At Bebe Zito, they put the scream in ice cream for Halloween

On Halloween, we think of candy, of course. But that’s not the only sweet treat for the holiday. Ben Spangler and Gabriella Grant want you to scream for ice cream on Halloween. The owners of Bebe Zito are the masterminds behind the inventive ice cream flavors and otherworldly creations available at the shop’s four Twin Cities locations.

Spangler was in the French Quarter in New Orleans where he was celebrating Halloween with Grant when he spoke to All Things Considered host Tom Crann about their commitment to this “very expressive edible art form.”

“[Ice cream] just really lends itself to the holidays, especially Halloween,” he said. He and Grant pride themselves on finding creative ways to draw from spooky ideas, often inspired by movies.

Take Midnight Margarita. The lavender Margarita sorbet, finished with a little smoked salt is a reference to the movie Practical Magic. “There’s a scene where the witches are making midnight margaritas,” Spangler said.

Then there’s David Takeout, which comes in a Chinese takeout container and looks like red worms in black dirt.

“The idea is actually taken from a movie called The Lost Boys, and there’s a scene in the movie where they’re all gathered around in a cave eating takeout food, and the head vampire just goes, ‘That’s not noodles, Michael, that’s worms and maggots,’” Spangler said.

In this case, the worms in the takeout container are made from cherry juice and gelatin, and the dirt is actually ground pretzels covering strawberry-rhubarb ice cream. A deceptively delicious take on takeout.

Click on the audio player above to hear the conversation.

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