We recently reported on one NYU graduate student's project tapping into mama's milk in Pass the Human Cheese, Please. Well, it seems the trend is catching on: Ice cream purveyors in London have introdruced Baby Gaga - an ice cream flavor made from mother's breast milk, churned with Madagascar vanilla and lemon zest.

Twentysomethings Bruno Tropeano and Joshua Davis hated the poorly made, mass-produced gelato they regularly sampled.

The Maine residents decided to open their own artisanal gelateria in 2007, featuring the state’s best local, natural ingredients.

Some 500 flavors later, The Gelato Fiasco is a regional fixture that consistently makes the list of Maine’s top ice cream shops.

Thirty flavors of gelato and sorbetto are featured each day—from Bourbon Vanilla and Cinnamon Honey Graham to Lemon Buttermilk and Sugar Baby Watermelon. During a recent “Meet the Farmers” event with Small Wonder Organics, Tomato Ginger and Balsamic Black Russian Tomato made the menu.

So, I was feeling really jealous after writing about the Van Leeuwen trucks that deliver organic ice cream to New York City’s not-so-huddled masses.

I wanted to find a Southern California clone—and I hit the jackpot.

Coolhaus has upped the ante here in Los Angeles, with a made-to-order ice cream sandwich buffet on wheels. And according to co-owner Natasha Case, her chilly treats are handmade with organic and all-natural ingredients, whenever possible.

As for available flavors, the choices range from the expected (vanilla bean, strawberry, Meyer lemon) to the eclectic:  mascarpone balsamic fig, carrot cake, brown butter with candied bacon and even foie gras. Special flavors change seasonally, as with this week’s strawberry jalapeño, root beer and peach cobbler with bourbon.

Here’s the best part: Once you pick your ice cream, you can select the handmade cookies in which it’s sandwiched—from chocolate and snickerdoodle to chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin. (Brioche is also available.)

To find the truck on any given day, follow Coolhaus on Facebook or Twitter.

Photo: bunnicula

Move over, Good Humor man! The old-fashioned ice cream truck has experienced a dramatic makeover.

Lucky New Yorkers can hook up with Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream, whose  trucks have a huge Twitter and Facebook following. Think of it as ice cream by appointment: Loyal patrons use the social networking sites to find out where the company’s three trucks will be parked each day.

Van Leeuwen’s ice creams are made with carefully sourced ingredients: fresh, local and organic, with no stabilizers or preservatives. The most popular flavors include vanilla and pistachio, but why not opt for ginger, red currant or peppermint & chip?

Coffees, lattes, teas and hot chocolate are also available, made with locally produced organic milk. Cups, spoons, napkins and straws are made from renewable corn or sugarcane husks. 

New Yorkers can also find Van Leeuwen pints at Whole Foods Market and independent local retailers.

Deliciously Organic Frozen Treats

1. Organic Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
2. Hot Chocolate Affogato
3. Organic Strawberry Rose Geranium Ice Cream Drizzled with Balsamic Vinegar
4. Organic Chocolate Mint Ice Cream
5. Lemon Verbena and Lavender Ice Cream
6. Coffee Bananas Foster
7. Creamy Margaritas

Photo: Stevendamron

Drop a scoop of ice cream into a cup of freshly brewed espresso, and you have what baristas call affogato (Italian for “drowned”).

We conclude our celebration of National Ice Cream Month with a mochaholic’s fantasy dessert: a rich, homemade hot chocolate with a shock of cold coffee ice cream.

You can use half and half, heavy cream or milk in our weekend recipe, which allows you to control your fat intake.

Prep time is 10 minutes, cook time is 5 minutes, and all of the ingredients should be available at your local natural and organic food store.

For additional summertime ice cream recipes, check out Coffee Bananas Foster and Tart Lime Breeze.

Hot Chocolate Affogato

Makes 2 servings

3/4 cup low-fat (2%) milk
1/2 cup half and half, heavy cream or milk
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips or 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup coffee ice cream
Whipped cream (optional)

1. Bring milk, half and half, chocolate, sugar and salt just to a boil in 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, 5 minutes or until chocolate is melted.
3. Scoop ice cream into two large ice cream bowls. Pour hot chocolate around ice cream and garnish, if desired, with whipped cream.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Starbucks Ice Cream

I fell in love with Bananas Foster during a business trip to New Orleans, where the dish originated.

