Ben & Jerry’s has released a brand-new permanent flavour packed with cinematic glamour and a dose of social justice. The new flavour, which will hit US stores in January 2023, is a collaboration between the iconic Vermont brand and award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay, who among her many accolades will be the first Black woman to have her own Ben & Jerry's ice cream pint. Read on to find out more.
Available in ice cream and almond milk-based non-dairy versions, this flavour was created with DuVernay's help and all proceeds from the pints will benefit DuVernay’s non-profit, ARRAY Alliance, which works to promote underrepresented communities who want to be involved in the film industry. DuVernay has directed the likes of Selma and Disney's A Wrinkle in Time.
As for the flavour, Lights! Caramel! Action! consists of a vanilla base mixed with salted caramel swirls, graham crackers, and B&J’s iconic chocolate chip cookie dough.
“It pays to be an ice cream geek! Beyond their sweet treats, I’ve long admired Ben & Jerry’s for using their brand to amplify what they believe - that justice and dignity belongs to all. So, I’m thrilled to have created the newest permanent flavour of deliciousness with these good folks,” said DuVernay as she announced the new flavour on Instagram. Lights! Caramel! Action! joins an array of iconic combinations that have made the brand so popular. Read on to take a look at our pick of Ben & Jerry’s best ice cream flavours throughout the years.
Ben & Jerry's meets Tony's Chocolonely? It's a match made in sweet, sugary heaven. A nigh-on unbeatable combination of chocolate ice cream, sea salted chocolate nibbles, salted caramel swirls and salted caramel chunks, this irresistible offering hit shelves in summer 2022 – and, praise be, there's a non-dairy version available too. What's more, it's a collaboration with a conscience, commemorating Ben & Jerry's decision to join Tony's mission to end modern slavery in cocoa farming. As Ben & Jerry's say, changing the world never felt so good.
One of Ben & Jerry's all-time most popular flavours, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, came into our lives in 1984 – and it's been by our side through movie marathons, break-ups and sneaky freezer-raiding exercises ever since. Lurking under the lid is a fool-proof recipe: sweet vanilla ice cream studded with splodges of chewy chocolate chip cookie dough. These days, you can even buy Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Chunks and bypass the ice cream for that instant happiness hit.
The chocolate-lover's holy grail, Ben & Jerry's decadent Chocolate Fudge Brownie flavour ice cream has been a firm freezer aisle favourite since 1990. The recipe isn't rocket science; it's simply a pint of rich chocolate ice cream packed with yummy brownie pieces, but sometimes the simplest ideas are the best. A non-dairy version of the treat has also been available since 2016.
Can't decide between Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and Chocolate Fudge Brownie? Then why not have both? Satisfying both fudge fanatics and dough devotees since 2000, Half Baked is a mash-up of two utterly delicious Ben & Jerry's classics. Its moreish blend of chocolate and vanilla ice creams is the perfect complement to the satisfyingly squidgy dough and brownie nuggets folded within. Genius!
There's only one ice cream brand in the world that'd name one of its sugary offerings after The Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia (no prizes for guessing which one). Smooth, sumptuous cherry ice cream laced with juicy cherries and dark chocolate pieces, Cherry Garcia is another of Ben & Jerry's longest-standing flavours. Sadly, you can no longer buy a tub of it in the UK, although it's still widely available throughout the US.
Chocolate ice cream loaded with gooey marshmallow swirls, caches of sweet, sugary caramel and even a few fish-shaped nuggets of fudge, Phish Food is the madcap dessert to end all desserts. A joint venture from Ben & Jerry's and Vermont jam band Phish, who used to live near co-founder Ben in the 90s, part of the profits from every tub sold go towards keeping Lake Champlain clean. A confection with a conscience.
Another stalwart Ben & Jerry's flavour, Peanut Butter Cup is a peanut butter addict's dream. A delectable, tub-scraping pint of peanut butter ice cream studded with peanut butter cup chunks (which are mini chocolate parcels filled with peanut butter), it really couldn't get any nuttier or more indulgent than this. It's been available in the US since 1989, and its popularity shows no signs of waning any time soon.
Back in 1994, two Ben & Jerry's co-workers managed to convince a colleague that Chubby Hubby was a real-deal flavour. It wasn't, but the pranksters felt so guilty for tricking their friend that they ended up making him a batch. To everyone's surprise, the hastily created treat ended up becoming a Ben & Jerry's flavour in its own right, and deservedly so: vanilla malt ice cream lavished with peanutty fudge-covered pretzel pieces and peanut butter swirls. It's mood-boosting magic in a tub.
