Who doesn’t like a nice refreshing scoop of ice cream on a hot summer day? Who doesn’t like a nice refreshing scoop of ice cream when it is -8 degrees and when you step outside your snot freezes in your nose? Yep, ice cream is just one of those treats that can be enjoyed any time of the year. And today we are trying different brands of vanilla ice cream.
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Which ice cream brands are we trying today?
Edy’s Vanilla
Breyers Extra Creamy Vanilla
Blue Bunny Vanilla Bean
Whitey’s Vanilla
Haagen-Dazs Vanilla
Who is on this creamy quest?
Hannah, hates everything.
Nate, lactose intolerant.
Matt, ice cream addict.
Amy, pass the root beer.
And of course, our subscribers! Thanks to our small, yet coveted group. We appreciate the support. You too can join us on this food journey. All you need to do is… SUBSCRIBE!
The History of Ice Cream
Would you believe me if I told you that Americans consume an average of 23 lbs of ice cream each year? Well it isn’t too hard to believe when you consider all the occasions we grab an ice cream scoop for. Birthdays have ice cream with cake. Holidays have ice cream with pie. Damn, it’s hot outside. You know what sounds good? Ice Cream. Need a quick cheer up? Let’s go get a couple scoops of chocolate ice cream, that will do the trick.
For a food that melts, Ice Cream has been around for a surprisingly long time. It is actually one of the oldest known desserts. The first references to ice houses and eating snow came from the 11th century BCE China. Around 200 BCE, there’s a reference to people in China eating a combination of milk and rice that was frozen in the snow. Around 400 BCE the Persians invented the predecessor to artificial refrigeration, which was a large pyramidal structure that used evaporation and insulation to keep things cool. And at time, thanks to their ability to trade for sugar from the Indian Empire, the Persians were making their own kind of ice cream called Sharbat.
Fast forward to the Age of Exploration. Modern Ice Cream made its debut when the Spanish Empire got involved with sugar production, bringing chocolate and vanilla from Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula in the 16th century.
By the 18th century, ice cream was incredibly popular in Europe.
Until 1800, ice cream was considered a rare and exotic dessert mostly enjoyed by the elite. But insulated ice houses were soon invented and manufacturing ice cream became an industry in America. It was pioneered by a Baltimore milk dealer named Jacob Fussell in 1851. In 1874, the soda fountain and “soda jerk” became a thing with the invention of the ice cream soda. Think root beer floats. And in response to religious criticism for eating these sinfully rich ice cream sodas on Sundays, the merchants left out the carbonated water and invented the Sundae in the late 1890s.
Some fun facts about ice cream…
Today, 9% of American cows milk production is dedicated to ice cream.
More than 90% of people in the US consume ice cream.
Ice cream consumption among females is 15% higher than males in the US.
In a poll of approximately 20,000 US adults, it was found that the most popular ice cream flavors are…
Chocolate
Vanilla
Strawberry
Butter Pecan
Mint Chocolate Chip
Cookies and Creme
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Rocky Road
Coffee
Pistachio
Chocolate chip
Neapolitan
Cake Batter
The world’s largest manufacturer of ice cream, sorbet, and frozen yogurt by annual revenue is Ben & Jerry’s. Their 2020 annual revenue was $863.1 million.
Followed by…
Blue Bell Creameries in Brenham, Texas
Haagen Daz out of Minneapolis, Minnesota
Breyers Ice Cream out of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Turkey Hill Dairy out of Conestoga Pennsylvania
Dreyer’s out of Oakland, California
Wells Enterprises, Inc. out of LeMars, Iowa, which is Blue Bunny Ice cream
Wells Enterprises owns the single largest ice cream manufacturing facility globally, which is why it is branded as the “Ice Cream Capital of the World.”
The Results
**SPOILER ALERT!**
Listen to the episode first if you do not want the results revealed to you yet!
5th Place: Blue Bunny Vanilla Bean
Amy - 4
Hannah - 7
Matt - 5
Nate - 5
4th Place: Haagen-Dazs Vanilla
Amy - 5
Hannah - 5
Matt - 6
Nate - 7
3rd Place: Whitey’s Vanilla
Amy - 9
Hannah - 5
Matt - 6
Nate - 6
2nd Place: Edy’s Vanilla
Amy - 7
Hannah - 6
Matt - 7
Nate - 9
1st Place: Breyers Extra Creamy Vanilla
Amy - 10
Hannah - 7
Matt - 6
Nate - 8
There you have it. Breyers Extra Creamy Vanilla receives the Quest for the Best seal of approval.
Thank you all for joining us on this episode of Quest for the Best. Let us know what you thought. Have you tried all these ice cream brands? We would love to hear your rating as well.
Also, do you have any foods you would love to get the coveted seal of approval? Let us know in the comments what you want to hear next.
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SHOW NOTES:
https://www.rd.com/article/who-invented-ice-cream/
https://www.pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/explore-the-delicious-history-of-ice-cream/
I'll take two scoops, please!