Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Happiness Project: Sunday! Sundae!

The Ice Cream Sundae seems innocent enough: Ice cream with a bit of syrup poured over it, a generous dollop of whipped cream, possibly some nuts and then a cherry perched on top. The story behind it's origin, however, is a story that is hotly debated. There are two communities in the US that are at the front of this war. They are Two Rivers, Wisconsin and Ithaca, New York. The Two Rivers Wisconsin story goes like this: Due to blue laws sodas were outlawed on Sunday. To get around this, a local soda fountain started serving a "dry" soda that they called a Sunday. It was ice cream topped with chocolate sauce... a handful of berries was added to make the whole thing seem a bit more wholesome. The other community that claims to have stared the Sundae fad is Ithaca, New York. Their story is not about a legal smoke screen designed to deceive the religious right but rather it is a morally salubrious tale about a Unitarian minister inventing this after church treat with a local soda jerk.

If you are a foodlore nut like me you might want to read more about the history of the sundae at The Official Website of the Ice Cream Sundae. If you just like to eat and want to get scooping you can simply follow the lead of Thing 1 and Thing 2 here and make a Sunday Sundae. All you'll need is some ice cream, whipped cream, chocolate sauce (or sauce of choice...I recommend against sweet and sour... but to each his own), and some cherries. You might also want some chopped nuts, sprinkles or bits of candy.





































Sunday, May 1, was National Chocolate Parfait Day. And there was no better way to celebrate than with this layered frozen treat of perfection.




For those of you who think that they have figured it all out... The parfait DID NOT come before the Sundae... so we can't give the French credit for any more culinary masterpieces. The parfait traces it's origin back to 1894... the ice cream sundae on the other hand was invented somewhere around 1892. So maybe the folks from Ithaca and Two Rivers can just join hands in solidarity against the French. It has brought folks in this country together before...Let's give it try.



















You can still win this cute toy by stopping by Monday's post and making a comment. The contest will be open until Friday and I will announce the winner on Monday at next weeks Makeover Monday.

14 comments:

  1. nothing better than a good sundae! these look great!

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  2. Oh Man! I didn't know there was a national Chocolate parfait day! I'm going to have to celebrate today to make up for not knowing and then tomorrow and the next day and the next just on principle!

    Geez...that looks yummy

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  3. Interesting stuff!

    I'll take a good sundae any way I can get it!!

    =)

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  4. Well that 100% tops my list of things that make me happy for sure!

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  5. very interesting Jenn! I didn't even know that there was a National Parfait Day...that's so funny! The girls really seem to enjoy it!

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  6. Great photos! They are so fun to make at home!

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  7. It looks like you have a couple good sundae makers there! I'm off to the kitchen...

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  8. So interesting and yummy!

    Tiffany

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  9. I am now officially craving for some ice cream. It's the summer season here in the Philippines and your photos are like screaming out to me to get myself some.

    Thanks for the great information.

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  10. Certainly looks as though the sundaes were enjoyed by all! :-)

    Dropping by to return the favor of a visit.

    Hope you have a great Hump Day!

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  11. Dag nab it. I JUST got back from the grocery store...I wish I had seen this sooner. I would have picked up some icecream. God knows we need it, like air here, since it's over 90 degrees already. Oy vey.

    Love the history bit too! And um your kids are too freaking adorable. That is all.

    Oh wait, just kidding.

    Happy Mother's Day :)

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