Ample Hills Creamery has unveiled its latest frosty delight: “The Little Dipper” — a 3.5-ounce creation touted as a “tiny scoop of joy with stardust in its swirl.”
The cool treat comes in packs of six pre-packaged cups, each complete with a spoon, and is available in 13 of Ample Hills’ signature flavors, including Banana Pudding, Ooey Gooey Butter Cake, and Underneath the Mango Tree.
Shlomo Birnbaum, owner of Ample Hills and CEO of Single Source Beverage Distribution, told Brooklyn Paper the name “The Little Dipper” is a play on old ice cream language — a “dip” referring to a scoop — and a throwback to the days when ice cream lovers of all ages enjoyed small ice cream cups.
In addition to serving its frozen treats at its four brick-and-mortar shops in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, Ample Hills also brings the “magic of Ample Hills” to weddings, birthdays and graduations through its catering service. The new offering makes catering events more efficient, Birnbaum said.
“It’s a way for us to basically cater more events, because we do a lot of parties, and this is a way where we don’t have to send big tubs of ice cream,” Birnbaum said. “Sometimes, for example, somebody wants 10 different flavors — that’s a lot of tubs of ice cream, a lot of scooping. So we find that ‘The Little Dipper’ is a good way for us to expand that.
“I feel [Little Dippers] are a great way to enjoy Ample Hills at home [and] will allow people to have a much wider selection and really enjoy their favorite ice cream on the go.”
The pre-measured cups may also help customers exercise portion control — instead of polishing off a whole pint in one sitting.
“I go to my freezer and I take out a pint, and then I have to make the decision, ‘Am I finishing the pint [or] am I just having one spoon?’” said Birnbaum, admitting he loves ice cream “too much.”
“So I thought it’d be really nice if there was just something in a freezer where you could just go and [have just] one scoop of ice cream. You don’t need a scoop. There’s no mess,” he said. “Is there such a diet that can be created to have like one little dipper a day of [your] flavor of choice, one little cheat?”
All Ample Hills ice cream is churned in-house at the company’s new creamery and bakery at The Whale, a 500,000-square-foot commercial development in Sunset Park, where mix-ins like butter cake and cookies are hand-folded post-churn to keep each bite “perfectly gooey, chunky, and balanced.”
“So it’s a bakery and an ice cream factory. Because Ample Hills is a creamery, we refer to it as a creamery,” Birnbaum explained.
This summer, the company also launched “Ample University,” a training program where flavor hosts, or “amployees,” learn how to speak more confidently with customers about the ice cream-making process, ingredients, and fun facts about each flavor.
“We’re looking for people who want a little bit more than just a summer job, people who want to learn how to build their confidence,” Birnbaum said. “So we’re trying to give a platform for people as their first job, to teach them a life skill.”
Ample Hills’ mascot — or “Chief Joy Officer” — Walt the Cow, brings “heart, humor, and humanity” to the brand, helping to tell the story behind each flavor.
“Ample Hills is a lot about illustrations, and Walt just makes me smile. He’s everywhere now. He’s on our pints, he’s on the walls, he’s on cups. It’s like 50 shades of Walt,” Birnbaum said.
