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Do you want a fun and tasty way to get a break from the summer heat?
Celebrate July being National Ice Cream Month! What started out as a suggestion from a Kentucky Senator turned into an official month long celebration. President Ronald Reagan established the delicious month of festivities in 1984, with Proclamation 5219. He also urged American citizens to celebrate with “appropriate ceremonies and activities”. On top of encouraging people to enjoy yummy ice cream all month long, he also established a National Ice Cream Day, to be held the third Sunday of July.
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Ice cream has delighted people for much longer than most may realize, with origins stretching as far back as China in 200 BC. That is when a device producing sorbet and iced treats was first invented. Milky ice cream as we know it today was first recorded during China’s Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) and was made from heated fermented milk, flour, and camphor. Ice cream is first recorded in what would become the United States in 1744, when a Maryland Governor served strawberry ice cream to his guests.
As refrigeration and freezing became more available in the mid-1800s, ice cream became a popular treat. Adding to the popularity was the invention of the edible ice cream cone at the Missouri World’s Fair in 1904. The story goes that the ice cream vendor was so popular, he ran out of dishes to serve customers with. He teamed up with the waffle vendor nearby to create the waffle cone we now know and love. Today, Americans consume an average of 22 pounds of ice cream and similar frozen goodies every year. California alone produces more than 127 gallons of ice cream annually. Your possibilities of how to enjoy have also expanded. You can now choose from pints, gallons, cones, bars, and more!
You can find dozens of options of ice cream available at the grocery store, but you can also make your own! There are a variety of fancy recipes available for homemade ice cream, but sometimes the custard based recipes can be a little tricky. The following is a simple, no churn recipe for a great tasting vanilla ice cream. The best part? No need for a bulky ice cream machine, the only tools you’ll need are two large bowl, a mixer (hand or standing), spatula and containers to freeze your completed dessert in. This is a great recipe for homemade ice cream beginners, or a fun activity for the whole family to help with.
Ingredients:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
14 oz. sweetened condensed milk
Directions:
1. Whip the cream in a large bowl with your mixer (either hand or standing will work). Make sure not to overmix, the right consistency will be when the cream forms stiff peaks.
2. In the second large bowl, whisk the vanilla into the condensed milk.
3. Using the spatula, fold the whipped cream in with the vanilla/condensed milk mixture. Make sure to fold slow and keep the mixture light and airy.
4. Place the mixture into your preferred container and freeze for four to six hours. A metal container is ideal, but glass or paper will also work.
Make sure to keep sealed tightly to avoid freezer burn, but your tasty concoction will stay fresh for months. That recipe will also work as a base to create an assortment of flavors! Stir in any wanted additional ingredients in the third step, before freezing. Do you have leftover cookie crumbles? Mix those in for a cookies n’ cream spin. Craving S’Mores? Break up graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate bar. Dropping in 2 cups of chopped strawberries will produce a creamy, fruity strawberry ice cream that is sure to be a hit!
The possibilities are endless, so you could create a custom flavor for every week of National Ice Cream Month!
