Review of Tara's Organic Ice Cream in Santa Fe, New Mexico

Established by Tara Esperanza in 2005, Tara's Organic Ice Cream is highly respected by local cone-heads and professional chefs for its homemade mouth feel and innovative flavors. Maintaining a creamy texture in commercial frozen desserts without the use of stabilizers and fillers is a tricky business, but Esperanzas organic royale recipe delivers in spades. Her new scoop shop, which opened in March, is the icing on the cake for the vibrant Second Street district. Originally inspired by an ice-cream maker given to her by friends, Esperanza began experimenting with unconventional flavor combinations. .

Her flavors speak volumes to her close relationship with herbs, spices, and organic fruits. Her blueberry mint ice cream is a subtle, fruit-flavored delight, with high notes of real mint fresh from the garden. Unlike the candy-cane-flavored goop we find at grocery stores, Tara's mint flavor is bursting with authenticity. Colored deep purple by the organic blueberries, this treat pleases the eye as well as the taste buds. My longtime allergy to milk chocolate requires a guilty-pleasure substitute: peanut butter. These days, peanut-butter ice cream is a rarity, replaced instead by vanilla spotted with peanut butter cups coated in - you guessed it - milk chocolate. Until Tara's came along, 1 had to get creative: take eight ounces of chunky peanut butter, flatten it between wax paper, and throw into the freezer overnight. Break peanut butter into pieces and stir into ice cream vigorously, completely ruining the texture of both.

Tara's peanut-butter ice cream is my saving grace because it's delicious - and I don't have to make it. I liken the flavor more to fresh roasted peanuts than the super-sweet, sticky peanut butter most folks buy at the supermarket. There is a feathery mouth feel to this flavor, and it makes a killer milkshake with bananas. Flavors at Tara's span the globe as well as the garden. Try these innovative combinations on for size: adzuki bean with toasted sesame seeds; basil; garam masala; mango-ginger; orange-cashew; and my personal favorite, white-pepper chocolate-chip.

White-pepper ice cream has been around for a while, as evidenced by the 1996 song "White Pepper Ice Cream" by Japanese art-rockers Cibo Matto (crazy food in Italian). Tara's version comes from her love of cooking with white pepper, and baby, this ice cream packs a punch. I can easily navigate around the chocolate chips, but there's no way to avoid the heated tickle at the back of the throat offered up by this pungent concoction. .

I like heat, but for young kids, this flavor might be a stretch. White-pepper ice cream is an acquired taste that shines on its own and does double duty as a garnish for things like gazpacho and chilled watermelon- mint soup. Tara's flavors rotate occasionally, and the staff is happy to let you sample her creations before committing to a purchase. Tara's Organic Ice Cream is located at 1807 Second Street suite 32 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, 216-9759