Victory Garden’s Plant-Flavored Ice Creams Are All The Rage
From fashion heroes like Man Repeller to fitness bloggers like our friends over at Well + Good, people far and wide are obsessed with Victory Garden‘s goat milk ice cream– not only because it poses an alternative to cows’ milk ice cream, but because their products offer a unique spin on the flavors of nature.
Victory Garden’s intriguing array of plant-flavored ice creams are inspired by the Middle Eastern culinary tradition of Anatolian dondurma, a rich goat milk ice cream made with the root of the wild orchid. Following Middle Eastern tradition, the desserts often incorporate floral essences that are designed to elevate one’s state of mind (in addition to being delicious). Recent flavors– including Fennel, Honey Lavender, Orange Blossom Vanilla, Chocolate Rosemary, and Rose Petal– showcase this heritage.
Each flavor on Victory Garden’s ever-changing seasonal menu has an interesting origin story– when I meet owner Sophia Brittan in her cozy West Village shop, she tells me that the dates used in Victory Garden’s signature Date Yogurt ice cream are sourced from California’s Coachella Valley, where she used to visit her grandparents long before Palm Springs and the surrounding desert became famous for the giant SoCal Music Festival that put the word “Coachella” on the map.
Victory Garden’s milk is locally-sourced from goats at Side Hill Acres in Candor, New York. The goats are raised on fresh hay and grass, which enhances the quality and flavor profile of their milk. This milk is then churned to creamy perfection and infused in Victory Garden’s kitchen– two aspects of the production process that insure the flavor is sweet and complex, but subtle. Brittan keeps her flavors simple to bring out the tanginess of the milk (goat milk has an earthiness that cows’ milk uniformly lacks, and has a completely different nutrient profile). Victory Garden also offers soft-serve ice cream on site, but for those who can’t stay and linger, there’s always a freezer stocked with takeaway pints to go. The kitchen also offers cool delicacies like chia parfaits (with optional farm-sourced toppings) and rosemary-flavored brownies for those who pass on the frozen treats– but with ice cream this intriguing, who could say no to another scoop?
