Southern Belle Magazine Digital #02 August 2013 | Page 16

Most everyone loves ice cream but there are probably a few things about it that you may not know. We compiled a list of fun facts about our favorite frozen treat! Ice Cream in World History
• Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) is known to have loved snow flavored with nectar and honey. • The Roman Emperor Nero (54-68 A.D.) had ice and snow brought to him from the mountains, which he stored in special rooms under his palace so that he could top it with fruit to enjoy. • Marco Polo (1254-1324) tried ice cream while exploring China and brought the idea back to his native Italy. • Ice cream became available to the general population in France in 1660.

More Fun Facts

• The use of the ice cream cone was popularized at the 1904 St. Louis Fair. • It takes an average of 50 licks to finish one scoop of ice cream. • Hawaii has a fruit known as the ice cream bean or the monkey tamarind that actually tastes like vanilla ice cream! • "Brain freeze" is triggered when ice cream touches the roof of your mouth, causing blood vessels in the head to dilate.

Ice Cream in U.S. History
• Ice cream was introduced to America in the 1700s, but was a rare and exotic dessert enjoyed mostly by those of status and wealth. • First Lady Dolley Madison created a sensation when she served ice cream at her husband’s second inaugural ball. • Around 1800, insulated ice houses were invented and ice cream became an American industry. •Americans celebrated the victory of WWII with ice cream. In 1946, they ate more than 20 quarts of ice cream per person. • The ice-cream industry generates more than $21 billion in annual sales in the United States. • More than 90 percent of U.S. households purchase ice cream. • In 1984, President Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month and the third Sunday of that month as National Ice Cream Day.