In 2016 (and again in 2018), Ben & Jerry's UK brought out a limited-edition banana, caramel and Graham Cracker ice cream in partnership with the Bob Marley Foundation, with all profits going towards a youth empowerment programme in Jamaica. Called One Love, the heavenly pint contained a generous smattering of chocolate peace signs for extra crunch. It proved so popular in the UK that Ben & Jerry's fans in the US petitioned to have it released Stateside the following year.
Chunky Monkey: a great name for a great tub of ice cream. This one's a banana-flavoured creation that comes stuffed to the brim with banana-shaped chocolatey chunks and crunchy walnuts. Are you vegan, vegetarian or lactose intolerant? Well, you can also get your hands on a dairy-free version made with almond milk, which tastes just as good (and just as banana-y) as the original.
A creamy collaboration between Ben & Jerry's and The Late Show host Stephen Colbert, Americone Dream is a feel-good flavour that supports charitable causes, including supporting veterans and their families, through The Stephen Colbert AmeriCone Dream Fund. Introduced in 2007, the smash-hit flavour is a cool combination of vanilla ice cream, fudge-covered waffle cone pieces and a sweet caramel swirl.
Brownies: they're delicious. But what's arguably more delicious? Brownie batter, that's what. It seems like Ben & Jerry's have a soft spot – or should we say soft core? – for the good stuff too, if their Brownie Batter Core ice cream is anything to go by. This moreish treat is a mish-mash of chocolate ice cream, vanilla ice cream and fudge brownie pieces, with delectable brownie batter goodness running through the middle. It's hard to resist digging into the doughy core until it's all gone.
A night in watching Netflix and tucking into a tub of Ben & Jerry's tend to go hand-in-hand, so it came as no surprise when our favourite ice cream makers teamed up with the streaming giant for a tasty crossover in 2020. Peanut butter ice cream with sweet and salty pretzel swirls and tasty brownie pieces, this one's a flavour sensation that's still going strong today. There's even a non-dairy version available, so everyone can get in on a little binge-watching/binge-eating action.
In 2018, Ben & Jerry's resurrected One Sweet World, a popular flavour that used to go by the name One Sweet Whirled back when it was released in 2002. A limited-edition Fairtrade coffee and caramel ice cream packed with fudge chunks, swirls of marshmallow and gooey salted caramel, the mouth-watering treat – which launched in partnership with forward-thinking grassroots groups across Europe – helped fund projects encouraging inclusivity within communities.
There are two camps when it comes to ice cream: those who love to eat it from the tub and those who prefer a cone. Cone Together is the best of both worlds, with oodles of chocolatey waffle cone pieces mixed into a tubful of caramel-swirled vanilla ice cream. This is another flavour with a political message, with Ben & Jerry's Cone Together campaign calling on leaders to honour the rights of refugees and people seeking asylum. A portion of the proceeds from every tub goes towards NGOs across Europe that are working for change.
Love this? Follow our Pinterest page for more food inspiration
Year after year, crowd-pleaser Strawberry Cheesecake has made its way into the official Ben & Jerry's fan favourite list of flavours and it's not hard to see why. Inspired by the classic dessert, this strawberry-flavoured wonder comes chock-full of sweet strawberry pieces, and is swirled with a Graham Cracker crumb for a bit of added crunch. The perfect pint for a sunny summer's day.
Ben & Jerry's Core flavours feature ice cream with a cache of indulgent toppings running down the middle, making for a truly glorious cross-section. Salted Caramel Core is a firm favourite thanks to its comforting blend of sweet cream-flavoured ice cream and blonde brownie pieces, not to mention its magnificently gooey salted caramel core.
Love caramel? Here's how to make a salted caramel and chocolate tart
Coffee Toffee Bar Crunch features creamy coffee flavoured ice cream complemented by the buttery crunch of sprinkled-in toffee pieces. Formerly known as Toffee Heath Bar Crunch, this flavour received a makeover and name change in 2014 when Ben & Jerry's committed to using only Fairtrade and non-GMO produce. The brand is passionate about the ethical and transparent sourcing of its ingredients, using only cage-free eggs, "caring" dairy and environmentally responsible packaging.
"You know how sometimes you just want to scream?", the Ben & Jerry's website asks us. "You could just scream, or you could grab a spoon, get a grip, and treat yourself to some primal s'cream therapy of the sublimest chocolate kind." No strangers to quirky marketing, Ben & Jerry's claim to offer therapy in the form of this very chocolatey frozen dessert. Unwind with chocolate ice cream swirled with chocolate cookies and chocolate pudding. You can never get enough chocolate.
