Snow cone
Encyclopedia
Snow cones or snow balls are a variation of the shaved ice
dessert commonly served throughout North America
in paper cones or styrofoam
cups. The dessert consists of ice shavings that are topped with flavored sugar syrup.
Depending on the region of the continent, sometimes there are differentiation made between "snowball" and "snow cone", with the former made of finely shaved ice ("like soft fresh snow") and the latter coarser and more granular ("crunchy").
, MD. In Baltimore, children would run up to the wagon and ask for a small scraping of ice. Before long, mothers started to make flavoring in anticipation of their child receiving some ice. The first flavor these moms made was a current Baltimore favorite: egg custard. Egg custard was an easy flavor to make as all that was in it was eggs, vanilla and sugar.
and World War II
, snowballs made the leap from a Baltimore-confined treat to national treasure. As snowballs were so cheap, it was one of the few treats that people could afford. This inexpensiveness earned snowballs the nicknames 'Hard Times Sundae', and 'Penny Sundae'. People in need of a job would sell snowballs as it required little overhead. This nationwide adoration was furthered during World War II. In the war, all available ice cream was sent to soldiers, creating a need for an icy treat. This newfound lack of competition helped snowballs became popular across the country. This depression-fueled nationwide appeal was the height of the great snowballs popularity, and snowball culture quickly receded to Baltimore, the Jersey Shore
and Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Hawaii
.
, "shave ice
" is similar to snowballs, and is sold in cone-shaped paper cups. "Rainbow," a popular flavor, consists of three different colors of syrup chosen usually for their color rather than their taste compatibility. Commonly, a scoop of vanilla ice cream or sweetened azuki beans is first added to the bottom of the cup, and is capped with condensed milk.
The dessert ice kachang
served in Malaysia and Singapore
is another form of shaved ice. Ice kachang originally was served with red beans but now includes various fruits and other sweet toppings.
In Japan they are known as kakigori
.
File:Hansens Sno-Bliz 2010.JPG|Hansen's Sno-Bliz
Image:Kids shave ice.jpg|Children with shave ice treat.
Image:Hawaiian Blizzard syrup.jpg|Syrups used for Hawaiian shave ice.
File:Tony's Snow-cone truck.jpg|Snow cone vending truck in Arizona.
Shaved ice
Shaved ice is a large family of ice-based dessert made of fine shavings of ice or finely crushed ice topped with sweet condiments or syrups. The dessert is consumed world-wide in various forms and manners. Shaved ice can also mixed with large quantities of liquid to produce shaved ice drinks.Shaved...
dessert commonly served throughout North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in paper cones or styrofoam
Styrofoam
Styrofoam is a trademark of The Dow Chemical Company for closed-cell currently made for thermal insulation and craft applications. In 1941, researchers in Dow's Chemical Physics Lab found a way to make foamed polystyrene...
cups. The dessert consists of ice shavings that are topped with flavored sugar syrup.
Depending on the region of the continent, sometimes there are differentiation made between "snowball" and "snow cone", with the former made of finely shaved ice ("like soft fresh snow") and the latter coarser and more granular ("crunchy").
Industrial Revolution
This snowball culture dried up over time, but in the 1850s the American Industrial Revolution made ice commercially available. Ice houses in New York would commonly sell ice to places like Florida. To transport the ice to Florida, the ice houses would send a wagon with a huge block of ice south. The route to Florida would pass right though BaltimoreBaltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, MD. In Baltimore, children would run up to the wagon and ask for a small scraping of ice. Before long, mothers started to make flavoring in anticipation of their child receiving some ice. The first flavor these moms made was a current Baltimore favorite: egg custard. Egg custard was an easy flavor to make as all that was in it was eggs, vanilla and sugar.
Theaters
By the 1870s, the snowball's popularity had risen to the degree that in the warm summer months, theaters would sell snowballs to keep their patrons cool. Because of this association with the theater, snowballs were thought of as an upper-class commodity. Signs in theaters instructing patrons to finish their snowballs before coming in to the second act are the earliest tangible evidence of snowballs. In the theaters in Baltimore during the time hand shavers were used to shave the ice. Around the city, snowballs were served on newspaper, but in the classy theaters, butchers' boats were used. In the 1890s, many people started to invent easier ways for snowballs to be made. In that decade, six different patents for electric ice shavers were filed.Great Depression and World War II
During the Great DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, snowballs made the leap from a Baltimore-confined treat to national treasure. As snowballs were so cheap, it was one of the few treats that people could afford. This inexpensiveness earned snowballs the nicknames 'Hard Times Sundae', and 'Penny Sundae'. People in need of a job would sell snowballs as it required little overhead. This nationwide adoration was furthered during World War II. In the war, all available ice cream was sent to soldiers, creating a need for an icy treat. This newfound lack of competition helped snowballs became popular across the country. This depression-fueled nationwide appeal was the height of the great snowballs popularity, and snowball culture quickly receded to Baltimore, the Jersey Shore
Jersey Shore
The Jersey Shore is a term used to refer to both the Atlantic coast of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the adjacent resort and residential communities. . The New Jersey State Department of Tourism considers the Shore Region, Greater Atlantic City, and the Southern Shore to be distinct, each having...
and Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
Similar confections
In HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, "shave ice
Shave ice
Shave ice or Hawaiian shave ice is an ice-based dessert made by shaving a block of ice. While the product can resemble a snow cone, snow cones are made with crushed, rather than shaved, ice....
" is similar to snowballs, and is sold in cone-shaped paper cups. "Rainbow," a popular flavor, consists of three different colors of syrup chosen usually for their color rather than their taste compatibility. Commonly, a scoop of vanilla ice cream or sweetened azuki beans is first added to the bottom of the cup, and is capped with condensed milk.
The dessert ice kachang
Ice kachang
Ais kacang is a Malaysian dessert. Traditionally a special ice machine is used to churn out the shaved ice used in the dessert, originally hand cranked but now more often motorized....
served in Malaysia and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
is another form of shaved ice. Ice kachang originally was served with red beans but now includes various fruits and other sweet toppings.
In Japan they are known as kakigori
Kakigori
is a Japanese shaved ice dessert flavored with syrup and condensed milk.Popular flavors include: strawberry, cherry, lemon, green tea, grape, melon, "Blue Hawaii," sweet plum, and colorless syrup. Some shops provide colorful varieties by using two or more different syrups. To sweeten kakigōri,...
.
Gallery
File:Hansens Sno-Bliz 2010.JPG|Hansen's Sno-Bliz
Hansen's Sno-Bliz
Hansen's Sno-Bliz is a snowball stand located in New Orleans, Louisiana on Tchoupitoulas Street at Bordeaux Street.It opened in 1934 and is believed to be the oldest snowball stand in the United States. It has been operated continuously by the Hansen family since its opening. After Hurricane...
Image:Kids shave ice.jpg|Children with shave ice treat.
Image:Hawaiian Blizzard syrup.jpg|Syrups used for Hawaiian shave ice.
File:Tony's Snow-cone truck.jpg|Snow cone vending truck in Arizona.
See also
- Shave iceShave iceShave ice or Hawaiian shave ice is an ice-based dessert made by shaving a block of ice. While the product can resemble a snow cone, snow cones are made with crushed, rather than shaved, ice....
or Hawaiian shave ice - A finely shaved flavored ice dessert - Italian iceItalian iceItalian ice, also known as water ice, is a sweetened frozen dessert made with fruit or other natural or artificial food flavorings, similar to sorbet. Italian ice is not shaved ice that is flavored; rather, it is made by the same process by which ice cream is made: freezing the ingredients while...
- Water ice - PiraguaPiragua (food)A piragua is a Puerto Rican shaved ice dessert, shaped like a pyramid, consisting of shaved ice and covered with fruit flavored syrup which are sold by vendors, known as piragüeros, in small colorful pushcarts...
- the Puerto Rican version - Snow creamSnow creamSnow cream, also known as Snow , can be one of two distinct desserts.* A cream based dessert with one or more flavoring agents added....
- A cream or snow and dairy based dessert - Slush / SlushieSlush (beverage)A slush is a flavored frozen drink.There are a number of different kinds of slush drinks:* Frozen carbonated beverages, typified by the Slurpee or ICEE, are made by freezing a carbonated drink. These machines are complicated and expensive, and notably require a carbon dioxide supply...
- A shaved ice drink - SlurpeeSlurpeeA Slurpee is a flavored frozen drink sold by 7-Eleven. In 1967, 7-Eleven licensed the product from the ICEE Company, and began selling it as the Slurpee.-Slurpee history:Machines to make frozen beverages were invented by Omar Knedlik in the late 1950s...
/ Slush PuppieSlush PuppieSlush Puppie is a slush beverage marketed by Slush Puppie, which is a division of The ICEE Company, and through its Slush Puppie Distributors in the U.S. Slush Puppie was acquired by ICEE on May 30, 2006....
/ Icee - Brand name slushes