The Divisive Ice Cream You Can Taste In The Garlic Capital Of The World

Ice cream's plain creamy base supports a lot of wild flavors — soy sauce, salty licorice, goat cheese, sweet potato, and garlic. Yes, garlic. If you didn't think this allium had a place in the dessert world, a city in central California wants to prove you wrong. Gilroy's claim to fame is being the Garlic Capital of the World and every year, the city hosts a festival where you can sample garlic-flavored fries, kettle corn, waffles, cake, BBQ, and, of course, ice cream. 

When cooking with garlic, the ingredient works well in creamy dishes like pasta sauce and aioli, for example, which is why it can function as an ice cream flavor. The cream helps balance the sharpness of the garlic, as does the sweetness of the dessert's sugar. The garlic ice cream from Gilroy does include vanilla to help balance out the star ingredient's savory notes. At first glance, it looks like your standard scoop of vanilla, too. However, upon closer inspection, there are small pieces of garlic infused throughout. The initial flavor profile is sweet, creamy vanilla, but then the garlic flavor starts to hit the back of your throat with savory undertones. 

This ice cream flavor is only for true garlic lovers. For those who can't get enough of it, move on from vanilla and try the more adventurous garlicky flavors of roasted almond, chocolate, vanilla, pistachio, or pecan praline. Outside of the annual Garlic Festival, garlic ice cream can be found in several ice cream shops in the city of Gilroy.

When it comes to ice cream, it's probably not accurate that there is "no such thing as too much garlic." Garlic can be prepared in different ways to best incorporate it into ice cream. For homemade ice cream, one clove of garlic can be chopped up and heated with the milk and vanilla base. Without cooking it down so much, garlic will maintain its sharp, pungent flavor after incorporating it into ice cream. If you want to tone the flavor down, another option is to roast garlic before adding it to ice cream. This gives the garlic a more nutty, caramelized flavor and minimizes its pungency; it's also possible to roast it in honey to give it more sweetness. Some garlic ice cream recipes call for a balsamic vinegar swirl to bring on even more of a sweet and savory flavor profile. 

If your interest in garlic ice cream has been piqued, making homemade ice cream is not necessarily a requirement. Garlic powder can be sprinkled on top of or swirled into store-bought vanilla ice cream. For reference, 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder equals a clove. Or, you can finely chop and mix roasted garlic into the dessert.

Black garlic, which is regular garlic that has been aged until deep brown or black, is another option. This garlic tastes less intense and has an earthier, sweeter flavor, making it good for pairing with chocolate ice cream.