I picked up a tip from the Barefoot Contessa once about allowing ice cream to melt just a bit -- or a lot if you want a really easy dessert sauce -- prior to indulging in a scoop. Yes, cold is the essence of ice cream, but ice cream that's just starting to melt around the edges brings something different to the palate. It's just better, the theory went.
And Häagen-Dazs just made her theory a "fact."
Häagen-Dazs has just launched a new mobile app that allows you to properly melt your ice cream.
Here's how HD describes it:
"The Concerto Timer app features two-minute-long music concertos that help consumers understand the exact amount of time needed to prepare their Häagen-Dazs ice cream in order to get the full, rich consistency and allow all the flavors to fully bloom. Allowing the ice cream to soften slightly -- also called tempering -- for two minutes enhances the texture."
So after buying a pint of your favorite HD flavor (ice cream, gelato, sorbet and frozen yogurt are all included), customers align their iPhone camera with a dotted line on the lid. An app then launches, and you hear a two-minute virtual violin performance of Bach Inventions No. 14. "The addition of a second carton reveals a cellist accompanying the violinist in a classic duet."
And as a bonus prize: Each time the app is downloaded, Häagen-Dazs will donate $5 to honeybee research at the University of California Davis, for a total donation up to $75,000.
