little wooden stars -- in Asian food stores.
Green tea ice cream, a staple in Chinese and Japanese restaurants, is easy to make at home, too. You'll need to visit an Asian store for Japanese green tea powder. It's a strong instant version of green tea used by the Japanese to make both hot and iced tea.
Plum and Star Anise Sorbet