New Salt & Straw Ice Cream Series Embraces Spring With Floral Flavors
Salt & Straw — Portland, Oregon's cult favorite ice cream purveyor — has just announced the arrival of a new series containing five flower-powered ice cream flavors in honor of several perennial bloomers and plants of springtime. According to a press release sent to Tasting Table, these pints highlight the taste of four classic edible flowers: jasmine, rose, hibiscus, and orange blossom, plus a nod to the fruit of a favorite flowering plant — licorice-forward anise.
Curated by Salt & Straw co-founder Tyler Malek, four of the pints are returning fan favorites, while the Lemon Mari Gold Amaro Sherbet is a brand-new ice cream making its debut. The innovative ice cream shop loves its themed flavors, like the recent nostalgia-inspired cereal ice cream, but this time the collection is devoted to the wild and cultivated blossoms that cover the Pacific Northwest during spring.
Stop and smell the ice cream
First up is a classic floral combo that calls to mind the Persian New Year, the pale green and yellow-speckled Pistachio with Saffron and Rose Water ice cream. Those yellow bits? Rosewater-glazed saffron butter mochi cake. For something on the fruitier side, the Rhubarb and Toasted Anise is the scoop du jour: a light vanilla base is packed with jammy swirls of rhubarb and a crunchy streusel-like crumble accented with licorice-like anise. If you're a tea fan, you'll be interested in the Jasmine Milk Tea Almond Stracciatella, which is made with tea from Red Blossom Tea Company. The aromatic almond and jasmine notes play well with the thin threads of chocolate embedded in the ice cream.
Rounding out the collection are two bright sherbets, including the new Lemon Mari Gold Amaro Sherbet. The secret to this sherbet is the Mari Gold Amaro from Straightaway Cocktails, a sunshine blend of orange blossom, citrus, and gentian root. Combined with a lemon and marshmallow ribbon, it's like a cocktail you can scoop. Then there's the blushing pink Hibiscus and Coconut Sherbet scented with cinnamon and ginger, a dairy-free option that takes inspiration from Haiti.
All five pints will be available starting April 28th for individual or bundle purchases at stores, or online as a limited edition "Eat Your Flowers" box. So, consider snagging a bouquet of pints, rather than flowers, for yourself at Salt & Straw this spring.