Fro-yo girl here. Salt & Straw’s new Concord Grape Nut Crumble frozen yogurt is part of the new Cereal-sly Delicious series for March. This marks the third new froyo flavor they’ve introduced this year (that’s one a month).
Salt & Straw describes Concord Grape Nut Crumble as, “Straight out of New England, we kick things off with Concord grape juice frozen yogurt. Churned with a little salt, cinnamon, and vanilla to amp up those roasty-toasty cereal notes, we fold in streaks of Grape Nut pudding (think creamy baked cereal meets cookie butter) for a rich and custardy swirl. Finally, a textured, nutty bite of housemade Grape Nut crumble, made with buttery toasted pecans, enters the mix. It’s all the crunchy, malty goodness you know and love—just a little easier on the teeth.”
Concord Grape Nut Crumble: Grape Grape Nuts froyo sounded interesting. The light purple color certainly was pretty. The froyo is packed with texture from the Grape Nuts and is thick and creamy. The Grape Nuts softened but still have some crunch. There is some tang as well, coming from either the yogurt or the grape juice, or both. It wasn’t sour. It didn’t taste like grape juice, so the grape juice seems to be mostly for the visual effect (or the tangy sweetness). I couldn’t even smell the grapes. Since I like Grape Nuts, I still enjoyed the scoop, but it needs more yogurt and grape flavor.
The Cereal-sly Delicious flavors are:
- Pots of Gold and Rainbows
- Snap N' Crackle Marshmallow Treats
- Peanut Butter Brownie Cereal Puffs
- Concord Grape Nut Crumble
- Captain's Berried Treasure (v)
And they’re available for a limited time in March, while supplies last.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Salt & Straw just introduced another frozen yogurt! That’s two consecutive months – something that’s never happened before. The froyo, Chocolate Toasted Buttermilk Torte, is part of The Chocolatiers Series. Salt & Straw describes it as: “For Sebastian Cisneros of Portland’s Cloudforest, chocolate is personal—his single-origin cacao (sourced from his native Ecuador) often marries ingredients sourced from his home in the Pacific Northwest. Inspired by Cloudforest's Nest bar, this scoop blends our one-of-a-kind honey milk chocolate frozen yogurt—sweetened with local Oregon honey—with ribbons of caramelized, toasted-buttermilk fudge. Spiced graham cracker crumbles add a cozy, malty swirl, while hunks of dense, ganache-y chocolate cake make it a decadent celebration that’s definitely worth writing home about.”
Chocolate Toasted Buttermilk Torte: it’s very sweet and intensely chocolatey. There’s a lot going on, including pieces of chocolate cake, spices and spices. It was rich, creamy, and thick. Did it taste like frozen yogurt? No. But it was interesting in a good way. I wish it had some tang.
Also, Salt & Straw’s Black Forest Cake is made with coconut cream frozen yogurt. I wish I could buy a slice rather than the whole cake.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Salt & Straw rarely introduces any froyo flavors, so I rushed over to try the new flavor, Wildflower Honey & Lemon Chess Pie. It’s part of the new The Summer Pies Series.
Wildflower Honey & Lemon Chess Pie is described by S&S as, “Every Southern state puts its own spin on Chess Pie—this is ours. Intensely creamy cultured frozen yogurt is sweetened with wildflower honey from Bee Local, lending a mild, chamomile-like floral note to the tangy, rich flavor. Ricotta, vanilla, honey, and lemon come together as a custard, poured and baked into a shortbread crust from Grand Central Bakery until the center sets with that signature jelly-like wobble. Pops of fresh, citrusy pie punctuate every scoop, finished with a drizzle of tart, housemade lemon curd. Pucker up! This pie’s got zing.” Sounds so good, doesn’t it?
