Spring at Publix brings the annual rollout of limited-edition ice cream, and this season’s newcomers mix childhood classics with more grown-up dessert ideas.
The new pint-size arrivals are Peanut Butter & Jelly, Root Beer Float, Bourbon Praline Crumble and Bavarian Crème Hot Honey Praline.
All four are available for a limited time, just as South Florida temperatures start climbing and freezer space becomes prime real estate.
To see which flavors are worth a repeat scoop, we rounded up colleagues for another Palm Beach Post newsroom taste test, focusing on the brand-new releases before they melt back into the vault.
Bavarian Crème Hot Honey Praline
Much like the name, this one ran hot and cold with some of our tasters. Reporter Hannah Phillips enjoyed the originality calling it “so unique.” Moments later she ramped it up with “I love it.” Another taster, reporter Chris Persaud, went the opposite direction stating “How do people like ice cream that makes your throat burn.” Editor Tom Elia thought that the creators “tried too hard” on this one.
For me (food reporter Eddie Ritz), I would say that if you like rock hard ice cream, this might not be your first choice as it was the softest of the four. Besides that, I couldn’t say if it was actual ‘Bavarian Crème’ flavor, but the taste I was getting was excellent, it was creamy and had that nice kick of heat at the end.
Peanut Butter & Jelly
Not a fan of any of the new flavors, Persaud said the makers should “stick to normal flavors” before giving this one a sideways compliment calling it “the least offensive” of the four newbies.
I would agree with most of my coworkers that it just seemed a bit strange as a concept. Despite the seemingly odd flavor for ice cream, it was not disappointing. That said, it was much, much more peanut butter than jelly. In fact, if I was offering a suggestion I would recommend more of the grape flavored swirls.
Bourbon Praline Crumble
Phillips was not impressed with the bourbon taste and advised Publix to “remove the whiskey, keep the rest.”
For me, it this was a very close second place out of the four new flavors. That ever-so-slight hint of bourbon was wonderful, the praline pieces were big and crunchy and the creaminess factor was tops out of all four. Seriously, it was one of those ice creams that once you start you’ll likely plow through the whole pint.
Root Beer Float
Though Elia thought this new flavor was a bit too soft, Phillips liked it. But next time around, she suggested go with a recipe that’s “less sweet, more carbonated.”
Ok, so full disclosure on this one, I’m from the Midwest and I was raised on root beer. This is a flavor that practically demanded to be made and was well executed. The root beer flavored ice cream was subtle, but those root beer flavored fizzy clusters were awesome! They made you instantly think ‘root beer float.’
What’s your favorite new flavor? Tell us at dbiederman@pbpost.com or eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
Eddie Ritz is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Publix’s new pint-sized ice cream flavors ranked by every scoop
Reporting by Eddie Ritz and Diana Biederman, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
