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food&drink towers taste test review: Simply Ice Cream
Simply Ice Cream is much more than simply ice cream
By Helen Parkins
Few foods are so redolent of good times as ice cream. Little kids and big kids alike are seldom happier than when they’ve got a big dollop of the cold stuff in front of them, whether they are at the beach in summer or cosy on the sofa in winter. Ice cream, it seems, is our favourite frozen friend.
It’s a shame, then, that some manufacturers take advantage of our constant demand for their product to put out what is frankly disappointing stuff. The most heinous crimes of all? Flagrant overloading with sugar or sweeteners is one, and an over-reliance on artificial flavours and colourings is another.
Ice cream doesn’t have to be – and shouldn’t be – like this.
Happily, for ice cream lovers everywhere, Simply Ice Cream is one of those producers who understands. Theirs are no lily-livered corner-cutting impostors, but full-fat, no-holds barred ice creams, packed with the very best things.
For me, a good test of a producer or eaterie is whether they do the simple things well. Simply Ice Cream’s Dreamy Vanilla gets a big tick on that count. Gorgeously creamy, and rich with real vanilla pods, it’s delicious whether eaten on its own or slathered in whatever toppings you choose (try with maple syrup and chopped walnuts for a show-stopping treat). In short, it’s the kind of ice cream you’ll never tire of.
As the name suggests, Heavenly Honeycomb Crunch is, indeed, divine. Ripples and little nuggets of tangy, almost salty, honeycomb run through the frozen custard base, making for a dangerously addictive ice cream. Not surprisingly, it’s Simply Ice Cream’s most successful product.
Lemon Curd is as it should be – not too sharp with lemon, but with the citrus beautifully balanced with the eggy creaminess of a well-made curd. The Stem Ginger and Marmalade works similarly well – powerful flavours both, yet blended with great skill to make a subtly spiced orangey ice cream. Delicious.
Brown Bread ice cream is a traditional version that our grandparents might recognise. Made with caramelised breadcrumbs, the resultant ice cream is nutty both in texture and flavour. For me, it’s not quite as stellar as those I’ve mentioned so far, but that’s a matter of personal preference.
As for the Coffee and Cobnut Fudge creation, the coffee wins out here. I couldn’t readily discern cobnut, which is a shame, nor much fudge, strangely. Still, I wouldn’t stop this ice cream from darkening my freezer, since the overall effect is somewhat akin to a cracking coffee and walnut cake in frozen form. Yes, please.
Sorbets are new to the Simply Ice Cream range, and – absolutely zinging with fruit as they are – look set to continue the company’s award-winning tradition. Eating the Raspberry sorbet, for example, is just like eating a mouthful of smoothly-puréed ripe raspberries fresh from the cane. It’s fantastic. And the Lemon sorbet is precisely the lemon sorbet you long for on a scorching hot day when your tastebuds have turned to simpering mush. It’s a great tongue-tingling reviver of an ice.
So there you have it. Simply Ice Cream. Ice cream (and sorbets) with no added rubbish. Wonderful natural flavours married with as smooth and as scoopable texture as you can imagine. And all packaged in cheerily colourful but elegant tubs. I liked them. I liked them a lot.
Would I buy it again? Yes, and again, and again, and again...
Star rating: 5/5
About Simply Ice Cream:
Owned by mother of four, Sally Newall, the Simply Ice Cream team produce the range in the old-fashioned way in small batches, ensuring that every batch is Simply the best quality.
The Simply Ice Cream product range tastes so good that it has scooped a plethora of awards including a Quality Food Award, a Taste of Kent award and a Gold Three Star Great Taste Award for the Heavenly Honeycomb Crunch flavour – the highest accolade any food product can receive.
The Simply Special Sorbet range is available in120ml and 500ml tubs from local farm shops, village stores, delis, pubs, tea rooms, attractions and restaurants across Kent, Sussex, Essex, Surrey and London.
Press contact: AJ Sharp / Caroline Walker Sharp Relations 0844 77 66 342 caroline@sharprelations.com.
About our food&drink towers taste tester:
Follow Helen Parkins on Twitter: @aforkful / @akentishkitchen
1.) When did the blog, http://www.akentishkitchen.co.uk, start and what is the aim of it?
I started the blog just a couple of months ago, with the aim of 'showcasing' some of the Kentish produce local to me (within, roughly speaking, a 20-mile radius of my house) and recording what I cook with it.
2.) How long have you lived in Kent?
I was born in Kent and lived here until I went to university. After many years away, I returned to live here at the end of last year.
3.) What are you top three 'Kent products' (food/drink)?
It's almost impossible to pick just three! I adore the fruit produce for which Kent is particularly renowned - apples, strawberries, and cherries - but that would mean leaving out so much else, such as cobnuts, watercress, fish and seafood, cheeses, honey, real ales... not to mention some truly outstanding meat and poultry, most of it organic, reared throughout the county.
4.) Do you have a favourite place to eat in Kent? I have several regular favourites, but for truly outstanding food, The Sportsman at Seasalter is unbeatable.
5.) Do you have a favourite deli/farm shop that you visit regularly? I'm incredibly fortunate to have three, all within a five-minute or so drive from me: Wingham Country Market, which specialises in fruit and vegetables; Gibson's Farm Shop (in Wingham), which has an on-site butchery, and a cherry orchard right outside the back of the shop; and the unlikely-sounding Mama Feelgood's in Bekesbourne, which is much more of a deli, and stocks a huge range of predominantly Kentish produce.
6.) What should people know about Kent food and drink that you think is not widely communicated? Kent has long been famous for its orchards, soft fruits, hops, and oysters. But Kent offers so much more variety in its top-notch food produce than simply those goods for which is it traditionally known, and it is something of a mystery to me as to why Kent isn't more of a food lovers' destination. Perhaps it suffers from being London's direct neighbour, and also the train and car conduit for France. We also have some excellent restaurants worth shouting about. And I suppose that is a large part of the motivation for starting my blog - to do my bit in raising awareness of the best of Kent's food!