Wildflower Honey & Lemon Chess Pie was super creamy and dense, like a good frozen custard. And it had big chunks of chess pie. The shortbread crust was soft and flavorful. My scoop was either missing the lemon curd drizzle or barely had any? I could barely taste any lemon. The predominant flavors were plain yogurt (yes, it did taste like yogurt), honey, and shortbread. The zing and tartness were missing. There was a mild yogurt tang, and it tasted less sweet than your typical ice cream.
I wish there had been more tang and more lemon. It was a good flavor still, but not as good ad their other froyo flavor, Besharam's Yogurt Lassi with Raspberries. Try it this month while it’s available.
The other The Summer Pie Series flavors are Wild-Foraged Berry Slab Pie, Rhubarb Crumble with Toasted Anise, Gruyère and Tomato Custard Tart, and Coconut Cherry Pie with Almond Crust (Vegan). They all sound good.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Salt & Straw’s limited edition flavors for June feature upcycled foods. One flavor caught our eye because it’s not froyo but it’s close. Lemon Curd & Whey is described as a gelato with a tart and tangy lemon curd. Whey is a liquid byproduct of strained yogurt and it’s rich in live probiotics and calcium.
Lemon Curd & Whey: Lemon Curd & Whey gelato is made with Spare Food Co’s lemon & ginger tonic. The tonic is made with whey. There were two textures – a thicker, creamier gelato and the icier, lighter lemon curd swirl. The lemon curd was tangy but not that tangy. The ice cream/gelato seemed less sweet than usual. The texture was more like ice cream than gelato and it had a sweet cream aftertaste. While the gelato was good, I wanted more lemon and ginger flavor. I thought it might taste like froyo but it didn’t.
Lemon Curd & Whey is the third froyo or froyo-related flavor created by Salt & Straw.
In January 2018, Salt & Straw introduced two Faux-Yo flavors, Candied Mango and Candied Apricot as part of their Veganuary flavor series. Faux-Yo was made with coconut cream.
In July 2021, Salt & Straw finally introduced a true froyo, Besharam’s Yogurt Lassi with Raspberries. I bought a few pints!
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Salt & Straw introduced three culinary perfumes in honor of National Ice Cream Day, July 17. The three edible fragrances are (1) A Cloud of Cocoa, (2) A Swoon of Citrus, (3) A Plume of Blooms. Complimentary spritzes were available, though I believe they plan to charge $0.50 for them in the future. Salt & Straw encourages you to mix & match the scents with their ice creams. You can wear the fragrances as well.
According to Salt & Straw, ice cream has no scent because the low temperature traps the fragrance in the ice. Culinary perfume makes ice cream smell delicious and also adds a hint of flavor. Froyo smells (try it yourself) and it can smell really good! But I still love the idea of culinary edible perfume though froyo doesn’t need it. I’d love to smell like plain tart froyo.
I tried A Swoon of Citrus over a scoop Besharam’s Yogurt Lassi with Raspberries (available right now as part of the Berries Berries Berries theme). Since the yogurt is naturally tangy, I couldn’t really taste citrus notes but I could smell them; it smelled like sweet lemons.
The perfumes, made with Portland-based perfumery, Imaginary Authors, are $65 each with free shipping. You can buy them from the Salt & Straw website. Each bottle is 65 ml.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Sampling is back at some froyo shops and there were more new flavors introduced this year compared to 2020. This year, I tried new flavors from Menchie’s, Pinkberry, Yoga-urt, and Yogurtland. I didn’t like this year’s batch of new flavors as much. Some of them tasted too similar to past flavors.
Best Sweet Flavor: Rich Dark Chocolate froyo made with Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate from Menchie’s
I’m not a fan of chocolate froyo flavors but Rich Dark Chocolate froyo made with Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate actually tasted different. It seemed less sweet and I also liked the hint of bitterness.
Best Unusual Flavor: Besharam’s Yogurt Lassi with Raspberries from Salt & Straw
Salt & Straw released their first froyo flavor this year and it was also their first chef-commissioned flavor. The chef, Heena Patel of San Francisco’s Besharam, specializes in Gujarati cuisine. The flavor was so intense with a strong cardamom note, cumin seeds for crunch and flavor, delicate rosewater, and tangy raspberry jam. It was rich and decadent. I bought a few pints.
