Ice Cream: A History (Shire Library)

Ice cream has been served in Britain since the seventeenth century. It has graced the tables of kings, and the cones of the working man; it has been plain, flavored, molded, sliced, squirted and scooped. It has made the fortunes of industrialists and put bread on the table of generations of Italian émigrés.

This new history of ice cream by food historian Ivan Day tells the whole story of ice cream in Britain, a story that has seen both the democratization of this favorite frozen dessert, and a fall in the standards of its production and presentation. It is a story of fine cuisine, of entrepreneurship, and of food for fun. Illustrated with archive material and photographs of historic ice cream desserts made from original recipes especially for this book, this is a remarkable tale of an extraordinary and much-loved food.

Ivan Day is best known for his museum exhibitions of re-created historic table settings and is considered to be one of the foremost authorities in this field. In addition to his courses and museum work, Ivan is an experienced broadcaster, having worked in both television and radio, and has written books, articles and papers on English food history. Having started collecting antiquarian cookery books and culinary utensils when he was only thirteen, Ivan now has forty years experience of cooking period food.