Chef Paul Blangé of Brennan’s, one of the city’s top restaurants, invented the dessert—a tantalizing combo of bananas steeped in butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, rum and banana liqueur, served over vanilla ice cream. It’s one of those to-die-for, I’ll-watch-my-waistline tomorrow dishes, and Brennan’s goes through 35,000 pounds of bananas each year to meet customer demand.

In celebration of National Ice Cream Month, we’re featuring a special adaptation of the dessert, to be served over slices of pound cake. The recipe can join your collection of “company’s coming” dishes—and I guarantee your guests will leave with smiles and full bellies.

Prep time is 15 minutes, cook time is 5 minutes, and all of the ingredients should be available at your local natural and organic food store. Double, triple or quadruple the recipe based on the number of guests you’re serving.

Coffee Bananas Foster

Makes 2 servings

2 medium bananas, sliced
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup heavy or whipping cream
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons dark or light rum
2 slices prepared pound cake (about 1/2-inch thick), toasted
1 cup coffee ice cream

Bring bananas, sugar, cream, butter and rum to a boil over medium heat in 10-inch nonstick skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened. Remove from heat.

Arrange cake on 2 dessert dishes. Top with ice cream, then banana mixture.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Starbucks Ice Cream

July is National Ice Cream Month, a culinary celebration designated by President Ronald Reagan in 1984.

About 9% of all milk produced by U.S. dairy farmers is used to make ice cream. According to the NPD Group, a global market research firm, America’s top five flavors are: vanilla (30%), chocolate (10%), butter pecan (4%), strawberry (3.7%) and chocolate chip mint (3.2%).

The U.S. Department of Agriculture notes that whole-milk ice cream accounts for most frozen dessert purchases, (62.4%), followed by low-fat/nonfat ice cream (25%), frozen yogurt (4.4%), water ice (4.1%), sherbet (3.4%) and other (0.8%).

Most of us purchase ice cream in supermarkets (as opposed to scoop shops), so be sure to buy organic brands. My favorite flavors include:

• Straus Family Creamery’s Organic Raspberry Ice Cream
• Julie’s Organic Blackberry Ice Cream
• Green and Black’s White Chocolate with Strawberries Ice Cream
• Humboldt Creamery’s Killer Caramel Ice Cream
• Stonyfield Farms’ Vanilla Chai Ice Cream

Pair any of these flavors with a Let’s Do Organic Ice Cream Cone, and you have a no-fuss summertime dessert.

“Fair Trade creates stronger economic conditions, which help farmers feed and clothe their families, send their kids to school, get better health care and in general improve the quality of their lives,” says Paul Rice, President & CEO of TransFair USA, the only Fair Trade certification organization in the United States. “With something as simple as choosing to purchase a Fair Trade product, people are making a powerful decision to dramatically improve the quality of life for farmers halfway around the world.”

Ben & Jerry's purchases Fair Trade Certified coffee from a cooperative in Mexico; vanilla from Fair Trade Certified producers in India, with producers in Indonesia and Uganda under consideration; and Fair Trade Certified cocoa from producers in the Dominican Republic.

“Since Ben and I started the business, we’ve used ethical values to guide our business decisions, such as sourcing ingredients,” says  Ben & Jerry’s Cofounder Jerry Greenfield. “Expanding from our Fair Trade Certified Coffee flavors to Fair Trade Vanilla and Chocolate is another step forward in our values-led sourcing decisions.”

The new Fair Trade Vanilla will be available in Ben & Jerry’s scoop shops this month and in supermarkets in January. Fair Trade Chocolate will be available in scoop shops in December and in grocery stores in January. Fair Trade Certified Coffee flavors are already available in scoop shops and grocery stores nationwide.

Ben and Jerry’s also offers four organic ice creams: Vanilla, Strawberry, Chocolate Fudge Brownie and Sweet Cream & Cookies. They are available in select stores and by mail.