It’s National Ice Cream Day! It’s also a day to celebrate a very special Victorian lady—Agnes B. Marshall, known as the Queen of Ices!
Agnes (born in 1855) was quite the culinary entrepreneur and cook in her time, as is evidenced by the four cookbooks she wrote, one of them titled The Book of Ices, published in 1885. She’s credited with being the first person to invent the ice cream machine and with that accomplishment, she was nicknamed “The Ice Cream Queen” and “Queen of Ices”.
The ice cream flavors she included in her cookbooks were vast, some classic, some unusual, and she showed how to create them in amazing and surprising designs.
Her second book, Mrs. A. B. Marshall’s Book of Cookery (1888), mentioned using cones as edible replacements for ice cream dishes. Called “Cornet with Cream”, her recipe for ice cream cones said “the cornets were made with almonds and baked in the oven, not pressed between irons”.
And that, in short, is why all of us who love ice cream can also celebrate the brilliance of a Victorian lady with every scoop we enjoy!