We all scream for ice-cream!

When summer arrives, do you wonderwhy you arealways the favorite of the sun? It is always the hope that everyone will get rainy and sunny days equally, but to the contrary,you may feel that you alone get more sunshine. In such a burning hot summer, besides hiding in an air-conditioned room, a cool artifact is indispensable for you - ice cream! Every time I see an attractive and wonderful ice cream, I can't help buying one even if theoretically I may not take more. And then I would suck the ice cream forgetting about weight-loss matters. Let losing weight go to hell! You scream, I scream. We all scream for ice-cream!

 

About Ice Cream

With a long history of eating frozen food, the Chinese people have a record of eating icy food in 2000 BC. In the Book of Songs, there is the record that ice is collected into icehouse in the freezing weather of December and January so that it can be used in hot days. ("Collect ice in December, and store ice in the icehouse in January").

Did Ice cream originate in China?

About in the late Tang Dynasty, a lot of saltpeter was quarried to produce gunpowder, which was found to absorb lots of heat to turn water into ice. From then on, artificial ice-making became possible in summer.

▲  Ancient people collecting ice

In Tang dynasty, the nobilities loved delicious food and under the influence of Northern tribes,cheese became popular among them in the upper class. In Tang and Song Dynasties, cherries with cheese sprinkled on were one of the most famous delicacies in the upper class. The fresh cherries filled in a beautiful vessel were poured with cold sugarcane syrup or cheese. What a wonderful taste! Du Mu, a famous poet in Late Tang period, wrote in the poem Response to Pei Jie for Fresh Cherry: "I can't bear to eat the cheese, so I just play the jade plate. If the time can stop here, I don't want elixir for a long life." This cold drink can even be comparable with the elixir!

▲  Various cold drink stalls along streets in Song Dynasty

In Yuan Dynasty, businessmen who loved drinking milk sold the ice with fruit syrup and milk, which was called "Frozen Milk", a food similar to modern ice cream. Kublai Khan once enacted an edict that "no one is allowed to make ice cream except the royal family", so that the delicious food could only be seen in the Palace Banquet.

Who took the ice cream to the world?

Marco Polo, a famous Italian traveler, served the government of Yuan Dynasty for over 17 years, and rendered great service in escorting a princess to Ilkhan Khanate for marriage. So when he left China in 1292, Kublai Khan made an exception to tell him the secret recipe. When Marco Polo came back to Italy, he presented the secret recipe to his King. The ice cream from the East became popular in northern Italy, and gradually spread throughout the western world.

▲  Marco Polo

The ice cream cone became famous in St. Louis World Expo

Although ice cream originated from the ice in China, the World Expo is the real hero for making ice cream a popular delicacy. At St. Louis World Expo in 1904, Ernest, a Syrian pancakes seller, happened to have his stall next to Arnold, an ice cream seller. The sales volume of ice cream was brilliant on that day. People came and went like an endless stream. As it was just about noon, the cups Arnold prepared run out, and it was clearly too late to wash the containers.

▲  1904 St. Louis World Expo Site

Just when Arnold was at his wits end, Ernest rolled a pancake into a cone and handed it to Arnold. At first Arnold thought that Ernest was joking with him, but he made every possible effort. After trying several times, Arnold found ice cream could bind the pancake together easily, and due to the thickness of the pancake, ice cream could not overflow in a short time. What was the most important was that it was very delicious to have them together. Then Arnold began to sell the ice cream in this way, which was very popular, and was far ahead of other stalls. Hence, everyone began to imitate the example of Arnold and bought pancake from Ernest.

▲  Icecream cone

Ernest was so smart that he founded the Cornucopia Waffle Company with his partners after the World Expo, and began to promote a new way to eat ice cream, "World’s Fair Cornucopia". Ernest established his own company in 1910 to sell his proprietary ice cream cones.

▲  Written by Pamela J. Vaccaro, Beyond The Ice CreamConeintroduced the ice cream appeared at St. Louis World Expo in 1904

After ice cream met with pancake at St. Louis World Expo, a romance between them started from the World Expo. Since its first appearance at St. Louis World Expo in 1904, such ice cream cone became a popular pioneer in the dessert industry. Nowadays, there are various ice creams in the market, a feast for the eyes, which bring plenty of choices for foodies.

Does ice cream remind you of colorful memories in summer as a kid? Ice cream brings us not only a delicacy, but more of that small pleasure and satisfaction. Besides the ice cream cone, hot dogs, hamburgers, coffee and many other delicacies have swept the World Expo in the history. Through the innovation spirit and power for improving life presented by the World Expo and food as well as science and technology, we feel the meaning and charm of the World Expo. The World Expo is not only the stage to showcase the scientific, economic and social achievements and comprehensive national strength, but also embodies the cultures and the love for life.