It may sound strange, but ice cream has been around a lot longer than refrigerators and freezers.
In ancient times, Roman emperors had snow brought to their palace from nearby mountains, and their cooks mixed it with honey and fruit juices to form an iced dessert. Then in the 13th century, Marco Polo returned to Europe from China with a recipe for a dish made with iced milk.
But the first real ice cream, with cream instead of milk, wasn’t made until about 200 years later. In Italy, it was called “flower of milk,” and in England, “creme frez.” At the time, recipes for ice cream were kept secret, and chefs competed with one another to find the best way to prepare it.
Ice cream was first made in America late in the 18th century. Both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were ice cream lovers. In fact, some people believe that Jefferson may have invented the ice cream sandwich!
The United States now produces over 775,000,000 gallons of ice cream every year!
Related Posts
-
Who invented Neapolitan Ice Cream and How is Neapolitan Ice Cream made?
Despite what certain nostalgia-happy entrepreneurs would have you believe, ice cream production is a big, industrial business. The United States produces more than 900 million gallons of ice cream every year. During the…
-
Why does Dairy Queen Soft-Serve Ice Cream become hard in the freezer and What is Ice Cream Made of?
As (chocolate) Dairy Queen aficionado myself, we conducted an investigation. I bought a quart container of soft-serve ice cream and measured its temperature by plunging an instant-read thermometer into the middle and waiting…
-
Why does Ice Cream Shrink when melted and How much Air does Ice Cream contain?
Ice cream shrinks when it's melted because it is half air. Federal regulations specify that the amount of "overrun" in ice cream must be less than t00 percent. Overrun is the increase in…
-
What is the Difference between Heavy Cream, Whipped Cream, Light Cream, and Half and Half?
Cream is made from milk by boosting the percentage of milk fat (also called butterfat, because it is made into butter) beyond the percentage the cow put into it. That is, some of…
-
Why Is Glacier Ice Purer Than Regular Ice and How Is Glacier Ice Formed Without Impurities?
Yes, glacier ice purer than regular ice, and it is not surprising that some entrepreneurs have marketed it commercially for drinks. There are several scientific and aesthetic reasons for the superiority of glacier…
-
Why Is Ice Slippery and How Is the Blade of An Ice Skate Able To Glide On Ice With No Friction?
One simple reason why ice is slippery is that pressure and friction from shoes or skates can melt a very thin layer at the top of snow or ice. It then forms a…
