The Unexpected Topping Timothy Olyphant Puts On Ice Cream

Actor Timothy OIyphant has had his share of unique food-focused exploits throughout his life, like when his dog got into his stash of adult edibles (The dog was fine, thankfully). Fortunately, not all of them involve a health scare. This time around, we're on a much more pleasant subject — what Olyphant likes to put on his ice cream. It's one ingredient, a pantry staple, and probably something you have in your own kitchen right now: honey.

He revealed this tiny tidbit in an interview with Bon Appétit many years ago, and though it's a simple topping, the floral nature of the sticky stuff makes sense in that setting. When you enjoy honey on its own, it really is pretty complex, and paired with the also-intricate flavor of vanilla, you've got the co-mingling of a lot of tastes on your palate. Plus, you won't need to run out to the store to get anything extra, though I'm sure textural components like cereal or granola would make great mix-ins. But no need to overthink things. A drizzle of honey's a great addition on its own, and the best part is, it's one of those multipurpose ingredients that you can use in beverages, baking, and many other types of cooking.

If the idea of using plain honey sounds a touch boring to you, don't forget you've got a whole world of flavored honey to choose from, too. One variation involves hot honey — and I only know how about the beauty of hot honey on ice cream because we used it Timothy Olyphant-style at the pizza restaurant where I used to work. All that was required was a few scoops of high-quality vanilla ice cream plus a drizzle of wildly popular Mike's Hot Honey, and that was it. The fruitiness of the chili pepper tastes lively and unexpected, especially against a cool, creamy dessert. And the best part is, you can even make your own hot honey as you see fit. Customers enjoyed the combination, and — don't tell anyone — but I fixed myself a small portion every now and then, too.

There's no real formula to it either; just make sure you add enough honey to get a little bit per spoonful. After all, even if it's hot, honey's still quite sweet. If you want to experiment, you could also try truffle honey (white truffle honey is extremely complex), spiced honey, or even chewy bits of real honeycomb. Timothy Olyphant's choice of standard honey is just a reminder that you don't need to overthink what you put on your ice cream. You can appreciate some things for what they are, like this simple, perfect pairing.