That’s so cool BILL SMITH In the days of Roman emperors, snow from the mountain tops was hauled to the city, according to the Web site, snow-cones.com. Syrup was added to make the world’s first frozen dessert, the snowball. Some may call it a snowball while others call it a snow cone. The difference is that a snow cone’s ice is a crunchier ice in which the flavoring sinks to the bottom, the Web site reports. In a snowball, the ice is fluffier and the flavoring soaks in. In the Teche Area, snowball stands can be easily found, usually staffed with young people on their first job. Cassie Champagne and Anna Bergeron work as a team at the Snowball Factory on Center Street in New Iberia. The two, longtime employees said they could sell as many as a thousand snowballs a day. The line at the stand gets longer as the day gets hotter, they said. Sandra Singleton, one of the managers at the Caribbean Ice Co., said making a snowball is an art along with good people skills. “Some of the customers like a lot of juice, while others like a little less juice,” Singleton said. “The young kids seem to like the bubble gum flavor the best.” She said the company hires a lot of young people to staff the snowball stand and drive-in restaurant. The more popular flavors for adults are ice cream-flavored or strawberry. “Some of the adults and young adults prefer the clear flavors,” Singleton said. “They don’t want the flavor to stain their teeth.” The history of the snowball, as reported by snow-cones.com, began in 1919 at the state fair in Texas when Samuel Bert of Dallas sold his frozen dessert. In 1920, he invented a snow cone-making machine. In New Orleans, inventor Ernest Hansen patented the first known “ice block shaver” in 1934. His inspiration was to create a more refined and hygienic version of the popular Italian ice sold from push-carts in the city. The report states that his wife developed the many flavors to add to the finely shaved” artificial snow.” These “snowballs” have become a popular tradition in New Orleans with the original Hansen’s Sno-Bliz in the uptown area continuing operation on Tchoupitoulas Street through 2005. In Hawaii, snow cones are called “shave ice” and are 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. The ice is often shaved finer than with other snow cones such that the syrup colors are retained longer, providing for a better presentation. Commonly, a scoop of vanilla ice cream is first added to the bottom of the cup. Cultures throughout the world have similar cold treats with varying names and methods of production. All in all, everyone likes a good snowball, or snow cone, on a hot day. In Louisiana, just about every day seems to be a hot day, and, therefore, a perfect day for a snowball. While savoring the relaxed pace which summer vacation brings, I recently came across two articles in a newspaper which seemed oddly linked to each other, while on opposite sides of the page. One article dealt with new words which have been added to Webster’s Dictionary. The Associated Press article, written by Russell Contreras, described 100 new words which “reflect changing trends in American society.” The article went on to state that many of these new words have originated as a result of changes in technology. Though I can’t admit to having knowledge of all the words listed, one word of which I’ve become increasingly familiar with this summer is, “staycation.” The word staycation represents the practice of staying at home for vacation, rather than traveling and is felt to be representative of the economic downturn of these times. The other article resulted from a study conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina. In this study, participants submitted daily reports detailing their emotional status during the course of a day. The research showed that happy people, while not denying unpleasant parts of life, had the ability to value those small, happy moments in everyday life. Also noted was the fact that by focusing daily on the small, positive moments in daily life, we build resources to cope with stress, and rebound from adversity. With this mindset, a “staycation” can be seen as an opportunity for building lifelong pleasant memories of summers spent at home. Since in years past, our society was not always as mobile as it is today, I decided to ask others what created happy summer memories from their childhoods. In discussions with friends of my generation, the baby boomers, we remembered frozen treats using Kool-Aid made in Dixie cups, or ice cube trays. The sound of the Popsicle man sent one friend scurrying to her dad’s coin drawer to retrieve enough money to buy ice cream. Another friend recounted how a daily outing to the neighborhood grocery store with a quarter for a fudgesicle became an adventure when a frozen lizard, deposited by daring young boys, was found in the freezer box. Children gathered around ice cream churns, waiting patiently, and sometimes not so patiently, for their opportunity to turn the handle of the ice cream churn in anticipation of the homemade fig ice cream being made by their parents. The snowball, invented in 1919 by Samuel Bert, first arrived on the scene at the Texas State Fair. Since then, generations down through the years have enjoyed this cold, tasty summer treat, and many can conjure up memories of times and places where it was consumed. Gone now, but not forgotten, were the shaved ice snowball stands around town, and the cardboard Chinese take-out boxes that the snowballs were served in. The snowball stand on Main Street in St. Martinville provided for many Sunday outings to purchase that very special delicacy. Watermelon also seemed to figure prominently in summertime memories. Before community water systems, when a backyard well furnished the water used by the family, the melons were kept in the well to cool. They were usually grown in family gardens, and were in abundant supply in the summer. Melons sold by truck farmers around town could be sampled for their sweetness from cut-out plugs before purchasing them. In a recent episode of the Martha Stewart show, a Harvard physician was speaking on methods of combating stress and increasing one’s sense of wellbeing. Two examples he used dealt with engaging in creative activities, and socializing. Cooking can be a very creative experience, and entertaining friends with one’s culinary talents provides an occasion for enjoyable socialization. Though summer is now over for students and those in the education profession, August heat will linger throughout the month. Here is a microwave recipe which will not heat up the kitchen, but can be used as a main dish for family, or as an appetizer when entertaining friends. At these gatherings, whether you have traveled or have taken a “staycation,” be sure to remember and share those simple, happy moments of summers past and present! sumed. Gone now, but not forgotten, were the shaved ice snowball stands around town, and the cardboard Chinese take-out boxes that the snowballs were served in. The snowball stand on Main Street in St. Martinville provided for many Sunday outings to purchase that very special delicacy. Watermelon also seemed to figure prominently in summertime memories. Before community water systems, when a backyard well furnished the water used by the family, the melons were kept in the well to cool. They were usually grown in family gardens, and were in abundant supply in the summer. Melons sold by truck farmers around town could be sampled for their sweetness from cut-out plugs before purchasing them. In a recent episode of the Martha Stewart show, a Harvard physician was speaking on methods of combating stress and increasing one’s sense of wellbeing. Two examples he used dealt with engaging in creative activities, and socializing. Cooking can be a very creative experience, and entertaining friends with one’s culinary talents provides an occasion for enjoyable socialization. Though summer is now over for students and those in the education profession, August heat will linger throughout the month. Here is a microwave recipe which will not heat up the kitchen, but can be used as a main dish for family, or as an appetizer when entertaining friends. At these gatherings, whether you have traveled or have taken a “staycation,” be sure to remember and share those simple, happy moments of summers past and present. CATHERINE WATTIGNY is a contributing columnist to The Daily Iberian and a past winner in The Daily Iberian / Cajun Sugar Co-op Cookoff.
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