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NATIONAL SOFT ICE CREAM DAY
National Soft Ice Cream Day on August 19th gives us a tasty way to cool off on a hot summer day. Whether you enjoy it in a bowl or on a cone, grab some soft serve and enjoy!
Melting Ice Cream
In 1934 on Memorial Day weekend in Hartsdale, New York, Tom Carvel had a flat tire. After pulling his ice cream truck into a parking lot, the businessman knew his product was melting. As vacationers drove by, Carvel sold the softened ice cream to them. Surprisingly, they loved the soft ice cream! The potential for a new dessert was not lost on the salesman. Instead of a roving ice cream truck, Carvel could have a fixed location with soft ice cream.
Two years later, Tom Carvel opened his first ice cream store on the site where his truck broke down. In the preceding years, Carvel patented a super low-temperature ice cream machine and created a secret formula ice cream.
It wasn’t long before other businesses began to crop up. The hard ice cream industry began to object. Despite both products providing similar flavors, servings, and enjoyment, they were different. Hard ice cream business did suffer a reduction in revenue during the first years of soft ice cream’s popularity. Even the Minnesota legislature passed laws prohibiting the sale (technically by law it was considered to be ice milk) of soft-serve ice cream from a machine. It had to be sold pre-packaged. The law was later changed. (Star Tribune, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 19 Aug 1951)
Soft vs. Hard Ice Creams
How different are soft and hard ice creams? While they are made with the same ingredients, soft ice cream has less milk fat. It also has more air than hard ice cream. Both of these factors contribute to the ice cream being more delicate and smoother. The milk fats in the hard ice cream cause it to be firmer when frozen.
Another difference is the temperatures the ice creams are kept frozen. Soft ice cream machines keep a temperature of -6°C. However, hard ice cream is kept at a temperature of -12°C. While that might not seem like a big difference, the evidence is in the ice creams.
HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalSoftIceCreamDay
There are many ways to enjoy soft ice cream. Order a dipped cone or have a sundae. Soft ice cream comes in a variety of flavors. One that seems to taste better as soft serve is chocolate mint. However, that may just be an opinion. Go out for some soft ice cream and use #NationalSoftIceCreamDay to post on social media.
Ice Cream FAQ
Q. How many ice cream holidays are on the calendar?
A. As of 2021, there are 20 ice cream days on the calendar including National Frozen Yogurt Day and National Frozen Custard Day. Most of them land in July which is also National Ice Cream Month.
Q. What are the main ingredients in ice cream?
A. Ice cream’s main ingredients include milk, cream, sugar, and eggs. However, many commercial ice creams use a variety of additional ingredients to enhance flavor and improve creaminess. Those ingredients may include corn syrup, natural and artificial flavors, glycerides (a type of fat), guar or xanthan gum to name a few.
Q. Is homemade ice cream healthier than store-bought?
A. It can be. When it comes to making your own ice cream, you can control the ingredients, including the amount of sugar, fat, and type of dairy used. For those who cannot have dairy, many recipes substitute nut milk for cow’s milk.
Q. Is ice cream unhealthy?
A. Like any dessert, eating ice cream in moderation is not unhealthy. Limiting serving sizes and eating it as an occasional treat should not impact your health. There are also healthier options available such as low-fat, low-calorie options.
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