Big Interview
What is the ethos behind Simply Ice Cream, what are you trying to achieve? At Simply Ice Cream we believe that simple, natural food tastes best, and we’ve created a range of ice creams that are made using natural, locally sourced ingredients (where possible), with home-made flavours that are free from additives or preservatives. Our Ice Cream is still made the old fashioned way, by hand, in small batches. We have developed over 30 delicious flavours of ice cream and sorbets, including our fantastic vegan range that’s made with a coconut milk base. For me, it’s always been important to support other local businesses, and I try to ensure we use as many local suppliers and producers as we can in our ice cream. The lemon curd in our lemon curd ice cream comes from Kentish brand The Wooden Spoon Co, and the fudge in our Kentish Coffee and Cobnut Fudge comes from confectionery producer Fudge Kitchen.
When I began Simply Ice Cream back in 2008 I wanted the brand to be based on a strong, core set of values – passion, integrity, excellence, simplicity and naturalness. We are continually updating our tastes and flavours, but always in keeping with the changing seasons and the high standards we operate to.
What made you veer away from professional catering services into the world of ice cream?
I actually still do the odd bit of catering! It was the catering that led to the conception of Simply Ice Cream, as I was making my own honeycomb ice cream for catered events and people began asking where they could buy it. The interest in the ice cream became more and more apparent, so eventually I thought why not turn this into a business?!
KennedysConfection.com
“We just came back from IFE at the Excel and it was
fantastic to be out promoting our brand in person again”
When I first started the brand I was still catering on the
side, so it was a gradually built over time. Our first flavours were the Heavenly Honeycomb, made using my homemade honeycomb recipe, Divine Chocolate, Sublime Strawberry and Dreamy Vanilla.
These are now known as our core range, but we have many
others to choose from and also make bespoke flavours for several customers, including Turkish Delight, Matcha and Eton Mess.
Has ice cream always been a passion of yours? Cooking from scratch has always been a passion of mine, passed down from my mother who I took over the catering business from. I just don’t see the need for mass produced, highly processed foods when we have such fantastic ingredients right here in the UK that we can cook with. Yes, it takes a little extra time and commitment but the end result is so worth it. I have always made my own desserts and ice creams, and the brand naturally evolved from people’s love of the ice cream I was making. I have a big family and I’m always hosting and cooking lots of food. I think great tasting food can really enhance a moment, and I like to think that our ice cream is being enjoyed at special occasions up and down the country!
Kennedy’s Confection April 2022 7
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