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Rocky road (ice cream) facts for kids

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Rocky road
Rockyroadicecream.jpg
Three scoops of rocky road ice cream, with a chocolate cookie
Type Ice cream
Place of origin United States
Region or state Oakland, California
Main ingredients chocolate ice cream, nuts, and marshmallow

Rocky road ice cream is a yummy chocolate flavored ice cream. It's famous for having a mix of different things inside! Usually, it has chocolate ice cream, nuts, and soft marshmallows.

How Rocky Road Ice Cream Was Invented

Rocky Road ice cream was first made in March 1929 in Oakland, California. A man named William Dreyer created it. He used his wife's sewing scissors to cut up walnuts and marshmallows. Then, he mixed them into his chocolate ice cream.

Later, the walnuts were changed to pieces of toasted almond. This made the flavor even better!

A Sweet Name for Tough Times

After a big event called the Wall Street Crash of 1929, many people were sad. This time was known as the Great Depression. William Dreyer and his partner, Joseph Edy, wanted to cheer people up. So, they named their new ice cream "Rocky Road." They hoped it would give people "something to smile about."

Another Idea for Its Start

Some people think the idea for Rocky Road came from another place. Fentons Creamery in Oakland says that William Dreyer got his idea from his friend, George Farren. George made a candy bar that was like Rocky Road and mixed it into ice cream. William Dreyer then used almonds instead of walnuts for his version.

What Makes Rocky Road Special

The first Rocky Road ice cream was just chocolate ice cream with nuts and marshmallows. It didn't have chocolate chips like some versions today.

Rocky Road was one of the first ice cream flavors to mix many different ingredients together. It was a new and exciting idea! It was a bit tricky to make because it was hard to freeze and keep all the different pieces mixed in. But the original mix of chocolate ice cream, nuts, and marshmallows became super popular.

Over the years, other companies tried to make their own versions. They added different nuts, fruits, or toppings. But the first combination of chocolate, nuts, and marshmallows stayed the favorite!

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Rocky road (helado) para niños

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Rocky road (ice cream) Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.