INSIDE SCOOP

ALERT!! Ice Cream Lovers!! Make plans for 2023 to come North of the NH Notches!! Why?? Well…because…Tucked into a Main Street storefront in Bethlehem, NH is the best ice cream I have found, but it is a “Super Secret,” only shared with the very special Backroads readers and riders. What I learned from the owner, Kristina Zontini, con rms my taste buds… First Secret? “Making ice cream isn’t complicated; for us, it is a labor of love. We really care about the craft, and are committed to using whole ingredients, mostly local, but always quality.” Next Secret? “Our big secret is that we make everything from scratch. So, instead of buying an “ice cream base” and avoring it with strawberry avored syrup or other arti cial avor extracts, we actually make our own base. Our process is different…” Step 1: a high quality scratch made base with local milk & cream from the local Hatchland Farm, with unusually high butter fat; Step 2: Very little air is added to the ice cream, keeping it dense & creamy;

Step 3: Working with lots of local ingredients to create the avors. For example, using local maple sugar from Mount Cabot Maple (organic, single source, wood red, woman-owned for the Maple ice cream; it creates such a rich avor! In the summer the blueberry and strawberry ice creams are made with local berries, fresh mint is used for mint chip, etc. This fall, they are featuring a stunning Delicata Squash Spice (think the more sophisticated older cousin to your traditional pie pumpkin, from Bent Fork Farm in Bethlehem). The chocolate ice creams use a very special single-origin chocolate from Ecuador that’s unlike any other chocolate.

The product: “Churned in the White Mountains. Tiny batches from scratch.

Local dairy. Happy cows. No weird stuff.” It tastes like all of that. Kristina is self-taught. She spent lots of time internet searching, reading cookbooks, and using the old fashioned “trial and error” on her lucky friends and family. She now is part of an online community group of other artisan ice cream makers who share tips, tricks, what works, what doesn’t, etc. She has learned a lot from following other shops online, especially when they share behind the scenes shots of ice cream being made. Like many of us, she always loved ice cream and more speci cally the experience of going out for an ice cream cone with friends. It started off as a hobby and it just kept growing. Her motto? ”I’ll keep going if I’m still having fun.” She chose Bethlehem, New Hampshire, instead of some bigger place because her husband grew up here, and she, too, fell in love with the area. The location is beautiful, and Bethlehem’s little Main Street is lled with other awesome local business-

es. When their building came up for sale, it won their hearts because they knew they would have a wonderful community of neighbors. Her intent is for their little “scoop shop” to become a spot where community members can gather for special events, celebrations, etc. Right now, they are nishing renovations to the inside, to make a seating area and kitchen to be able to offer sundaes and other treats.

Why the name “Super Secret”? She started off offering ice cream to friends and family via a private Instagram account/e-mail list. It just popped into her head when trying to send out her rst email to friends, when she wasn’t sure yet what she actually was doing. So she jokingly called it the “Super Secret Ice Cream Club.” It ended up being pretty tting, as she had to keep it all a secret as she learned. She was making such small batches at rst, and pick-up was at a little shed behind her house! She thought about changing the name, but now there are too many kid customers that love whispering “Let’s go to super secret!,” and that’s just too cute.

I have tasted Mt. Cabot Mable, Single Source Chocolate and their autumn invention of Delicata Squash Spice. I look forward to many return visits to sample their other offerings and summertime rides for that treat of a cone. As of this report, only the Scoop Window is open but they are working on interior seating, hopefully ready by the spring. If you see this before Thanksgiving and you are in the area, Kristina will be making pies to be paired with recommended ice cream avors.

PS you can sign up for email updates on new avors and other news at their website. ,