Scream for Snow Cream!

A couple of days ago, my friend, Sue Ellen Brookshire, stated she was going to make snow cream, store it in her freezer and, when next summer turns unbearably hot, she plans to pull out the frozen winter treat and savor it.  Her words stirred a childhood memory and I remembered the stacks of bowls in my grandmother's upright freezer.  Countless times, after we worked in her summer garden, we would rest on her porch and she would serve snow cream.  As the sweet confection melted on my tongue, I would marvel at how Granny preserved snow in such a delicious way. 

Snow cream with sweet black cherries

When I was a child, snow cream was a favorite seasonal treat.  My parents cautioned my brother and me, Space Age kids who drank astronaut-inspired Tang, watched The Jetsons on our black-and-white tv and built a lunar module kit, not to eat the first snow of the season.  I am not sure why, but there seemed to be some vague warning about radioactivity or something that needed to be cleansed from the atmosphere with the first snow.  Impatiently, we waited for a second snow so my mother would make snow cream for us.  A simple dish that requires no sharp objects or cooking, we quickly mastered the technique, learned to gather scoops of pristine white snow and make our own snow cream.
 

Snow day view from my porch

This morning, about six inches of fluffy snow piled around our home, the perfect fresh ingredient for snow cream.  Aside from the basic recipe, I made buttered pecan, black cherry with sweet cherries we harvested last spring and preserved in the freezer, orange and chocolate versions.  For the chocolate one, I substituted powdered sugar for granulated and the resulting consistency was almost like pudding.  An unusual breakfast, but Richard did not complain as he tasted each dish and declared chocolate and black cherry to be his favorites. Perhaps those should be combined?  Hmmm. . . when it comes to snow cream, the recipe possibilities are endless.

If you happen to have snow at your home today and perhaps some children who would enjoy making a special treat, scoop some snow into a large bowl and stir up a dish of snow cream.  Screams are optional. 

Buttered Pecan Snow Cream

Clockwise, from top left: Mandarin orange, black cherry, buttered pecan, vanilla, chocolate (center)

Basic Snow Cream Recipe
4-6 cups fresh snow
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk or whipping cream

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir until smooth.  Adjust sugar and cream to achieve desired sweetness and consistency.  
Variations:
For Buttered Pecan:  melt 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet, add 1/2 cup small pecan halves and 1 tablespoon brown sugar.  Stir nuts with butter and sugar over medium heat until toasted and sugar is melted.  Allow to cool before adding to basic snow cream recipe. 
Black Cherry: Add 1/2 cup frozen sweet cherries, chopped, to basic recipe.
Mandarin Orange:  To basic recipe, add 1/2 teaspoon orange extract and decrease vanilla extract to 1/2 teaspoon.  Peel one or two fresh Mandarin oranges or Clementines (seedless) and chop fruit.  Stir into other ingredients.
Chocolate:  Substitute 1/4 cup powdered sugar for granulated.  Add 1/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder and stir to combine.  Chocolate chips (about 1/4 cup) may also be added and for a Rocky Road variation, add 1/4 cup chopped nuts and 1/4 cup mini marshmallows.