Getting Nerdy.

Out of a lack of anywhere else to store this information, which I've decided will be very important at some time in the future -

I've decided it would be a perfect idea to have an Independence Day Ice Cream Social (not this year, some year in the future, which is why I need this somewhere that can be looked up in the future).

And to make it that much more Martha Stewart-esque, there would need to be homemade ice cream in 13 different flavors to represent the 13 original colonies... (this was decided because 50 different flavors for the states is getting a bit out there, and there were 56 individual signers, so that's also too many).

This whole project was conceived last week, when I learned that the Library of Congress, in their American Treasures collection, has a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe hand written by Thomas Jefferson (which made Virginia's flavor really easy to pick).

My list follows -

Vanilla
Chocolate Fudge
Maple
Toffee Pecan
Nutmeg
Gingerbread
Strawberry
Blueberry
Apple
Peach
Coffee
Tea
Beer

By state - with alternatives (and explanations).
Virginia - Vanilla (Thomas Jefferson)

Massachusetts - Tea (Boston Tea Party) or Cranberry (state fruit) or Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough (state cookie)

New Hampshire - Maple (2nd largest syrup producer) or Pumpkin (state veggie)

Maryland - Chocolate Fudge (after the icing from Smith Island Cake, the state dessert)

Connecticut - Nutmeg (state nickname)

Rhode Island - Coffee (after the local favorite "Coffee Cabinets", a coffee & ice cream mixed dessert)

Delaware - Beer (Dogfish Head Brewery's 90 minute IPA ranked Best Beer in America - they have, seriously, no other foods of note, unless you consider Chicken an ice cream flavor. A last resort could be stealing Peach from Georgia, as Peach Blossom is the state flower.)

North Carolina - Strawberry (state fruit)

South Carolina - Toffee Pecan (technically native to the Mississippi valley, Alabama's state fruit and Texas' state tree, with Georgia the largest producer and South Carolina not even in the top 5, however their state fruit is peach... and Georgia has 1st claim, and Delaware 2nd so since it's South Carolina's second largest crop we're giving them Pecans.)

New Jersey - Blueberry (Highbush blueberry state fruit)

New York - Apple (State fruit and muffin) or Cheesecake (state dessert)

Pennsylvania - Gingerbread (Pennsylvania "Dutch" heritage)

Georgia - Peach (state fruit, largest US producer) or Sweet Vidalia Onion (state veggie - if you want to hand over Peach to South Carolina or Delaware, Vidalia Onions should be able to make a semi-sweet & savory ice cream)

Yea!

P.S. I made banana bread ice cream yesterday that D says is good, strong banana flavor, creamy enough (better than a lot of store bought ice cream, but not better than all :), it's been doing it's final freeze in the last 20 hours, so we'll see how it ranks tonight. Meanwhile I've started a Cardamom flavor today.

If all turns out well I'll write my recipe for making ice cream without an ice cream maker... hint: it takes a lot longer :)