When life hands you lemons, you make lemonade. So it follows that when life dumps a ton of snow on you, you make ice cream. Yes, ice cream!
Eliza Barclay wrote a fun article for the Washington Post about the history of “snow cream.” She even checked with the EPA and learned that while they wouldn’t recommend consuming snow in large quantities, a dish of snow probably couldn’t hurt you. Furthermore, it seems that when snow falls in copious quantities as we’ve had of late, the tiny flakes actually scrub the sky clean. (Clean-ish?)
Fortified by this research, and by the total mind-numbing boredom of cabin fever, I decided to give the treat a try.
First, I grabbed a long handled ladle so I could reach deep into a snow drift. Then I filled a bowl with scoops of snow.
Next, I opened a can of condensed milk, a bag of Spenda and my bottle of vanilla. I stirred a can and a half into the snow, added a layer of Spenda and three teaspoons of vanilla. (I suggest you adjust the amounts and taste as you go along.)
Finally, I poured the semi-frozen mix into a plastic container and set it in the freezer for an hour. Voila! Tasty, yummy, ice cream. Oh, and that dark dollop on top is chocolate syrup. (Yes, I know. It looks like … well…it isn’t!)
Read Eliza’s enchanting article here:
Wow I'm just checking it's not April 1st!! Seriously snow? You are brave trying it out. We would need a lot more here before i'd try it. An inch or two probably isn't the best snow to eat!!
Liz, we're talking 52 inches. You're right. I wouldn't do this if we only had an inch or two!
Reminds me of my youth in Maryland. We had some winters with over 40 inches of snow, but not as much as they are getting now. Anyway, we loved snow ice cream. I made it in the mountains recently for my grandkids but I just used regular milk. The condensed milk would be much richer. Thanks for the memories.
Betsy, I considered milk only. I used a bit of cream that I had and then the condensed milk, but I think whole milk would have been good like ice milk, right? I'll admit that stirring in the chocolate REALLY amped up the taste!
May I suggest that you try the recipe using a real, top quality vanilla? You'd be surprised at the taste difference.
Jeannette
Great suggestion, Jeannette. I'll definitely do that. I've always heard there's a difference, and your email reminds me I should be more picky about my ingredients!