Back in 2015, The Tonight Dough – a collaboration between Ben and Jerry's and popular talk show host Jimmy Fallon – was unveiled in dramatic style live on The Tonight Show. The celebrity-endorsed treat is a blend of caramel and chocolate flavoured ice creams littered with chocolate chip and peanut butter cookie doughs, with a sprinkling of chocolate cookie chunks thrown in for good measure. Not only is the flavour ridiculously indulgent, but all of Fallon's royalties from sales of the ice cream are donated to the SeriousFun children's network.
Another of Ben & Jerry's popular 'Core' range, That's My Jam features not one but two separate, tasty flavours. Comforting chocolate and sweet-but-tangy raspberry ice creams meet in the middle, with chunks of fudge littered throughout, and, of course, a raspberry jam core running right through the centre. Controversially, this flavour doesn't rank so highly with some critics, who claim that the jam seeds get stuck in their teeth.
Everything But The... is exactly as its name would suggest: it contains just about everything. This popular concoction is a combination of chocolate and vanilla ice cream, peanut butter cups, fudge toffee pieces, white chocolate chunks and fudge-covered almonds (and breathe). If you like your ice cream loaded with toppings, this one is for you.
Loaded with cinnamon ice cream, cinnamon bun bites and swirls of cream cheese, Cinnamon Buns is a treat that's attained near-mythical status. Why? It's notoriously difficult to get your hands on. Some say it's been discontinued, some say it's simply not being stocked by certain stores. While we may not have a definitive answer as to just what happened to Cinnamon Buns, we can say without doubt that it was a delicious flavour while it lasted.
Satisfy your cravings with this recipe for Swedish cinnamon buns
'Coffee Coffee BuzzBuzzBuzz' is one for the coffee lovers among us, especially those looking for an alternative way to get their fix. Under the lid, you'll find creamy coffee ice cream with a generous sprinkling of chocolate fudge-coated espresso bean chunks. What's more, Coffee Coffee BuzzBuzzBuzz contains 180mg of caffeine per pint, which is more than two cups of java. So why not start your day with half a tub of ice cream instead?
Who doesn't love to lick the bowl when baking? Well, Ben & Jerry's have come up with a slightly more civilised way of getting that sneaky batter fix: Cake Batter ice cream, a blend of yellow cake batter-flavoured ice cream with a swirl of chocolate frosting. Annoyingly for cake fans, it's another flavour that can be tricky to get hold of – although with a little searching around, you'll usually find that it can be ordered online.
Boston Cream Pies can come in a few different forms, but the classic version is a layered vanilla cake with a pastry cream (crème pâtissière) filling, covered in a generous pouring of chocolate fondant. And you can expect the same from Ben & Jerry's Boston Cream Pie creation: a vanilla cake-flavoured ice cream with swirls of pastry cream and chunks of chocolate fudge suspended throughout. The brand may hail from Vermont, but it's sure done Massachusetts proud with its take on their official state dessert.
The provocatively named Karamel Sutra Core is a staple Ben & Jerry's offering, but is it actually better than you-know-what? Fans would seem to think so! A caramel lover's dream, the tantalising concoction is made up of caramel ice cream, chocolate ice cream, a generous sprinkling of chocolate chunks, and a soft, oozing caramel core.
Now a core resident of Ben & Jerry's so-called Flavour Graveyard (where discontinued flavours are laid to rest), Jamaican Me Crazy was a sorbet rather than an ice cream. The frosty pineapple treat had swirls of passionfruit throughout and, being a sorbet, it had a light, refreshing flavour. While it was one of Ben & Jerry's lesser-known creations, the decision to discontinue the flavour was met with despair, with one commenter lamenting that Jamaican Me Crazy was "their life".
Baked Alaska is a super dreamy combo of vanilla ice cream, marshmallow swirls and little white chocolate polar bears. It was discontinued back in 2015 but, following a petition from fans, Ben & Jerry's decided to bring the beloved flavour back just four years later. So much more than just an ice cream flavour, Baked Alaska also has a powerful message, reminding us of the pressing issue of climate change, global warming and "the importance of keeping frozen things, well, frozen". Just like the icebergs, if it's melted, it's ruined, say Ben & Jerry's.
This classic flavour has been around since the 1990s, to the delight of caramel lovers everywhere. Caramel Chew Chew serves up a double dose of gooey, decadent caramel: first up, there's caramel-flavoured ice cream (swirled with soft caramel), and secondly, a generous serving of caramel-chocolate cups. If you're looking for rich caramel decadence, look no further.
Now read our top 10 ice cream and sorbet recipes
Discover the best ice cream parlour in every US state