When it comes to ice cream innovation, Ohio takes the cake.
From the waffle cone to the banana split, pioneering Ohioans have shaped the way the treat is consumed for over a century.
That鈥檚 because, as recently as 2002, more than were sprinkled across the state.
鈥淲hen you've got extra milk, you make cheese, you make yogurt, and then eventually you make ice cream, thankfully,鈥� said Renee Casteel Cook, author of "."
Last year, Ohio in the nation for hard ice cream production. And the state鈥檚 ice cream trail now boasts 150 stops, from small town shops like the Bluffton Dari Freeze to national names like Graeter鈥檚.
A scoop of Graeter鈥檚 ice cream
鈥淚f you take a deep breath in you can smell the cocoa powder in the air,鈥� said Andy Connolly, the director of production planning for Graeter鈥檚 Ice Cream.
Standing on the floor of a production room, he points out the processes that turn 300 gallon totes of milk into 16 ounce pints of black raspberry chip and butter pecan.
鈥淭he noise in the background is our cocoa powder being blended with milk and sugar to make our chocolate base for tonight," he said.
From there, it鈥檚 poured into two-gallon French pots where it slowly churns over a chilled salt solution until it freezes into the melt-in-your-mouth texture of soft serve.
Then come the fixings: workers add Oreo cookies, pecan pieces or the melted chocolate that hardens and breaks into Graeter鈥檚 signature chocolate chips.
鈥淲e have about 25 team members in this kind of small room working shoulder to shoulder with each other to churn out about 6,000 gallons of ice cream a day,鈥� he said.
That鈥檚 a lot more than Louis Charles Graeter made when he first started selling scoops from a cart in Cincinnati more than 150 years ago. Still, Graeter鈥檚 has stuck with its French pot method 鈥� freezing two gallons of ice cream at a time.
Ohio ice cream innovations
While Graeter鈥檚 is rooted in tradition, Casteel Cook said much of Ohio ice cream is known for its innovation.
鈥淪o the story of the ice cream cone goes all the way back to the World's Fair,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he from the Akron area 鈥� a lot of people know them because they invented the hamburger as well 鈥� they were at the world鈥檚 fair with their big tent and they were actually making waffles.鈥�
One of the brothers wanted a young woman he was courting to try ice cream. She didn鈥檛 want to drip on her dress, so as the story goes, he wrapped her ice cream in a crisp waffle to help her stay clean.
Then, there鈥檚 the banana split, debatably invented at restaurant in Wilmington.
鈥淭he owner was looking to develop something that would bring the college students from Wilmington College into the business,鈥� Casteel Cook said. 鈥淎nd he actually challenged all of his staff to come up with something, but he didn鈥檛 like any of their creations.鈥�
So he made his own. He split a banana down the middle, topped it with scoops of his flavors and dubbed it the banana split.
A Youngstown candy maker is credited with inventing . Ohio State researchers helped create . And a Mansfield dairy developed .
What鈥檚 next for Ohio鈥檚 ice cream scene?
Casteel Cook says new twists on the classic dessert keep coming, like unexpected flavors from Columbus-based Jeni鈥檚.
鈥淚 remember when she did everything bagel ice cream,鈥� Casteel Cook said. 鈥淸That was] very polarizing. Most people either absolutely loved it or absolutely hated it.鈥�
Graeter鈥檚 is innovating too. Earlier this year it released its ice cream.
鈥淥ff the top of your head, you might think, 鈥楶asta, meat sauce, cheese, how's that going to work in ice cream?鈥欌�� said Bob Graeter, a fourth generation ice cream maker. 鈥淚t actually turned out really well.鈥�
So whether you鈥檙e in the mood for a scoop of something new, or if you鈥檇 prefer to stick with a classic, Ohio has you covered.
