Just in time for summer, Heston Blumenthal, chef of Fat Duck ( the 3 Michelin starred restaurant and one of the top 3 restaurants in the world) and Dinner (which explores ancient British recipes) collaborated with high- end supermarket Waitrose to create two special ice-creams- Chocolate & Rosemary and Salted Caramel Popcorn (photo above). I decided to have a taste off – really just an excuse to have 2 tubs of ice-cream at the same time! So which one is better?
Straight from the freezer, without needing to rest much in room temperature, I was surprised to see how soft both ice-creams were. Nice!
I had high hopes for the Chococlate & Rosemary ice-cream (photo above) as I am a great fan of chocolate. However, it was disappointing. The taste and smell reminded me a lot of the herbal poultices 鐵打膏藥 one would find in a Chinese bone- setting clinic. They are not for eating but for putting over bruises etc. Not that I have ever eaten one of those poultices before but I just could not stop thinking about them when I had the chocolate ice cream in my mouth. Yuck! Who would have thought 14% chocolate + rosemary = Chinese herbal poultice? But if you have never been to a Chinese bone-setting clinic before, then you probably would have liked it.
The Salted Caramel Popcorn ice-cream (photo above), on the other hand, was an amazing delight. It looked a little lumpy but that was because there was real popcorn inside! It was not too sweet or rich and it was fun to eat. Thumbs up!
Heston has developed a range of food products with Waitrose, from condiments to pies. I have reviewed his coriander and rose salt, steak, ale & kombu pie and Lapsang Souchong tea smoked salmon and Vanilla mayonnaise. The Salted Caramel Popcorn ice-cream is definitely my favourite so far!
Winkypedia 
Noice…
Shame about the Choc and Rosemary one, since that would be the one I would have chosen first out of the two! (unlike you who brought both at once!)
Will keep an eye out for the popcorn one as I’m an avid ice cream fan :9
Cheers!
You are welcome!
Chocolate & Rosemary was the first one I tried too as I was very excited about it. Oh well, if I have not spent 3 weeks going to a Chinese bone-setting clinic over a year ago, I probably would have liked it!
I bet the popcorn one will be the most popular one!
So lovely!!! the cuakpces seems very tasty and I just love those mason jars thanks for this inspiration board lots of things came up on my mind after seeing this one ^_^
I bought exactly these two tonight, and must say, I love both of them! I am perhaps saved by the fact that I have never visited a Chinese bone-setting clinic (as fascinating as that sounds :-)). These are definitely two of the most interesting and delicious ice creams I have ever tasted. If their Salted Caramel Popcorn Ice Cream came in a larger tub, I would buy it in a heartbeat!
Me too! They’d sell the popcorn ice-cream in cinema!
The chocolate and rosemary ice cream was wonderful. The rosemary accentuated the chocolate. This happened by accident as my daughter-in-law had bought the ice cream from waitrose to try it, but our son and daughter-in-law thought it tasted awful, so they asked us if we wanted it. We love it and we also tried it out on some dinner guests who also loved it. I think it must depend on your own taste or chemical makeup. We also love the popcorn ice cream.
Well done Heston, life would be boring without adventure.
Lesley
His cooking definitely makes food more fun to eat!!
Nasty. Add rosemary to chocolate ice cream and it tastes like mould. Nasty.
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