Jeni’s uses fresh, local ingredients such as ripe summer strawberries in its Strawberry Buttermilk
Ice Cream.

July is National Ice Cream Month. We began the month with Ruby et Violette’s cookie dough ice creams; we’re ending it with two more all-stars: Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams in Columbus, Ohio and Silver Moon Desserts in Los Gatos, California (Silicon Valley, south of San Francisco). Each is very distinctive and worth the treat of having it shipped to wherever you happen to be. Jeni’s focuses on local and organic seasonal ingredients, Silver Moon on liqueur-flavored ice cream and sorbet.

If sending away for ice cream sounds unusual to you, it’s no different from mail ordering Riviera pears from Harry & David in Oregon, chocolate from Larry Burdick in New Hampshire or USDA prime beef from Allen Brothers in Chicago. Sure, you can get a decent pear, box of chocolate or steak in your town, but when you want a special treat, get it from the best source possible.

So if you adore, luxuriate in, relish, revel in and savor ice cream as we do—or know someone who would rather get a gift of ice cream than, say, that box of pears or steak—read about two very special ice cream artisans—individuals or duos whose passion for the best ice cream led them to set up shop and make it themselves.