We all scream for ice cream — it’s a part of a rhyme that we’re all familiar with. The fact is that ice cream is one of the most popular desserts across the world, and with good reason. It’s relatively easy to make, and has the benefit of cooling consumers down on a hot summer day. There’s a reason why June is the month in which the most ice cream is produced. With that being said, lots of people will eat ice cream no matter what the weather is like. It’s hardly a seasonal product anymore, with the NPD Group reporting that within any given two week period, 40% of Americans will consume ice cream. In fact, the typical American will eat ice cream 28.5 times this year — and Americans aren’t alone in their love of ice cream. Ice cream is a product with many different variations. In Italy, it comes in the form of gelato, which is denser and richer than American ice cream. The Japanese like mochi, a cake variation that is filled with ice cream for flavoring. Even in the States, there are now alternatives to traditional ice cream. Frozen yogurt in particular has climbed in popularity in recent years. But nobody can forget their first taste of ice cream — the flavors just might have changed since then. Below, we’ll look at some of the oddest flavors out there; would you be willing to pick up a tasting spoon and try these out?
1. Foie Gras
Leave it to the French to develop a flavor of ice cream modeled after foie gras. For the uninitiated, foie gras is a special delicacy that typically has a larger following in European countries than the U.S., though plenty of Americans love it too. Essentially, foie gras is a product made from the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened to produce a rich, buttery flavor. Foie gras is extremely popular in France, and is usually sold in the form of pate or a parfait. However, it apparently can work as an ice cream as well, though your mileage may vary. Foie gras flavored ice cream was created by the French ice creamery Philippe Faur. Philippe Faur has also been known to make ice cream flavored like caviar, mustard, and black truffle. Since the creation of foie gras cold treat in 2008, it’s apparently gained something of a following. Are you ready for it?
2. Pear With Blue Cheese
Blue cheese is an acquired taste under most circumstances. Lots of people refuse to try it as is — but perhaps if it came in the form of ice cream, they’d be more willing to give it a shot. Blue cheese, like many other unique cheeses, is often served with fruit — in this case, pear. The Salt and Straw ice cream shop in Portland, Oregon is known for pairing sweet flavors with savory ones in their dessert blends. Pear With Blue Cheese combines Oregon Trail Barlett pears with Rogue Creamery’s Crater Lake Blue Cheese. If that doesn’t appeal to you, perhaps you can taste the shop’s Honey Balsamic Strawberry With Cracked Pepper!
3. Raw Horse Flesh
This might be too much for most Americans — well, perhaps most people in general. Horse isn’t commonly eaten in the U.S., and is no longer commonplace in many European countries either. So it might make more sense that this flavor was manufactured in Japan, where horse is still more commonly seen on the menu. Even then, this is hardly a common flavor; it’s found at the indoor amusement park, Namja Town in the shop called Ice Cream City. This same shop also sells flavors like Cow Tongue, Salt, Octopus, and Squid.
4. Lobster
It’s only fitting that a lobster-flavored dessert would be found in Maine — specifically, at Ben and Bill’s Chocolate Emporium. This flavor is known for being buttery; so perhaps it’s not that different from normal lobster?