Half Pint is a small, owner-operated homemade ice cream company based out of Seattle, Washington. Our ice creams are made fresh weekly with local dairy and eggs and other local ingredients when possible.

Check out adorable Baby Johanna in her Half Pint onsie!

You can purchase your own Half Pint merch at our Cafe Press site.

August has been a BUSY month for Half Pint! Lots of farmers markets, special events…we’ve been elbow deep in ice cream for weeks.

Last week we participated in a really cool event at Tom Douglas’s Palace Ballroom. It was an ice cream social! Several artisan ice cream companies participated including Half Pint, Parfait, Empire Ice Cream, Poco Caretto, Full Tilt, Molly Moon and The Dahlia Bakery. Adults and children alike flocked to the Ballroom for this ice cream extravaganza and enjoyed samples from all of the ice cream companies, as well as games, delicious ancho chili corn on the cob, pinball (courtesy of Full Tilt!) and a photo booth. It was a great time!

This past Sunday Half Pint was lucky to be a part of the Neighborhood Farmers Market Alliance‘s An Incredible Feast. This fundraiser for the NFMA paired farms up with local chefs, who created delicious dishes using fresh produce from that particular farm. Half Pint scooped up little cones and cups of Fresh Watermelon-Mint Sorbet, which was made using watermelons from Tonnemaker Family Orchards. It was a lovely evening filled with food, fun and farmers!

We’ve also been busy scooping ice cream at lots of parties and other events. If you’re interested in having Half Pint scoop ice cream at your next event, drop us a line and let us know what you’re looking for!

It’s shaping up to be a gorgeous weekend. Check out the forecast. So, come on out to your local farmers market, have some ice cream and say hello. We’d love to see you!

Tom Watson, the ecoconsumer columnist for the Seattle Times had a great TV spot on KOMO 4 yesterday where he talked about unusual items one can find at a farmers market. Among these items was Half Pint’s Earl Gray Chocolate ice cream! Click on the link below and click the play button on the video to see the clip:

KOMO 4 \"You Got That At The Farmers Market?\"

Thanks to Tom for promoting the farmers markets and for supporting Half Pint!

This coming Tuesday, August 11th, Half Pint will be participating in an ice cream social put on by Tom Douglas Events, taking place at the Palace Ballroom, next to the Palace Kitchen in downtown Seattle. There will be 6 local artisan ice cream vendors sampling their goods, as well as games and snacks! This is a great opportunity to try all of the fabulous homemade ice cream that is cropping up in Seattle.

For more details and to purchase tickets check out: http://tomdouglas.com/events/view/id/39

Hope to see you there!

One really cool thing about selling ice cream at the farmers market is that we are surrounded by delicious ice cream toppings! Woodring Northwest Specialities is at most markets and makes tasty chocolate, caramel and fruit sauces, fruit butters and preserves–all of which are great as an ice cream topping. They also make incredible spicy pickles and pickled asparagus and beans, although those might not be as delicious on top of a scoop of ice cream. Unless you’re pregnant and really craving that ice cream and pickles combo.

There are several berry farms right now at the markets selling strawberries, raspberries, and I hear blueberries are on their way this week! There are also less-known, although no-less-delicious berries out there such as gooseberries. Cherries are also now in full swing and you can take your pick of Bings, Rainiers (our fave), Index, Chelans, Sour Pie Cherries…

One of our most loyal and favorite customers, Paolo Polintan, took this great photo of his scoop of Blueberry-Lemon Sorbet that he topped with market-fresh raspberries:

Or, instead of topping your ice cream with something tasty from the market, how about topping something tasty from the market with ice cream? Sugar Shack, which can be found at Lake City and Broadway Farmers Markets, serves up pies, brownies and cookies, all of which are wonderful accompanied by a scoop of ice cream.

Possibilities are endless, and coming up with new and exciting things to combine with ice cream is a good excuse to leisurely walk around, browse the market and see EVERYTHING. Can’t think of a better way to spend an afternoon.

This Saturday, the 4th of July, Half Pint will be serving up ice cream at the Valley Medical Center’s 4th by the Lake in Newcastle. This great family-oriented event begins at 6 pm, with games, food and live music, followed by a fabulous fireworks display. The event takes place in Lake Boren Park.

Half Pint has some 4th of July-themed treats planned for the big day! So, come on out, have some BBQ, some ice cream, hear some music, see some fireworks and celebrate America’s independence in style!

One of the benefits of working at the farmers markets is that all day long I get to look at the most adorable dogs of all shapes, sizes and breeds.

Last year at the Broadway Farmers Market, I fell in love with Ginger, a Pomeranian-Keeshond mix who, because of her age and lack of mobility, cruised the market via a purse-like sack that her owner, Barabara would wear over her shoulder. Ginger looks like a puppy, but is actually quite old–14 years!

I eagerly awaited Ginger’s return to the market this year, and this time she showed up being pushed in her very own cart! Due to her arthritis, Ginger can only walk about a half a mile before she starts to limp, so Barbara decided it was time to find another means of transport. Ginger and Barbara love the farmers market, so they needed a way to make sure Ginger could still come every Sunday.

Barbara told me that Ginger came to live with her in a foster-care situation and has been with her ever since. She gets a spa cut every 4 months because her hair grows very long and bushy.

Last week Ginger tried some Half Pint ice cream for the first time! We’re thinking she’ll like the flavors this week, especially because one of them is, well, Ginger

Here is Ginger enjoying her first taste of Half Pint:

Check out this great piece by The Seattle Times’ food writer Nancy Leson. It discusses several local ice cream establishments and features Half Pint! Nancy’s son, Nate, was one of my biggest fans at the Edmonds Farmers Market during the month that I was selling there. There is a lot happening in the local ice cream world here in the greater Seattle area, and Half Pint is very excited to be a part of it all. A huge thanks to Nancy for a fabulous article and for including Half Pint

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/allyoucaneat/2009301407_i_scream_about_ice_cream_–_an.html

It’s Sunday morning, about 10:15 am, and the farmers and other vendors of the Broadway Sunday Farmers Market are putting up their tents, setting out tomatoes, slicing cheese samples and firing up their grills. Some vendors have already been up for hours, traveling by van, truck and sometimes ferry from towns outside of the city to bring their fabulous homegrown products to Capitol Hill.

On a sunny morning, such as we’ve been having the past few weekends, spirits are high, everyone is smiling and antics ensue. Here are some photos from the Broadway Farmers Market–a little glimpse into the market world!

The market is a lot of fun. Come and experience it for yourself every Sunday from 11-3! http://www.seattlefarmersmarkets.org/markets/broadway

Local food writer, Nancy Leson, did a great segment on ice cream on her KPLU radio program “Food For Thought” this morning. Half Pint was among the local ice cream companies mentioned! Follow this link to hear the piece: http://www.kplu.org/leson.html. Click on Food For Thought “It’s Ice Cream Time”.