The Icecreamists Cookbook: Scandal, Shock & Decadent Ice Cream

The scoop, the whole scoop, and nothing but the scoop.

The Icecreamists weren’t just ice cream makers – they were agitators, provocateurs, and self-styled “agents of cool.” Best known for their headline-grabbing breast milk ice cream, they brought equal parts scandal and style to Covent Garden in the early 2010s.

Yes, breast milk ice cream and it caused more than a storm in a 'D' cup. Expressed fresh on the premises by donor Victoria Hiley, the flavour was originally sold as Baby Gaga until Lady Gaga threatened to sue, forcing a hasty name change to Baby Googoo. Health inspectors swooped in, newspapers screamed, and servers dressed in blonde wigs and silver bras only added fuel to the controversy.

Behind it all was founder Matt O’Connor – no stranger to drama as the campaigner behind Fathers 4 Justice (remember Batman scaling Buckingham Palace and Spiderman on the London Eye?). Branded an extremist during his activism, he quipped: “I’m not an extremist – I’m an icecreamist!” The name stuck, and with it, the legend.

A Cookbook with Attitude

The Icecreamists book mirrors the brand’s rebellious flair. Bursting with Anders Schønnemann’s glossy photography and O’Connor’s cheeky commentary, it’s part ice cream bible, part memoir, part manifesto.

The recipes span ice creams, sorbettos, cocktails, desserts, and ice lollies. Some feel classic (Mint Condition, a mint-choc staple; The Custardy Suite, a silky Italian crema), while others revel in chaos. There’s Lenin & Lime (gin and tonic sorbetto), Alexander McCream (spiced pumpkin), the infamous Baby Googoo, and Sex Bomb – a “stimulant ice cream” that had to be renamed after Johnny Rotten objected to the original title, Sex Pistol.

Each recipe is paired with a story – sometimes rooted in O’Connor’s campaigning, sometimes in personal adventures. The Savoy Chill recalls a surreal interrogation over Earl Grey at The Savoy, while Lady Marmalade is tied to Semana Santa in Seville, complete with bull-runs, orange blossom, and near-death encounters with El Toro. It’s wild, tongue-in-cheek, and impossible to read without a smirk.

Shock, Scandal, and Scoops

This isn’t just another ice cream recipe collection. It’s playful, provocative, and knowingly outrageous. Even the Icecreamists’ pop-ups leaned into spectacle – including the world’s first over-18s gay ice cream bar in Covent Garden, cheekily dubbed Maiden Lane.

Whether you view it as food porn, political theatre, or just an unconventional cookbook, The Icecreamists is an unapologetic celebration of indulgence and rebellion. It’s not for vanilla traditionalists – but if you like your recipes laced with humour and mischief, you’ll be right at home.

Book Details

Title: The Icecreamists

Author: Matt O’Connor

Photographer: Anders Schønnemann

Publisher: Mitchell Beazley, Octopus Publishing Group (2012)

Format: Hardcover, 160 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1845337063

With thanks to Octopus Publishing for the review copy.

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