In Jewish tradition, it’s customary to eat sweet foods with hopes of ushering in a happy new year. It seemed appropriate to put this into practice for the secular new year, too, for our first Cheap Eats of 2022.
So even though the weather outside was frightful (a less-than-balmy high of 23 degrees on the day we taped this episode) we decided to go out for ice cream.
Now, I’m a firm believer that it’s never too cold to eat ice cream — and that particularly holds true when the ice cream comes from Swanky Scoops, which makes small batch creative flavors of pure luxury.
Alissa Vieira is the creative genius behind the business, whose offerings are available exclusively at the Original Sub Shop. She sells pints and half-pints (a.k.a.: single servings) to eat on-site or to take home. And they’re prepared and packaged with love and attention to every detail; each container even bears her own handwriting, as she prints the flavor names on the lids herself.
The swanky sensations are seasonally-inspired, so holiday flavors such as eggnog are on hiatus now. To welcome 2022, I got to try a mix of new tastes and returning favorites.
The Lemon Meringue Pie is a sweet-tart ice cream with tidbits of sweet marshmallow and the crunch of graham cracker crumbs — all the taste sensations of the original dessert, deconstructed and re-envisioned. And it’s an absolutely necessary bright antidote to the dreary gray skies of winter, especially since this is citrus’ time to shine. (I also must note that it’s wonderful to see that the ice cream is off-white, not a synthetic lemon color. The purity of the ingredients is a key component to the beauty of Swanky Scoops.)
I happen to love ginger: powdered, fresh, candied, and in virtually any kind of dish or treat. So when I’d seen on social media that Ms. Vieira was making ginger ice cream, I nearly swooned. This flavor did not burst my anticipatory bubble — it was seductively smooth and creamy, with no additions or stir-ins, and with all the vibrancy of the ginger root infused into the milk base.
It’s “spicy, as ginger should be,” Ms. Vieira said with a smile, happy to know that I’d loved the tingling sensation that contrasted on my tongue with the coolness inherent in the ice cream. If we can get through the pandemic and host dinner parties again, it would make a stellar palate cleanser. And at home, a mock-affogato made with the ginger ice cream and a pour-over of coffee whiskey was indescribably amazing.
Finally, the swirled Cinna-Spicy Chocolate is a yin/yang of sweet and spice. The rich, slightly savory chocolate portion is “a little bit smoky,” Ms. Vieira said, with the addition of ancho and chipotle chilis. Its heat is balanced by the sweet creaminess of the cinnamon side. Take small bites of each, to get the full impact of both flavors, but then be sure to pair them in one spoonful for the whole complementary experience.
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.
And we’ll scream especially loudly for ice cream as luscious and decadent as that offered by Swanky Scoops.
Swanky Scoops, available at the Original Sub Shop, 402 Broadway St., 419-243-4857, swankyscoops419.com.
Contact Mary Bilyeu at 419-724-6155 or mbilyeu@theblade.com, and follow her at facebook.com/FoodMavenMary.
First Published January 12, 2022, 1:00 p.m.
