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Is vanilla ice cream your favorite flavor? You’re not alone. Despite the wide variety of ice cream flavors available, vanilla is still the favorite flavor in the U.S (and apparently Canada, too). And on July 23 you and all your vanilla-loving friends can celebrate Vanilla Ice Cream Day.

All day … Yum!

We don’t know who started this day, but we applaud him or her just the same.

Did You Know …

Most of the vanilla used in North America goes into making ice cream.

Thomas Jefferson may have “discovered” vanilla ice cream in France. His handwritten vanilla ice cream recipe from the 1780s is in the Library of Congress.

Chocolate is the second favorite ice cream flavor. But it comes in a very distant second, with only about 1/3 as many people preferring it as compared to vanilla.

The main flavor component of vanilla is vanillin. Artificially flavored vanilla ice cream uses artificially produced vanillin as its flavoring. (Why?!). But vanilla flavored ice cream uses vanillin made from real vanilla. And finally, vanilla ice cream uses, what else, real vanilla (either extract or beans). Confusing! … But also delicious.

Scroll down for some ideas on celebrating this unofficial vanilla (but not in a boring way!) holiday.

How to Celebrate National Vanilla Ice Cream Day

You probably don’t need a lot of help with this one: Eat vanilla ice cream!

Eat it in a bowl, a cup or a cone—regular cone, sugar cone, or waffle cone, whatever you prefer.

Get soft-serve or big, round scoops threatening to topple off your cone.

Eat it plain or dress it up with your favorite toppings. And vanilla is certainly the friendliest flavor for toppings. “Vanilla” may be used to mean “boring” or “plain,” but its smooth, light creaminess makes it the perfect accompaniment to chocolate, fruit, caramel, sprinkles, and just about anything else you’d want to put on it.

Vanilla ice cream makes them all taste better.

Of course, don’t forget you can also add it to a slice of pie. Or just about anything else you please. So incorporate vanilla ice cream into every meal today.

• For breakfast, make pancakes or waffles and top them with ice cream.
• Add ice cream to your smoothie for a snack or lunch.
• Make ice cream sandwiches for after dinner using cookies or even brownies.
• Indulge in an ice cream float (when was the last time you had one of those?).

Where to get some? The grocery store, your favorite ice cream shop, or your very own kitchen.

If you decide to go homemade, you might like one of these recipes (some don’t even need an ice cream maker!):

• Vanilla Ice Cream V
• Vanilla Ice Cream: All you need for this recipe is an electric mixer. The texture of ice cream frozen this way is different from that made in an ice cream maker.
• Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Using whole beans adds a whole new dimension to the vanilla flavor.
• French Vanilla Ice Cream: Add eggs to your ice cream for extra flavor and creaminess.

Do you have a favorite vanilla ice cream recipe or topping? Share!

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