For the list of 2021’s froyo flavor introductions, see https://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/news/new-flavors-introduced-in-2021-and-flavor-trends/
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Remember when Salt & Straw came out with Faux-Yo? That was the closest that I’d seen them come to offering froyo – until now. One of this month’s new flavors is Besharam’s Yogurt Lassi with Raspberries. The flavor theme of the month is Berries Berries Berries. A pint is $12.50.
Salt & Straw describes the flavor as: “A flavor unlike any other - and one that’s been years in the making. In our first ever chef-commissioned flavor, we partnered with San Francisco’s Besharam Head Chef, Heena Patel. A graduate of food incubator La Cocina, Heena founded award-winning Besharam to share her family’s Gujarati cuisine. In this lassi-inspired flavor, delicate rosewater and a hit of cardamom are balanced by ripples of raspberry jam infused with toasted whole cumin seeds. Spice-forward and unabashedly unbelievable.”
Ingredients: Milk, Cream, Yogurt (milk, cultures), Sugar, Raspberries, Tapioca Syrup, Pectin, Rose Water, Cumin Seeds, Salt, Natural Gums (guar gum, carrageenan), Cardamom
I picked up a pint of Besharam’s Yogurt Lassi with Raspberries. Guess what? My expectations were high and they were met. The froyo is phenomenal. It tastes so Indian with that strong cardamom note and the floral rosewater. It’s a little on the sweet side but Indian desserts tend to be. The cumin seeds add a little crunch. The raspberry ripple doesn’t dominate but it adds a bit more flavor to this rich, thick, decadent froyo. It even has a bit of tang and the cardamom and cream flavors linger on. I have to get a few more pints. You should get some too!
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
Fro-yo girl here. Salt & Straw started the new year with an all vegan line-up of limited time (January) flavors. I think it’s the first time they’ve offered a “frozen yogurt” flavor, though they call it “faux-yo” and it’s plant-based. Their faux-yo is made with coconut cream and it’s scoopable.
Their Candied Mango Faux-Yo is described as: “We’ve done it! We’ve figured out how to make frozen yogurt using coconut cream. We hit it with a little lime and let it thicken. And then we add some sugar, mango puree, salt, vanilla, and yes, that is a little green cardamom you’re tasting. Then we fold in more pieces of candied mango for texture and fun, for a flavor that tastes like a fresh-fruit sorbet.”
Candied Mango Faux-Yo is available in the Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego scoop shops. Portland is serving Candied Apricot Faux-Yo. The Candied Apricot Faux-Yo sounds similar to the Candied Mango Faux-Yo based on the description: “We’ve done it! We’ve figured out how to make frozen yogurt using coconut cream. We hit it with a little lime and let it thicken. And then we add some sugar, apricot puree, salt, vanilla, and yes, that is a little green cardamom you’re tasting. Then we fold in more pieces of candied apricot for texture and fun, for a flavor that tastes like a fresh-fruit sorbet.”
I wasn’t sure what to expect. Candied mango sounded like it could be very sweet. Well, Salt & Straw’s faux-yo did not disappoint. The texture was super thick, dense, and creamy. It was hard to believe that it was vegan. The sweet mango flavor was the dominant, intense flavor, but I was also surprised that the faux-yo was tangy. The coconut cream flavor was noticeable but not strong. The backnotes of coconut cream, lime, and green cardamom just added to the complexity and deliciousness. There were very few candied mango pieces but the ones that I encountered were small and not overly sweet. The tang is different from yogurt tang but different can still be wonderful. The texture was much creamier and richer than a typical sorbet.
Try any faux-yo flavor you can, before it’s too late. Get a pint or two. I hope there are more faux-yo flavors in the future.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.
