Story and photos: Gabby Burton
If you have a big sweet tooth like I do, you’re probably used to restraining yourself as well. But when I was recently given the opportunity to create my own ice cream flavor at Hungry Bear Creamery in Kennett Square, I realized that restraining myself wasn’t the right thing to do. Why be a kid in a candy store when you can be a kid in an ice cream shop?
Hungry Bear Creamery opened in December 2023 by Melinda Shaw. Before arriving at Kennett Square, she operated the UDairy Creamery for 12 1/2 years at the University of Delaware, where she taught the separate sciences of cheese and ice cream. .
“There were always people coming in who weren’t UD students who wanted to learn how to make ice cream, but we couldn’t offer something affordable to them, so we thought they should do it themselves.” I thought,” Shaw said.
Hungry Bear offers pre-made ice cream flavors, food, coffee, and even a bar, but Hungry Bear’s most unique attraction is its ice cream studio, where customers can create their own ice cream flavors . With four gallon-sized ice cream machines, dozens of containers filled with mix-ins, and several giant refrigerators, this ice cream studio can accommodate any ice cream flavor dream you might have. .
“We opened it because we didn’t know anyone else doing it. That was our motivation: Let’s do it now before other people think of it. ,” Shaw said.
Their plan seems to be working. Shaw said consumers travel over an hour to create their own flavors at Hungry Bear, and weekends are typically filled with customers trying the experience.
Now, at the risk of discrediting me on the ice cream thing, I have to admit that I don’t eat dairy and haven’t since I became vegan nearly four years ago. Before you stop reading, know that I used to crush ice cream in my dairy heyday, and since going vegan I’ve fallen victim to eight pints more times than I’d like to admit. I want you to stay. So when I learned that Hungry Bear was offering an oat-based option to make my dream ice cream, I truly felt obligated to follow through with it.
I recently attended one of Hangry Bear’s weekly Wednesday open sessions, as well as several other groups. And I will admit that I was feeling very positive about what was to come.
We started with a classic 14 percent fat base for our base, my Oatly base, and the family next to me. Did you know that if ice cream has less than 10% fat, it’s not actually ice cream?Neither did I, so if I’m being technical, I’d say it’s vegan, not ice cream. I made a frozen dessert, but I’m going to ignore that for now.
Next, Hungry Bear Creamery has 37 different options to choose from, with mind-blowing flavors to choose from. Of course, the flavor is determined entirely by which of the 48 mix-ins and 17 swirls you choose. Although it’s not a contest, I entered Hungry Bear because I wanted to share with the world the best flavor of ice cream ever made. No big deal.
After checking which of all the options were safe to eat, I settled on pink mint, chocolate crunch, and a swirl of a fudge and crunch mixture that resembled the middle of a Carvel ice cream cake.
Shaw handed me a small cup (pink color) with the flavor in it and I mixed it myself. This was a completely hands-on experience and soon it was time for the first spin.
“You mix the base first, then add the inclusions, so it doesn’t sink,” Shaw says.
Shaw also explained that we are making hard dip ice cream that needs to be frozen twice. The first was spun in the machine for 10 minutes to add air and give the base a soft-serve ice cream consistency.
After the spin came the fun part.
We poured the very real ice cream into a large tub to mix all the ingredients. Mix the crunch evenly, then carefully fold it into a swirl. At this point, I was extremely confident in my ice cream abilities, but the only thing I felt affected my taste at this point was naming my concoction. This is the most difficult part of ice cream. process. I finally decided to combine the “It Girl” qualities of both my dog Cookie and her, me, and my beautiful pink ice cream into “Cookie’s IT Girl Swirl” .
After scooping the ice cream into pint containers, I placed it in the deep freezer for 30-45 minutes to firm up. During the setup, Hungry Bear customers can enjoy additional food, coffee and alcoholic beverages provided by the creamery. Our group took advantage of this, but decided to play ice cream trivia on the show to kill time.
“Who invented the ice cream machine?” What is the difference between gelato and ice cream? “What is the most popular brand of ice cream in the world?” Shaw asked.
Unfortunately, I lost in the tie-break round.
After our time was up, we packed up our ice cream and left Hungry Bear with a vegan pulled pork sandwich, a latte, a wealth of ice cream knowledge, and 8 pints of the best vegan ice cream I’ve ever tasted. I did. The adventure was a success if you ask me.
I don’t know if it’s because of my high blood sugar levels or because the experience gave me pure joy, but that kid-like feeling I had at the ice cream shop was definitely something I missed. And I’m glad to be able to experience it again.
Hangry Bear Creamery is located at 660 East Cypress Street in Kennett Square. For more information about the creamery and how to reserve a studio and make your own ice cream, visit www.hangrybearcreamery.com.
