Fact Friday: Mashed Potato Ice Cream

Did you know that Milton Hershey tried to make an ice cream out of mashed potato?

The chocolate and caramel entrepreneur Milton Snavely Hershey (1857-1945), most famous for producing America’s first milk chocolate bar in 1900, was an avid inventor and spent much of his time experimenting with new flavours, chocolates and concepts throughout his confectionery career.

Known for his less than scientific approach, Milton’s method of confectionery experimentation often involved having a unique idea then dabbling with it by adding a bit of this and a dash of that, trying all sorts of production methods and materials. This ‘mad inventor’ style of working resulted in some rather interesting formulas…

Milton Hershey, and his adored wife Kitty

Mashed potato, sweet potato, oatmeal and cream of wheat were just some of the ingredients Milton thought would create a fabulous milk-free ice cream. During the 1940’s, he was concerned that the outbreak of war would result in food rationing, and so he endeavored to create his own solution before the problem arose.

The final product was named ‘Victory Whip’ and contained ingredients such as rice flour, peanut oil, sugar, salt and seaweed, and was sold in three flavours; chocolate, vanilla and raspberry.

Not only was it surprisingly tasty, it was also half the price of regular ice cream! But despite its local success, Hershey decided not to launch the product further as he did not want to risk aggravating the local dairy farmers – many of which supplied the Hershey factory directly.

Milton Hershey enjoying a mashed potato 99 ice cream (not a real photo obviously)!

Legend has it that when the Pennsylvanian secretary of agriculture was sent to investigate this cheap, milk-less ice cream, he was so impressed with Victory Whip that he bought three gallons of it and served it at a party where no one guessed that it was a ‘fake’ product!

Fact Friday: Victorian Love Hearts

Do you know what ‘romantic’ sayings the Victorians and Edwardians had on their love heart sweets?

In the 1900’s, Yorkshire’s Joseph Dobson created ‘conversation lozenges’; small, tablet-sized hard candies stamped with quotes such as ‘Take Ye Not To Strong Drink’ and ‘Honor Your Parents’. Whereas these reinforced the strict Victorian morals at the time, they didn’t exactly melt the heart with affection, much like our modern day versions do today.

Around the same time, fellow confectioner and Yorkshireman Joseph Terry (Terry’s Chocolate Orange) was also creating sweets with stamped mottos, however these were considerably more risque! With messages such as ‘I Want A Wife’, ‘How Do You Flirt‘ and ‘Can You Polka’ (a lively European courtship dance), Terry’s conversation lozenges were much more ‘in the spirit’ of giving sweets and chocolate as a form of fun, affection and appeasement.

February 14th, Valentines Day, is a symbolic holiday filled with love, affection…and of course confectionery! British market leaders Swizzels Matlow came onto the scene with their fizzy, sherbet tablets ‘Love Hearts’ in 1954 – a round, flat chalky sweet with embossed cutesy messages such as ‘Kiss Me’, ‘All Yours’, ‘Be Mine’ and ‘Dream Boy’.

Initially released inside Christmas crackers, Love Hearts sweets proved so popular that they were then launched as a stand-alone product and have dominated the UK Valentines confectionery season since.

Our American cousins also have their own version that predate Dobson’s rather sober Victorian messages. In 1847 Necco founder Oliver R. Chase invented a machine that cut wafer candy disks; his brother later began to print messages onto the candy and by 1901, these had evolved into the heart-shaped romantic Love Heart rivals ‘Sweethearts’.

So, what do you think? Should we bring back the old Victorian Love Hearts? If we did, what mottos should we use?

Fact Friday: The Hershey Home Guard

Did you know that during the First World War, the Hershey chocolate works in Pennsylvania, USA, created a Home Guard in order to protect the factory from German interference?

When America joined WWI in 1917, wild rumors apparently began to spread about the threat of the German’s tampering with the chocolate production at the Hershey factory – the US government had ordered two million milk chocolate bars to use in military rations. In response to the fears of German sabotage, the company set up its own ‘Home Guard’.

During both world wars (in Britain at least) Home Guard, or other similar voluntary groups, members were typically men who were too old, too young, or not medically fit for military service, and so these men volunteered to protect people and property locally at home. With very basic, or no military training, the Home Guard were often ill-equipped and unprepared for any real threat of invasion, but it was an important morale booster and gave a purpose to many who had felt they had been left behind.

An example of a WWII Home Guard company in civilian dress

Back in Hershey, a Snavely relative and colleague of Milton Hershey remarked that …

‘a finer squad of soldiers never before carried broom handles’

As they were not permitted to bear arms, brooms and farm equipment were the ‘weapons’ of choice to fend off any German invasion of the chocolate factory!

Luckily, these rumors turned out to be just that – a rumor.

* During the Second World War, my own great grandfather was initially part of a Home Guard troop in London, as he was too young to serve at the outbreak of war. I have been told that he, and his fellow soldiers, also used broom handles in the dark in order to fool any watching Germans that they had guns when protecting London banks and buildings!

Fact Friday: The Marquis de Sade

Did you know that the infamous Marquis de Sade, Donatien Alphonse François, loved chocolate so much, that he demanded that it be brought to him while serving time in prison for his explicit exploits?

Marquis de Sade 1740-1814

In May 1779, the French writer, philosopher , aristocrat and sexual deviant, wrote to his wife, Renée-Pelagie de Montreuil, that the rations she had previously sent to him were desperately lacking in chocolate; here he begins to list his frustrations, starting with the fact that…

“…the sponge cake is not at all what I asked for. 1st, I wanted it iced all over…2nd I wanted to have chocolate inside as black as the Devil’s arse is from smoke, and there isn’t even the least trace of chocolate. I beg you to have it sent to me at the first opportunity….”

As black as the Devil’s arse is from smoke – that’s how I’m going to refer to all dark chocolate from now on!

Is this demon’s arse chocolatey enough?

Sade was well known for his violent and ‘sadistic’ sexual practices, numerous affairs, violent temper and blasphemous attitude – it’s where we get the term ‘sadism’ today. He spent the last thirteen years of his life in an insane asylum…I wonder if he ever received the chocolate cake he wanted?

Fact Friday: Toffee Carrots

Did you know that toffee carrots were a war time ‘treat‘ during the 1940’s in Britain?

Due to rationing drastically reducing the sugar and sweet allowance for children (and adults), the people of war-ravaged Britain had to be resourceful and inventive with their food if they were to satisfy their sweet tooths.

Carrots were in such an abundance as they were not subject to rationing – plus people could readily grow them themselves – that recipes for toffee carrots, carrot fudge, carrot lollies and even a carrot drink called carrolade were all promoted as sweet substitutes!

No ices…but there’s always carrot on a stick!

Sometimes referred to as ‘Woolton’s Wonders’ (after the Minister of Food, Lord Woolton) carrot candy became one of Britain’s strangely adaptable inventions during the Kitchen Front.

The Ministry of Food even invented the character ‘Doctor Carrot’ to promote the added vitamin and health benefits of the sweet vegetable, and to utilize carrots in every meal.

War-time vegetable hero, Doctor Carrot