What You Didn’t Know About Ice Cream

We know you know a lot about ice cream — why wouldn’t you? Because it’s of America’s favorite snacks, we’re sure you know a lot more than you think. Still, here are some fascinating facts about ice cream we’re sure will shock you.

Rock Salt – Ever make your own homemade ice cream? If so, think back and recall how the recipe called for rock salt. Why on earth is that? You know that ice cream is made of sugar, milk or cream, and flavoring, so why do you need the salt? Turns out that salt lowers the temperature inside your ice cream machine allowing the ice cream to freeze faster. If it weren’t for the rock salt, it would take much longer to make ice cream, and who wants to wait?

Food for the Rich and Famous – This might surprise you, but ice cream wasn’t always affordable. When ice cream was first introduced in the United States in 1777, it was so expensive to make that it was only enjoyed by the wealthy. It is said that President George Washington once spent more than 200 dollars on ice cream in one summer; back then, that was a lot of money. Ice cream didn’t become affordable to the general public until the 1800s, when the first ice houses were invented.

Comfort Food – Do you find that you reach for a second bowl of ice cream when you’re feeling down, angry, or upset? If ice cream is your comfort food, you’re not alone; in fact, it seems like ice cream is a treat that all Americans reach for when times are tough. We know this because in 1929 ice cream sales only boomed after the stock market crashed. Even now, through the most recent recession, sales have not been affected.

Hope you learned something!