No matter the season, it’s always a good time to eat ice cream. Summer is the high point of of the year for ice cream lovers, of course, but fall and winter have their share of occasions for frozen desserts. Who can forgo a hot apple crisp with ice cream on a cold evening? Or that old standby vanilla with hot chocolate sauce? In fact, there are no limits to when and how you can eat ice cream. Just make sure you have plenty of dessert cups and spoons so everyone gets their share.
Is there a season for ice cream?
Ice cream trucks and summer go together. It’s difficult to imagine one without the other. Ice cream manufacturers too work overtime in the summer, making more of the delicious sweet frozen desserts in the month of June than at any other time in the year. This even though it’s actually July that is National Ice Cream Month and it’s the third Sunday in July each year that’s celebrated as National Ice Cream Day.
That’s right, the U.S. government has designated, through a special law passed by Congress, a month and a day dedicated to celebrating and enjoying ice cream. The idea is a good one, but actually, it’s almost redundant. Americans enjoy ice cream year around, and eat it almost every week. That’s 28.5 times a year, for those who are mathematically challenged.
A year round supply
It’s a good thing ice cream manufacturers produce some 1.5 billion gallons of the stuff every year. A shortage might lead to some serious public unrest. Almost 90% of Americans eat ice cream on a regular basis. And if it isn’t ice cream, it might be a similar sweet, frozen dessert like gelato or frozen yogurt. In fact, there’s never a time when people aren’t eating ice cream or similar sweets.
Which is why for homes, restaurants, stores and ice cream vendors, it’s a good idea to have a steady supply of dessert cups, containers and ice cream spoons handy. You would hate to run out just when the kids decide to make brownies to eat with their ice cream.
Fall flavors and recipes
Ice cream fans, which is the vast majority of the population, eat ice cream year round. They may make certain concessions to the season, picking fall flavors like apple spice, pumpkin and ginger snaps. And there are all kinds of delicious fall and winter recipes for dessert pairings like ice cream with apple crisp, vanilla ice cream with hot chocolate sauce and even a humble bread pudding with fudge and chocolate ice cream.
An easy way to dress up any dessert is to use colored spoons with elegant cut glass dessert bowls, or add cherries, sprinkles or fall fruit. Fruit is an especially good idea, making your dessert a lot healthier and guilt free.
Ice cream is a perennial American favorite. About 9% of the total milk supply in the country goes into making ice cream, and that’s just as well. Just because fall is around the corner, that doesn’t mean people are going to stop eating ice cream. They’re just going to get creative with flavors, recipes and supplies. So make sure you have a good supply of spoons, dessert cups, cherries and sprinkles. They will be needed.
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