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When he’s not tending to his acres of farmland on the outskirts of Hendersonville, Danny McConnell is likely inside the humble building where he dreams up the rich variety of flavor combinations for his homemade ice cream. Right now, he’s standing before tall shelves teetering with ingredients, running an index finger over the syrups, spices, nuts, and powders as if reading braille. He has a new pairing in mind: fig vinegar with strawberries.
To be sure, this blend is a far cry from the old-fashioned strawberry recipe that Danny and his wife, Kathryn, used when making their first batch of artisanal ice cream. But since then, they’ve unveiled a cornucopia of creative options — like burnt honey, ginger lavender, cherry fig, and blackberry chip, to name but a few.
Outside, the sun nourishes the McConnells’ carefully curated orchards of apples and peaches, their fields of asparagus and blackberries; it warms their greenhouses and beehives, the events pavilion and retail shed adorned with handmade hanging baskets stuffed with Crayola-bright flowers. Despite the endless demands at his 130-acre farm, Danny gleefully loses himself in the act of ice cream creation.
“It feels really good to actually make it,” he says in a relaxed twang. “To pull up a chair and just sit here and think about flavors. I like the creativity.”
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