Whether it’s 30°C or 0°C, I absolutely love eating ice cream. When Raymond and I travel, we have such a great time sampling local frozen treats, such as patbingsu in South Korea or Ghirardelli ice cream in San Francisco. When the seasons change, some ice cream purveyors release special edition flavours just for the holidays. Two of my favourite things—Christmas and ice cream—brought together? Yes, please!
For my fellow ice cream enthusiasts, I have compiled a list of some shops and restaurants that are featuring festive flavours this holiday season. While some of these icy indulgences might seem pricy compared to your typical supermarket offerings, trust me, they’re worth it, as nothing quite beats artisanal ice cream.
Columbus • Cleveland • Nashville • Chicago • Atlanta • Charleston • L.A. • St. Louis • Online
On any number of occasions, I have had ice cream from Jeni’s, and I can vouch that it is indeed splendid! Jeni’s Splendid Holiday Collection features complex, unique flavours, such as The Matterhorn [wildflower honey ice cream with white chocolate flakes and smoky almonds] and Spiced Sweet Cream: Holiday Notes [cardamom, Peru balsam, fenugreek, and vanilla]. The whole collection includes:
If you live in—or will be visiting—Columbus, Cleveland, Nashville, Chicago, Atlanta, Charleston, Los Angeles, or St. Louis, you can also visit a Jeni’s scoop shop to pick up a pint or try a trio on a handmade waffle cone. Find your nearest scoop shop here.
Edinburgh • London • Norwich • Bath • Liverpool • Glasgow • York • And Many More Cities
With 4 scrumptious vegetarian burgers on the menu, Gourmet Burger Kitchen is my favourite spot to grab a burger when I’m in the UK. What’s more, they have really tasty milkshakes, including a gingerbread cookie dough and clotted cream ice-cream milkshake [£4.75]. Find a GBK location near you and enjoy this seasonal shake.
Portland, Oregon-based Salt & Straw is offering a December Seasonal Pints Pack. Taking inspiration from the Christmas season and Portland, this pack contains the following flavours:
NYC • Chicago • Los Angeles • Boston • Philadelphia • Washington, D.C. • And Many More Cities
From humble beginnings in Madison Square Park to now a global empire, Shake Shack has introduced a trio of holiday shakes that are available through 1 January. Choose between Chocolate Peppermint, Christmas Cookie, or Pumpkin Pie [$5.79]. On sale at all U.S. locations except stadiums and JFK airport, find your nearest Shack here.
Atlanta • Athens • Charleston • Charlotte • Greenville • Nashville • Richmond • Savannah • Online
The mission of Atlanta-based King of Pops is “to introduce the community to frozen happiness on a stick,” and they do just that with their artisan popsicles, which are quite tasty. This year you can grab their pack of exclusive holiday flavours: Gingerbread, White Chocolate Peppermint, Eggnog, and Apple Cider. This pop pack is available online for $15 or at their locations around the Southern U.S.
If you live near Atlanta, you can also stop by King of Pops Bar & Good Grub at Ponce City Market. Here you can get pop dipped in chocolate or a poptail, which is exactly what is sounds like—a cocktail with a pop in it. Yum!
Rome • Venice • Milan • Florence • Turin • Verona • Siena • Brescia • Parma • And Many More Cities
Selling gelato that is 100% natural, GROM has locations all over Italy, and on my trips there, I have been known to visit GROM more than once, as gelato is most definitely a requirement during any holiday to Italy. This Christmas season, they are serving several festive flavours, such as Panettone, Marrons Glacés [candied chestnuts], and Caramello al Sale [caramel with Himalayan pink salt]. If you’re in Italy or will be visiting Italy this December, check out Il Natale di GROM for their fun advent calendar, and find a location to enjoy some gelato yourself.
What is your favourite ice cream treat during the holiday? Is there another creamery I should know about? Let me know in the comments!
Whether you say “Gleðileg Jól” to the Yule Lads while eating möndlugrautur [Christmas rice pudding] or “Fröhliche Weihnachten” to Christkind while snacking on vanillekipferl [cresent-shaped almond cookies], the holiday season is full of delicious food and fun times with family and friends. To learn more about how folks celebrate Christmas the world over, check out the infographic below!
Click on the image for a closer look! Infographic via Lemonly
Everyone knows that an elf’s four food groups are candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup. To some people that may sound like a sugar overdose, but to us elves, that sounds wonderful. This Cyber Monday, your sweet tooth is getting an upgrade because these fancy sweets are on sale today! Stock up and get some goodies to give as hostess gifts, family gifts, or stocking stuffers.
The top-notch sweets at Sugarfina are candies at their finest. This holiday bento box comes with 8 different candies, including candy cane caramels, mini gingerbread men, pumpkin pie caramels, and champagne bubbles. And when you spend $75 today, you’ll receive a Cheers 3pc Bento Box with code HOLIDAYCHEERS. Valid 11/28 only.
A classic holiday confection that everyone will enjoy is peppermint bark, especially this snowflake-shaped bark from Stonewall Kitchen. For more tasty treats, shop the daily deals at StonewallKitchen.com today and every day from now until Christmas!
All of us elves up here at the North Pole really enjoy making things both at work and in our spare time. As such, it shouldn’t be a surprise that we really love learning about creative projects from folks all around the world—whether it’s yummy food, novel products, or unique holiday cards. So, it’s time once again this year to highlight some fabulous festive projects that are currently seeking funding on Kickstarter, a website whose mission is “to help bring creative projects to life.”
If you and your family cut your own Christmas tree each year, the Christmas TreeTransporter will help you easily and securely haul the tree on top of your car. This reusable carrier protects the roof of your car from scratches and sap, plus it makes the tree easy to carry.
Countdown to Christmas with a box of twelve gorgeous, artisanal chocolates from Salt Confectionery. Each box contains a dozen handmade chocolate pyramids made from premium Belgium white or dark chocolate and includes flavours such as strawberry, matcha, Oreo, and almond macadamia. Yum!
The ToyTree is a Christmas tree designed specifically for babies and toddlers. This expandable tree is a safe, fun, and educational toy that includes lights, music, and toys, so it would be perfect for the home, Sunday school classroom, or daycare.
Handmade using a variety of woods—such as zebrano, oak, ash, and alder—these holiday cards feature accents of beeswax, copper, and watercolour. With 3D and movable elements, these cards are small works of art.
Looking for a modern take on a Christmas tree? Then check out the One for One Christmas EcoTree from MIO, which has a fun and unique tool-free, hardware-free, modular design. Made from recycled, FSC-certified cardboard, the EcoTree is easy to assemble and store. What’s more, for every tree sold, MIO will donate a tree to a family in need via Toys for Tots.
The closer it gets to Christmas, the more I think about all the yummy foods I’ll be eating this holiday season. Surely I’m not the only one who is salivating over such thoughts, right? 😉 I’m particularly excited to try out a few new recipes, such as the yule log. Depending on how it turns out (and how my family responds to it), it might become a “must-have” Christmas dessert!
I also like to keep things lively at family gatherings, so I’m going to tuck away some facts from this infographic so I can pop a few trivia questions at Christmas dinner. Speaking of Christmas dinner, did you know that 50% of people have a gene that makes Brussels sprouts taste bitter? So, if half your family hates sprouts, now you know why!
To learn more fun facts and stats about some British Christmas foods, click on the infographic below.
Click on the image for a closer look! Infographic via The Fact Site
