No matter how you spell it, Sno Cones are fantastic!

They were a summer treat that my friends and I always looked forward to. With all the real snow on the ground today here in the northeast, it may not be the exact time to reminisce about Snow Cones, but it sort of makes me forget about winter and look forward to some hotter weather, in a shivery sort of way.

For the uninitiated, Sno Cones are delightful servings of shaved or crushed ice covered with a flavored syrup, which are served in a cone-shaped cup which rests oh, so comfortably in one’s hand. I remember cherry as being my favorite. Other choices were root beer, cherry, grape, blueberry and I think lemon. I may have missed a few.

Strawberry Sno Cones were my favorite!

A Little History

In the 1850’s the American Industrial Revolution made ice commercially available. Ice houses in New York would commonly sell ice to places like Florida. To transport the ice to Florida, the ice houses would send a wagon with a huge block of ice south. The route to Florida would pass right through Baltimore. In Baltimore, children would run up to the wagon and ask for a small scraping of ice. Before long, mothers started to make flavoring in anticipation of their child receiving some ice. The first flavor these mothers made was a current Baltimore favorite: egg custard. Egg custard was an easy flavor to make as all that was in it was eggs, vanilla and sugar. – Credit: Wikipedia

Because of the Snow Cone craze stemming from Baltimore, Snow Cone machines began to be developed in the 1890’s, so you can see that this piece of Americana is not new by any means. These machines crush ice, eliminating the need to shave it off a larger block of ice. This enabled anyone to make the frozen delicacy.

Combinations of flavors began to pop up, usually in a rainbow-type display of color which made the snow Cone even more appealing.

Rainbow Sno Cone

I Can Make My Own Sno Cones?

Home Sno Cone machines are available today at a modest price. It is fairly easy to set up your own Snow Cone home factory! It will be loved by us kids of all ages on a hot summer day, or even during a blizzard. Considering that the treat consists only of ice and a little flavoring, it is another one of the healthier sweets available. You can even juice some strawberries, blueberries or other favorite fruit and make an all-natural Sno Kone! Watermellons, cantelope and honeydew melons would also fit the bill.

I found some great machines currently available here, if you would like to look. I see Snow Cone machines from $29, but this one looks like a rugged machine for a reasonable price. Once on the site, just search for Snow Cone machines and you will find cones and flavorings, too!

If Snow Cones are a part of your historical past, as they are of mine, you should be able to remember that great taste and perhaps a brain freeze or two!

Enjoy, and come on summer!