With July being the hottest month of the year, we celebrate National Ice Cream Month. National Ice Cream Day is also held on the third Sunday of July.
While ice cream is thought of as a modern food, its roots and basic ingredients date back over several millennia. Before ice cream, multiple cultures mixed together ice with sugar and different flavors. This is similar to what we now call sorbet. The earliest form of a dairy based frozen dessert can be traced to Mesopotamia in 3000 BC. The Mesopotamians had a frozen dish called dondurma, which consisted of goat milk, sugar, and salep.
One of the most successful predecessors to ice cream was in Italy with their gift of gelato to the culinary world. Bernardo Buontalenti took sorbet but made it with ice, salt, lemon, wine, milk, sugar, eggs, honey, and orange and bergamot flavorings. Gelato has less fat than ice cream, is churned at a slower rate, and is often served at a warmer temperature. These processes result in gelato having less air than ice cream and texture wise being softer and denser.
Gelato is derived from the Italian word for frozen, congelato. In my cultures, their ice cream is closer in form to gelato. The words in their languages often reflect this. Ice cream in Spanish is helado. The Hebrew word for it is גְלִידָה (glida).
Actual ice cream as a frozen dessert can be attributed to English speaking countries. The first recorded mention of the word was in England in 1671. At the Feast of St George at Windsor for Charles I, attendee Ellias Ashmole used the term to describe a dish which was only served on the King’s table. As the King of England in the 17th Century was the only one to get ice cream, the dessert remained a delicacy only the aristocracy consumed as freezers weren’t commonplace.
The United States in the 20th Century is responsible for significant change and availability of ice cream. In the early 1900s, ice cream soda was served at ice cream parlors. During the Prohibition Era, the soda fountain replaced bars and saloons for many as alcohol was banned. After World War II, refrigerators and freezers become more common to own. Ice cream was not only popular in the U.S., but throughout the world.
Industrialization made ice cream known and available to the masses, but it also affected how ice cream was produced. With the industrialization, milking was now done in factories and not on the farms. Refined sugar became a standard ingredient. And large factories also meant ice cream didn’t need to be made by hand or in small batches. With these changes, ice cream became an extremely denatured food.
Fortunately, today we’re seeing a movement going back to grass fed dairy, real sugar and sweeteners, and small batch ice cream. This is happening both with ice cream sold in supermarkets and ice cream shops. Living in Los Angeles, we’re fortunate to have so many options for scoop stores with real ice cream. As ice cream was influenced by frozen desserts of many different countries, a number of these ice cream shops incorporate different nationalities and cultures into their servings. A large number of stores make the traditional Italian gelato. There are also ice creams with Persian, Korean, Filipino, Thai, Japanese, and Mexican influences.
In alphabetical order, here are the 14 best grass fed ice cream shops:
Bacio di Latte
Location: Century City, Larchmont, Brentwood, Marina del Rey, Pasadena, 3rd Street
www.baaciodilatte.us
Edoardo & Luigi Tonolli were two brothers from Milan who drove across Italy in 2011 to study the recipes and ingredients used to make gelato. They founded Bacio di Latte by producing gelato based on the ancient traditions they learned about. Every day in every one of their shops, they produce their gelato. Edoarda & Luigi use organic milk and organic cream sourced from family farms in Sonoma County, CA. In terms of other ingredients; their chocolate, pistachios, and hazelnuts all come from Italy with some chocolate also from Belgium.
Bulgarini Gelato
Location: Altadena
www.bulgarinigelato.com
Bulgarini Gelato was founded by husband & wife Leo Bulgarini, originally from Rome, and Elizabeth, originally from Pasadena. The couple spent two years visiting villages in Rome to meet artisans who made gelato the old way fashioned way with only fresh ingredients and no artificial or pre-made mixes. While Italy, they met an 82-year-old, third-generation gelato maker who had retired in Catania of Sicily. Leo & Elizabeth studied with him for two before being sent to complete their education with an octogenarian in Milan. For their ingredients at Bulgarini Gelato, they travel around the world to find ecologically safe products and the best quality organic milk, the ripest fruit, the best chocolate, and the most flavorful and freshest nuts. A lot of their fruit is also purchased from local farmers markets and small farms in Southern California.
