My wife often serves ice cream for dessert on Shabbos. Because of the doubt as to whether ice cream is a solid (and thus would require a Shehakol) or a liquid (and would require no blessing), she places a piece of chocolate in the bowl. The idea is that we make a Shehakol on the chocolate which then covers the possible obligation for the ice cream.
Considering that the Poskim discuss the doubt as to the proper blessing on chocolate, whether it is Shehakol or HaEitz, is this the proper food to use?
Would candied sprinkles on the ice cream work, or would they be Tafel to the ice cream?
Since Rav Miller is a veritable fount of knowledge and ideas about life in general, could he suggest the most optimum addition to the dessert to solve our dilemma.
[I often eat the ice cream with matza or challah to avoid this problem, but not all our family members find this idea appetizing.]
A. Please see Q. 1134: “If one said Kiddush on wine before a Seudah (Shabbos/Yom Tov), does one say Shahakol on ice cream if it is served as dessert (for those who are accustomed to make a bracha on ice cream during a meal)?
A. Poskim disagree, some (Vezos Habracha p. 98, Birchas Hashem p. 45, Ohr Torah – Sivan 5761 p. 626) maintain that one does not recite a brocho, The reason being mainly that they consider ice cream to be a liquid and the brocho said on the wine exempts liquids that one drinks after the wine. Also, some are in doubt on the above and they rule that safek brachos lehakel, when in doubt, we do not recite.
Others, (Mibeis Levi p. 49, Vezos Habracha ibid. quoting the Staipler Gaon zt”l) maintain that ice cream is solid food and it does not become exempt with the wine brocho.
Horav Shlomo Miller Shlit”a agrees with this last opinion.”
Horav Shlomo Miller’s Shlit’a opinion is that we should follow the opinion of most Poskim that the proper brocho on chocolate is shehakol. He also maintains that the ice cream sprinkles and toppings become annulled to the ice cream. He adds that some people recite shehakol at the kiddush before washing on herring eaten by itself, and they may have then in mind to be yotze the ice cream after the seuda.
See also Q. 944 in regards to the beracha on ice cream and cookies (cookies mixed in ice cream).
Rabbi A. Bartfeld as revised by Horav Shlomo Miller Shlit”a
Important Numbers
