ColdSweat (Sunni Sky)
It's summer and that means big, slurpy scoops of ice cream in cones, dishes or straight from the freezer. Chocolate and vanilla are always tops, of course, but how about a few unworldly flavors to set your taste buds quivering (or possibly running in panic)?
Here's a selection of some of the stranger choices you can try if you've got a thirst for adventure and a taste for something fantastic and frozen:
Secret Breakfast
Where: San Francisco's Humphry Slocombe
This brilliant flavor combines last night's party with this morning's breakfast: it's an unexpected mix of bourbon and cornflakes for those who like to compress both time and tastes.
It also should be noted that Humphry Slocombe has one of the wildest list of flavors going, including Boccalone Prosciutto (a combo of fine cuts of pork and ice cream), Butter Beer, Foie Gras, Strawberry Black Olive and Peanut Butter Curry.
Their website says they offer 10 to 12 flavors daily and rotate often (they also tweet flavor updates).
Garlic
Not the first flavor that comes to mind when you think of ice cream, but in Gilroy, California, the self-proclaimed "garlic capital of the world," it's a huge hit at the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival - plus not a vampire for miles around.
Cold Sweat
Where: Sunni Sky's Homemade Ice Cream in Angier, North Carolina
Brace yourself for a flamingly hot ice cream experience. This concoction, including hot sauces and pequin, habanero and Thai chili peppers, is so fiery the company asks you to sign a liability waiver before wolfing any down.
In a tongue-in-cheek waiver on its website for "Dangerously HOT Cold Sweat," Sunni Sky lists a number of health problems that preclude tasting it (including heart problems, neurological problems and vision problems), announces no one under 18 is allowed to taste the product without a legal guardian's consent and says "no one above the age of 30 should attempt to even sample this product."
It also notes, "What is painful going in may be painful upon exit."
If you can survive Cold Sweat, Sunni Sky offers an even more potent chaser: Exit Wound. Its waiver says "we do not provide oxygen on the premises."
Late Night Snack
Where: Ben & Jerry's
OK, so maybe this isn't quite as exotic as the others, but it's got a celebrity angle: it was inspired by a Jimmy Fallon skit and his photo appears on the container. Plus, it wraps all of those midnight munchies yearnings into one goopy snack: vanilla ice cream with caramel swirls and fudge-covered potato chips.
Finally, if you're willing to travel for your novelty nosh, your first destination should be Heladeria Coromoto in the western Venezuelan town of Merida. The choices there number over 800 with about 60 served each day, according to The Food Channel.
Among the more outrageous offerings past and present: macaroni and cheese, sardines in brandy, squid, smoked trout, gherkin, cheeseburger (meat, cheese and french fries) and "pabellon criollo," a traditional Venezuelan meal involving beef, rice, cheese and black beans.
And how could you top that off? How about with a scoop of "mushrooms and wine" for dessert?
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