Yesterday, I had a life changing encounter with a snow cone. Yes. A snow cone. It wasn’t just any snow cone. It was AMAZING. NO JOKE. Like… SHUT THE FRONT DOOR good.
OK, here’s the deal. There’s this place in my tiny town of Wimberley, TX that is only open part of the year, and they serve up some of the best dang snow cones on the planet. Ever.
They’re shaved ice cones, much like the kind you get in Hawaii. Instead of crunchy ice, you get a smooth, borderline creamy textured ice, covered in delicious flavored syrups that aren’t at all “artificial.”
The Sno Cone Dude here in Wimberley at Wimberley Shave Ice has been perfecting his snow cone craft for the last 26 years, and I’d say he’s got a more than amazing thing going. Every time we go, which is A LOT in the summer months, I try to get something new and different. I’ve fallen in love with the melon flavors, the guava and papaya, and the coconut. Making fun combinations, like watermelon + nectar and honeydew + lime has been fun, but yesterday, I tried something I’d never thought to try before: Mango + Tamarindo. OH MY GOSH.
Before I go on, I’m willing to bet there’s a few of you who are not familiar with tamarindo, so first, let me explain.
Tamarindo is a syrup or flavoring used to make sodas and agua frescas, as well as candies popular in Mexico, and here in Texas. Tamarind, the plant that’s actually a very close relative to the string bean, and the stuff inside the pods are the fruit of the Tamarind Tree. Go figure. And it tastes ridiculously good. Sour, sweet, tart… It’s pretty much awesome, and it pairs perfectly with other fruits, like melons, mangoes and papayas.
So when I saw there was tamarindo available at the snow cone stand, I freaked out. I just HAD to have a mango + tamarindo snow cone. No getting around it. But would it taste good?
The answer? YES. It was the world’s best snow cone ever. EVER.
I’m thinking next time I’ll go with Cantaloupe + Tamarindo and see what happens. Maybe there will be a best snow cone ever part 2!