Busman Organic Milk Bar
Location: Koreatown
www.organicmilkbar.com
Of all the grass fed ice cream shop options, Busman Organic Milk Bar is the only one with soft serve ice cream. Their ice cream comes from the top organic dairy producer in Korea, Bumsan Farm Co. Busman’s dairy is USDA certified organic and antibiotic free. True Milk is their signature flavor. Other options include a rotating list of seasonal inspired flavors.
Carmela Ice Cream Shop
Location: Pasadena
www.carmelaicecream.com
When Jessica Mortarotti & Zachary Cox founded Carmela Ice Cream in 2007, they knew nothing about ice cream making, running a business, or if their ice cream business would even take off. But the one thing they did know is they wanted to make handmade ice cream with seasonal farmers market produce. They began making their ice cream in the kitchen for a downtown pizza shop at night and selling at the one farmers market interested in a “new concept”. From there, Jessica & Zachary were able to get the product into additional farmers markets, sell wholesale, cater events, and eventually move out of their shared kitchen. In 2011, they were able to open a brick and mortar creamery in Pasadena for Carmela. Carmela’s summer flavors include strawberry buttermilk, lemon verbena vanilla bean, white peach vanilla bean, and rose petal.
Fluffy McLoud’s
Location: Echo Park
www.fluffymccloudsicecream.com
Fluffy McLoud’s uses only whole organic ingredients. Their ice creams are made fresh several times a week with the simple ingredients of milk, sugar, and eggs. Their fudge, whipped cream, waffle cones are made in house as well. None of their products contain chemicals or preservatives. Fluffy McLoud’s sustainability isn’t limited to their food. They don’t provide any paper cups, plastic spoons, or straws. Serving the Fluffy McLoud’s ice cream in reusable serving containers, also gives their customers a chance grab a table and take some more time to enjoy their treats.
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams
Location: Los Feliz, Venice, Larchmont, Calabasas, Playa Vista, Beverly Hills
www.jenis.com
As an art and art history student, Jeni Britton first made ice cream in 1996 at the age of 22. Jeni loved blending her own oils and threw them into various foods. One day she added cayenne to her chocolate ice cream. She loved the balance of being sweet, cold, and flaming in the same product. From this point on, Jeni knew she’d be making ice cream the rest of her life. In 2002, she opened her first Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams shop in the North Market in Columbus, OH. She now has 65 scoop shops with several being in the greater Los Angeles area. Her ingredients include milk from family dairy farms, fair and direct trade chocolate, and fresh fruits and vegetables. From the beginning, Jeni’s Ice Cream has gone for unique varieties and now has ones including brambleberry crisp, watermelon taffy, and everything bagel.
Kansha Creamery
Location: Gardena
www.kanshacreamery.com
Kansha means gratitude in Japanese. The word fits very well with the visions of Kansha Creamery founders and siblings Elaine Yukari Marumoto-Perez & James Tatsuya Marumoto as they wanted to open a business to raise money for charity. Elaine & James were originally considering opening a restaurant or something larger. But they felt it was best to have a small staff and low overhead, so they went with an ice cream shop. James also had been making ice cream at home since he was 14. In 2015, their storefront opened and 75 cents of every item sold went to charity with rotating organizations to which their money was donated. Among Kansha’s current flavors offered are cinnabacon, matcha, white peach, white sesame, and blueberry black tea.
McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams
Location: Downtown Los Angeles, Studio City, Pacific Palisades, Santa Monica
www.mcconnells.com
Gordon “Mac” and Ernesteen McConnell founded McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams Mafter they had just moved to Santa Barbara in 1949. In the 1930s, Mac owned some of the first health food stores in the country and was looking for an idea. After having a bowl of vanilla ice cream one night, he realized how creameries had moved away from using real ingredients. Mac felt it was time to make small batch ice cream again. Mac and Ernie turned to the Central Coast farmers where they could get annual and seasonal ingredients, grass grazed milk and cream, fruits, nuts, and produce. The McConnell’s made their own jams and caramels and baked their own inclusions. In 1950, they opened their first shop. After Gordon had passed away in 1962, the company was sold to Santa Barbara local Jim McCoy. Jim and his wife Jeney expanded the business into Southern California. In 2012, husband and wife Michael Palmer and Eva Ein became the third generation to own McConnell’s. Some of the current limited release flavors of McConnell’s are matcha coconut crisp, toasted hazelnut butter, Garrison Brothers whiskey & pecan pralines, raspberry cheesecake & chocolate crust, & s’mores.
