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Here's The Scoop

Everything you always wanted to know about ice cream

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— including its Jewish connections.

ELIZABETH APPLEBAU/v1

AppleTree Editor

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hen the average
Joe wants a cup
of Joe, he puts a
spoonful or two
of Folgers in the coffee maker,
adds some water; and there you
have it.
Or maybe he feels he deserves
a little something special, so he
heads off to Starbucks and orders
a large cup, preferably with hazel-
nut flavoring.
Ah, life is good.
When Britney Spears wants a
cup of Joe and she's not in Los
Angeles, home to her favorite cof-
fee shop, she hops in a private
plane and heads off to California.
Alas, there is still so much that
separates us — the mere hoi polloi
of the world — with the super,
super rich, like Britney.
Yet there is one way in which
all of us can literally be as cool as
Britney: Enjoy her favorite ice
cream. Yes, it may mean 15 hours
of exercise afterward; but Britney
Spears is known to frequently
indulge in her favorite flavor, pra-
lines and cream, from Baskin
Robbins. And it's even kosher. (For
more on celebrity favorites, see the
sidebar story "What We Love.")
As you no doubt already know, this
Sunday is National Ice Cream Day, as
designated by the International Ice Cream
Association, while July itself is National Ice
Cream Month, a tradition created in 1984
by President Ronald Reagan.
There are, thank heavens, Jewish connec-
tions to ice cream. But first, a bit of history.
We don't know exactly who invented ice
cream; but we do know that it has been
around for quite a long time — since the
second century B.C.E., in fact.
Alexander the Great enjoyed snow mixed
with honey and nectar. The Roman emperor,
Nero (37-68 C.E.), created his own ice
cream when he had ice brought from the
mountains and mixed with fruit. In China,
King Tan (618-697 CE) was known to mix
milk with ice.
China, apparently, has quite a long history
with ice-cream concoctions; Europe is
believed to have gotten its first taste of the
dish thanks to Marco Polo, who returned to

Italy from the Far East with a recipe for a
treat similar to that of modern-day sherbet.
In the United States, ice cream is recorded
for sale as early as 1774, and the first ice-
cream parlor opened two years later. Among
the American presidents known to have
enjoyed ice cream: James Madison (whose
wife, Dolley, made quite an impression when
she served strawberry ice cream at her hus-
band's inaugural ball in 1812) as well as
George Washington, who records show
ordered more than $200 worth of ice cream
in the summer of 1790.
Thomas Jefferson adored ice cream and
made his own. You can see the recipe in his
handwriting at
wwvv.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/images/uc00
4810.jpg

bar was created by Ed Stolman. Originally
from Nashville, Stolman now lives in
California where he is active in the Jewish
community. The Dove bar is now owned
and produced by the M&M-Mars Corp.

* Many ice cream brands, and retail
shops, are kosher. Be sure to check for your
preferred hechsher (kashrut certification), but
here are some you may want to try:
Edy's, Carvel, Cedar Crest, Klein's, Ben
and Jerry's, Bella Gelato, Breyer's, Dippin'
Dots, Good Humor, Turkey Hill, Haagen
Dasz, Market Basket, Kemps, Baskin
Robbins. (For complete information on
kosher ice creams, visit: wvvvv.kashrut.com )
Note: Even if an ice cream is kosher, don't
assume everyone will consume it. Some
members of the Jewish community eat only
dairy foods that are chalav Yisraeh made and
supervised by observant Jews. The vast
majority of Jews will, however, eat dairy
foods with a reliable hechsher. Just double
check first.

It wasn't until the mid-1800s that ice
cream truly became popular in the United
States. Today, it is the favorite American
dessert.
According to the United States Dairy
Association, this country is the largest pro-
ducer of ice cream and frozen desserts in the
* If you're headed off to space and you
world, with more than 1.6 billion gallons
keep kosher, there's no reason you can't enjoy
manufactured in 2001. The states that make
ice cream. Astronaut Ice Cream (that's the
the most: California, Indiana, Pennsylvania,
official name) is certified kosher by Kaf-K,
Texas and Ohio.
comes in Neapolitan flavor and is freeze-
Just how is it made?
dried with 6 grams of fat. To order (each
Parve (usually soy-based) varieties do, of
pack costs $2.79), go to the Web site wvvw.
course, exist, but let's talk about the real
kopes.com/space/astronaut-ice-crearn.htm
thing, which means you start with milk.
Federal regulations demand that any prod-
* King Solomon loved iced drinks, which
uct calling itself "ice cream" must contain at
may have been a form of ice cream.
least 10 percent milk fat, which gives the
food its creaminess, consistency and, natural-
ly, fat.
Next comes the sweetness, which could
mean sugar, corn sweetener or honey. To pre-
EDITOR'S NOTE:
vent ice crystals from forming, ice cream
needs a stabilizer, while an emulsifier guar-
A number of recipes for ice cream
antees a smooth texture.
enjoyed
by U.S. presidents can be found
After all these ingredients are com-
in
cookbooks
and on the Internet. If you
bined, the mixture is then pasteurized.
unable to locate these and would like recipes
The next step is a homogenizer, where
for ice cream eaten by Presidents Truman,
the milk fat is broken into small parti-
Lyndon Johnson, Madison, Herbert Hoover,
cles, giving ice cream its final creamy
Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, or a modern
consistency. The ice cream is then
version
of the Jefferson recipe cited above, please
whipped, flavoring and bulky addi-
send
a
self-addressed, stamped envelope, along
tions (like chocolate chips or fruit
with
the
name of the president whose recipe
chunks) are added; and finally the mix-
you
would
like, to: Recipe Request, do
ture visits the "hardening room," where
AppleTree, the Jewish News, 29200
it is frozen at sub-zero temperatures.
Northwestern Highway, Suite 110,
Southfield, MI 48034.
Now here's this delish dish's
Jewish connections:
* The popular Dove ice cream

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2003

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