“I would have to say mine was a coke float,”
said Brenda Phillips of Cullman.
Another senior Grace Bradford, of Falkville,
said she always enjoyed making pecan ice cream
with her family; while Sherrie Williams, of Holly
Pond, said her favorite has always been butter
pecan and orange sherbet.
While you may be a pro at eating ice cream, did
you know that there are some really interesting
facts about ice cream?
Ice cream’s origins are known to reach back
as far as the second century B.C. although no
specific date of origin nor inventor has been
undisputedly credited with its discovery. We
know that Alexander the Great enjoyed snow
and ice flavored with honey and nectar. Biblical
references also show that King Solomon was fond
of iced drinks during harvesting. During the
Roman Empire, Nero Claudius Caesar (A.D. 54-
86) frequently sent runners into the mountains
for snow, which was then flavored with fruit and
juices.
Over a thousand years later, Marco Polo
returned to Italy from the Far East with a recipe
that closely resembled what is now called sherbet.
Historians estimate that this recipe evolved into
ice cream sometime in the 16th century. England
seems to have discovered ice cream at the same
time, or perhaps even earlier than the Italians.
“Cream Ice,” as it was called, appeared regularly
at the table of Charles I during the 17th century.
France was introduced to similar frozen desserts
in 1553 by the Italian Catherine de Medici when
she became the wife of Henry II of France.
It wasn’t until 1660 that ice cream was made
available to the general public. The Sicilian
Procopio introduced a recipe blending milk,
cream, butter, and eggs at Café Procope, the first
café in Paris.
Ice Cream for America:
The first official account of ice cream in the
New World comes from a letter written in 1744
10 | FALL 2020
CULLMAN COUNTY SENIOR MAGAZINE