Mother Moo Creamery
Location: Sierra Madre
www.mothermoo.com
Mother Moo Creamery owner Karen Klemens is a graduate of Penn State’s Ice Cream Short Course, the largest ice cream program dedicated to the science and technology of ice cream. Her ice cream contains locally sourced ingredients grown within miles from her store. In addition to her fresh local ingredients, her commitment to sustainably extends to the products coming in recyclable and compostable cups and with recyclable and compostable spoons. Some of the flavors on the menu now at Mother Moo are caramel ripple with brownie, apricot crumble, and organic strawberry.
Rori’s Artisinal Creamery
Location: Santa Monica
www.rorisartisanalcreamery.com
Rori Trovato grew up enjoying her grandmother’s fresh churned ice cream after her family’s Sunday dinners. Rori began her professional career working in New York for food and travel publications as a food stylist, chef, and writer. But she eventually returned to California to launch Rori’s Artisanal Creamery in October 2011. Her ice cream follows her philosophy of “the only way to make it pure is to make it pure”. Rori’s favorite ice cream flavor is lemon curd. Other flavors include black pepper pistachio, fresh mint patty, honey almond, malted milk ball, NY strawberry cheesecake, and root beer float.
Saffron & Rose
Location: Westwood
www.saffronrosepersianicecream.com
1974, Ali Kashani-Rafye, or Haji as he was known to his friends in Westwood, developed the unique concept of Persian ice cream. His recipe for ice cream came with him when he left Tehran, Iran to move to the United States. Decades later, Saffron & Rose is still family owned and uses only high quality natural ingredients. All of their products are 100% organic and additive and preservative free. They’re also manufactured locally in small batches. Saffron & Rose’s innovative flavors include saffron pistachio, faloodeh, cucumber, taro and ube, and ginger.
Sweet Rose Creamery
Location: Santa Monica
www.sweetrosecreamery.com
Josh Loeb, Zoe Nathan, Colby Goff run the restaurant group Rustic Canyon Family. It began with one restaurant called Rustic Canyon sourcing produce from the Santa Monica Farmers Market. It soon expanded into multiple restaurants of various cuisines. Among them is the ice cream shop Sweet Rose Creamery. The first Sweet Rose opened in the Brentwood Country Mart and now there’s one on Main St. in Santa Monica. Like other Rustic Canyon restaurants, Sweet Rose’s ingredients are sourced from the nearby farmers market. It’s important for Sweet Rose to make all of the ice cream from scratch and with only organic, non-GMO ingredients. Sweet Rose’s dairy base is made in house with all organic ingredients. Their organic milk, cream, and eggs are all from California. New flavors are created every month at Sweet Rose, including ones coming from seasonal crops.
Van Leeuwen Ice Cream
Location: El Segundo, Culver City, Franklin Village, Silver Lake, The Arts District, Studio City, Long Beach, Fairfax, Woodland Hills
www.vanleeuwenicecream.com
Van Leeuwen Ice Cream was first served by Ben and Pete Van Leeuwen and Laura O’Neill in a yellow food truck on the streets of New York City in 2008 with a mission to serve “good ice cream that makes you feel good”. A major part of being good was knowing that the ingredients in their ice cream were simple and clean. Van Leeuwen says “If it’s tough to pronounce, it’s probably tough to digest”. They also saw mental health and being happy as important as physical health. And using the real ingredients of milk, cream, eggs, and cane sugar for ice cream sounded like the key to happiness. Van Leeuwen currently has ice cream shops in five different states, including California.
Wanderlust Creamery
Location: Atwater Village, Fairfax, Pasadena, Sawtelle Japantown, Tarzana, Venice
www.wanderlustcreamery.com
The name Wanderlust Creamery refers to the feeling of Wanderlust which its creators had with the various flavors. Their flavors are based on numerous cultures. They’re inspired by the places the creators have been, where they’d still like to visit, and upon their childhood memories. Some of the countries which Wanderlust’s flavors are a nod to are the Philippines, Thailand, Mexico, Italy, and Japan.