The Delicious History of Ice Cream

Ice cream has been enjoyed as a favorite dessert for many generations; however, we seldom stop to think about the fact that ice cream has not always been available for families to enjoy on hot summer afternoons.

It is believed that the first prototype of ice cream was served by Nero in the Roman Empire as early as the 4th century B.C.; although it is highly likely that the dish the infamous emperor enjoyed held little resemblance to the creamy concoction we enjoy today. In order to produce the Emperor’s ice cream, ice had to be actually hauled in from the mountains and then combined with fruit toppings.

Later, during the 7th Century A.D., Chinese emperors further experimented with the production of ice and milk mixtures. From there, the idea spread to Europe where it eventually became a staple dessert. Both the Italian and French royal courts were fascinated with the idea and as we know today, ice cream remains a largely Italian favorite dish.

Eventually the idea caught on in the United States and ice cream dishes were served and enjoyed by several American presidents and other notable dignitaries. It is believed that ice cream was offered for sale for the first time in the United States in New York around 1774, with the first ice cream parlor opening in that same city two years later. It was around this same time that the delectable dish took on the now popular name of ice cream. Prior to that time, the dessert dish had frequently been referred to as iced cream.

As popular as ice cream proved to be, it was still difficult to produce and market it on a mass scale due to the painstaking production process. Eventually; however, a method was developed to mix salt with the ice in order to control the temperature of the ingredients during the production process. In 1846, a homemaker named Nancy Johnson created and patented a prototype of the hand-cranked ice cream freezer that is still used in many homes today. The emergence of these two technologies led to the first commercial production of ice cream on a large scale in 1851. The first ice cream production plan was established in Baltimore.

From that point, more and more inventions continued to emerge in order to enhance the enjoyment of ice cream. Individuals experimented with and produced new ice cream recipes. A patent for the first ice cream mold and ice cream scooper was issued. Around the same time ice cream became less expensive to produce; making it possible for even those families who were not wealthy to enjoy the treat. Push cart vendors enjoyed lucrative trade selling ice cream on the streets of New York and other cities.

The first ice cream cone emerged in 1904 at St. Louis World’s Fair as the solution to a rather difficult problem. An ice cream vendor was having a difficult time keeping up with the demand of his customers because he couldn’t keep ice cream dishes wash quickly enough. A neighboring waffle vendor provided the solution when he rolled a waffle to hold the ice cream. Thus, the first waffle ice cream cone came into existence.

In 1920, the first Good Humor ice cream trucks made their way onto the road; establishing a long standing ice cream truck tradition. Eventually, other varieties of the deliciously cold treat emerged, including soft ice cream, which was invented by British chemists when they doubled the amount of air contained within ice cream. Consumers have been enjoying the Eskimo Pie ice cream treat since it was first produced in 1934; however, interestingly enough the now famous treat was originally called the “I-Scream-Bar.”

Jason Petrina is the Editor and Publisher of Article Click. For more FREE articles for your ezine and websites visit - www.articleclick.com

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