A Hungarian twist on summer favorite; Cranbury Delights makes ice cream daily

By: Emily Holody
   Groups of adults and children crowded the small standing area inside of Cranbury Delights last week.
   As the July 20 rush began at Cranbury Delights, the lemon sorbet was nearly gone. An hour later, the Hungarian chocolate ice cream needed refilling, and the five remaining flavors had large dents in their gelato-style tubs.
   In the heat of summer, some Cranbury residents are looking to Cranbury Delights on North Main Street to quench their thirst for cool treats since the café and bakery began selling Old World-style Hungarian ice cream less than two months ago.
   The ice cream gained popularity by word-of-mouth, according to Stephen Toth, co-owner of Cranbury Delights.
   "This is all without advertising," he said about the afternoon rushes.
   Part of the reason for the ice cream’s popularity is that the recipe used by Mr. Toth and his wife, Agnes, comes straight from Hungary. In addition, the pair use imported ingredients and have tweaked the recipe to make it their own.
   The Toth’s ice cream machine sits behind an Italian gelato display case, and can make one batch of ice cream 4 quarts at a time. Sorbets take 10 minutes, and ice cream takes 12 minutes, and the Toths do it every day.
   The cream is cooked before being put into the machine to create the frozen consistency. Mr. Toth said this is one of the major differences between Hungarian ice cream and ice creams a customer might find elsewhere.
   "The true ice creams are cooked cream," said Mr. Toth. "We make it fresh every day, let it sit, then serve it."
   The ice cream has a light consistency and straightforward flavor that emphasizes the taste of the natural ingredients.
   "Everything is pure, all natural and light weight, so it’s not overwhelming and doesn’t taste processed," said Mr. Toth.
   Cranbury Delights offers standard flavors such as vanilla and chocolate, and mixes in others, such as coconut, regularly.
   The ice cream is made from things such as vanilla beans from Canada, imported German chocolate, and coconut milk from "the tropics," said Mr. Toth. The ice cream also is made with low-fat milk instead of heavy cream. The sorbets are made with spring water and fruit.
   "I try to stress to people that it’s health conscious, more natural, and it’s fresh," said Mr. Toth.
   While the recipe comes from Hungary, so did the Toth’s desire to serve ice cream. The couple said they wanted to make their bakery into a true cukraszda, Hungarian for a shop that serves coffee, ice cream and cakes.
   Ms. Toth, who received degrees from the University of Budapest in culinary arts and business, said she didn’t want to make just any kind of ice cream, so she contacted her aunt in Hungary about sending a true Hungarian ice-cream recipe.
   "I used to travel in Hungary for this type of ice cream, this is the real, original Hungarian ice cream," said Ms. Toth.
   The Toths worked for three months developing flavors.
   Although Cranbury residents may not have heard of Hungarian ice cream before Cranbury Delights introduced, they keep coming back for more, say the Toths.
   "People appreciate the quality and they’re coming back," said Ms. Toth. "They taste the difference."
   Mr. Toth said they have brought a little bit of Europe to Cranbury.
   "In Europe, everything is all natural. It’s not a traditional ice cream where it sits on the shelf," said Mr. Toth. "Our stuff is meant to be consumed right away."
   Cranbury Delights is also bakery that makes things such as pastries, cakes and chocolates. They are in the process of expanding and will participate in Cranbury Day by making Hungarian crepes. Mr. Toth said they expect to offer gourmet ice-cream cones and an ice-cream club, which will reward frequent ice cream buyers.
   Store hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 11 to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 11 to 5 p.m. With tax not included, one scoop of ice cream or sorbet costs $1.87, the double-decker is $3, the triple-decker is $4.67, and takeout pints are $6.50. Cranbury Delights also serves sundaes and ice-cream cones.