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Ice Cream!!

I hope it won’t come as a surprise that July is national ice cream month, but if it is, this is your reminder to start celebrating! While you are enjoying a cone or a bowl, peruse these fun facts:

The first instances of ice cream (54 to 68 CE) were more about the ice then the cream and bore more of a resemblance to an Italian ice or slushie flavored with honey or nectar.
The first mention of ice cream in the US was in a letter by Maryland Governor William Bladen in 1744.
George Washington was a great fan of ice cream and reportedly spent ~$200 on it in the summer of 1790.
The first hand-cranked ice cream maker was invented by Nancy Johnson in 1843.
In 1851 Jacob Fussell built the first ice cream factory, but storing it at home was tricky since the first home refrigerator wasn’t developed until 1913.
Vanilla is the most popular flavor of ice cream and you have plenty of time to prepare to enjoy it on July 23^rd which National Vanilla Ice Cream Day.
Unfortunately, we’ve missed National Creative Ice Cream Flavors day, which is July 1^st, but here are some to consider for next year. Which one do you want to try?
oysters
asparagus
parmesan cheese
salted butter sweet corn
jalapeno strawberry
pork-belly pecan
olive oil
Le Mars, IA was dubbed the Ice Cream Capital of the World in 1994 and continues to make more ice cream then anywhere else on earth. If you decide to visit, be sure to check out their ice cream museum.

If you want to learn more, check out Of sugar and snow: a history of ice cream making. Are you inspired to make your own batch of ice cream? Take home the ice cream maker in the Library of Things and give it a try!

Maxi-Matic Ice Cream Maker

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I Scream, You Scream, We all Scream for...

Ice Cream!!

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