Ice cream history: first mentions
It is believed that the first prototype of modern ice cream appeared in China 5 thousand years ago - in the third millennium BC. Then Emperor Tang demanded from his subordinates to prepare dessert, which will cool it in the heat. Cooks have long thought and decided to mix ordinary crushed fruits (orange, lemon, apricot and peach) with ordinary snow. This dessert was so loved by the emperor that it became almost a national treasure. The recipe for creating fruit snow was kept in the strictest secret for many centuries and was first declassified in the book of songs "Shi-King" (or "Shi-King"), which was once edited by Confucius himself.
A little later, in the first millennium B.C., a prototype of ice cream appeared in Israel during the reign of King Solomon. Historians claim that the ruler loved chilled and frozen juices and morses. Thus he tried to prolong the life of the fruit. Solomon considered the delicacy healing and recommended it to all his overseas guests.
In addition, there is evidence that in the 3rd century B.C., the most famous doctor of antiquity, Hippocrates (the one who is still sworn in by all doctors), recommended ice cream to his patients as a medicine that can improve the condition of the body.
A little later, in the 13th century AD, the famous traveler and merchant Marco Polo visited China. From there, he brought home to Italy a prototype of a modern ice cream recipe. It is said that he sold the recipe for an amazing cold dessert for a lot of money to the best cooks in the country. A few hundred years later, the ice cream came to France, Spain, Germany, and then to other European countries. In France, this delicacy was very much loved by Queen Catherine Medici. She served ice cream and various sherbettes during official receptions.
The first of the ordinary Europeans (not the Tsarist blood) to try ice cream were also the French. In the 17th century, this dessert was actively sold directly in the street shops, and in 1676 in Paris the world's first association of independent ice-cream makers, which included both famous confectioners and ordinary street cooks.
Later, the ice cream was seen in the modern United States of America. The recipe for a treat was first brought there in the middle of the 17th century by immigrants. The first major frozen juice factory appeared in the late 17th century in New York and Chicago.
Ice cream in Russia
In our country, ice cream has been eating since ancient times. Finely sliced white milk ice was served back in Kievan Rus. It was prepared in winter, when the temperature on the street was suitable. Milk or cream was frozen, then finely sliced with a sharp knife and whipped with a spoon to splendor. Sometimes, finely ground dried berries and honey were added to the mass. This was the first real Russian ice cream.
In many villages on Shrovetide they made a frozen mixture of cheese, eggs, sour cream, raisins and sugar wiped through a sieve. The mixture had to be stirred well, then no large crystals were formed there - the mass was soft, tender and lush. If the frost in the street was strong, the mixture was stirred continuously until it was frozen. If you want to use this recipe, keep in mind that real cottage cheese can only be 18% fatty.
In Russia, ice cream in its usual variant appeared in the middle of the XVIII century. At first - in the menu of the tsarist court and nobility. Soon, recipes from the royal cuisine spread throughout Russia, becoming one of the favorite winter folk delicacies, especially at Christmas and Shrovetide. Ice cream remained a winter joy, because in the summer it was simply not cooked. At that time, the peasants did not have refrigerators, and all the food was kept in cool cellars, which could not freeze anything.
In Soviet times, Mikoyan invested a lot of effort in the development of the food industry in the USSR, which became the best and healthiest in the world in the 1950s. His efforts began to produce the famous Soviet Eskimo ice cream on a stick, covered with a layer of chocolate glaze, which not only improves taste, but also protects against rapid melting in the heat (called "Eskimo" derived from the word Eskimo).
Is there any use?
Ice cream helps to make hot summer days less exhausting, refreshing and, thanks to a huge variety of tastes and aromas, has fans among children and adults.
But is this sweet treat good for our body? What is worth remembering when eating ice cream?
Any ice cream, except fruit ice and some other recipes, contains milk and dairy products. And milk, as you know, is a very useful and necessary product for our body
Milk also has a good effect on the health of the heart and vessels - thanks to the potassium and magnesium in the composition.
Milk contained in natural product also contains vitamins of B
Some types of ice cream are rich in iron, which is very useful for the health and work of the circulatory system.
It is known that one portion of cold treats can instantly cheer you up.
And, of course, don't forget that ice cream is the best way to survive the summer heat.