According to our calendars, today is National Ice Cream Day. We don’t know about you, but this couldn’t happen at a better time, considering the record high temps. Now, there are plenty of places to buy ice cream here in town and that’s a great option for cooling off in record time. Plus there are so many flavors to choose from!
Did you know that ice cream’s origins date back centuries? Royal households would send runners to the mountains for snow, which would then be flavored with fruits, juices, and honey. The more modern day recipe that we would recognize as ice cream was developed from a recipe Marco Polo brought from the Far East to Italy during the 16th century. At around the same time, England developed Cream Ice. For more info about the history of ice cream, visit the International Dairy Foods Association HERE.
Some of us who have been here, ummm, a while, remember the fun trips to Thrifty Ice Cream (where the 99 Cent Store is now in the Las Posadas Shopping Center at the corner of Buchanan Boulevard and Boulder City Parkway). There they served up cylindrical scoops of all kinds of flavors. Thrifty Ice Cream briefly enjoyed a renaissance here in town several years ago as a standalone shop, also in the Las Posadas Shopping Center. Some of us even remember the town favorite Frosty Freeze, on Nevada Way. Eventually it became Southwest Diner, then Little City Grille, and now it’s undergoing another transformation. They had the best soft serve!
That’s enough reminiscing. Today calls for action! We thought we’d share an easy ice cream recipe if you’d like to try your hand at making your own. This recipe is a no churn ice cream recipe which means you won’t need an egg custard to start it, nor an ice cream maker to make it. It only calls for two ingredients and takes about two hours to freeze to a nice soft serve consistency. Enjoy!
No Churn Vanilla Ice Cream
- 2 c heavy whipping cream
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, chilled (not evaporated milk!)
- Whip the heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer until stiff peaks are created.
- Drizzle the chilled sweetened condensed milk slowly over the whipped cream.
- Add any additional ingredients, such as strawberry or peach puree, mini chocolate chips, crushed cookies, etc and stir gently to combine.
- Place in an airtight container. Top with a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the ice cream. Freeze for at least two hours and serve.
Enjoy your day today and do everything you can to stay cool (and hydrated) during these extra hot days!
