6 Ways to Eat Fresh Snow

I grew up in the Midwest where it often snowed by Halloween, and blizzards could land past Easter. My sister and I enjoyed the snow (and snow days out of school) for outdoor activities like making snowmen and snow angels, but once it was time to come inside, the snow came in too: as snow ice cream and snow candy.

Adding snow to your winter family activities outside and in the kitchen can be fun. With a few simple ingredients, you can create snowy, yummy ice cream.

Tip: Many snow ice cream recipes use condensed milk; keep some on hand in the pantry in case of unexpected snow.

1. Ready Your Snow En Place

You’ll need to move fast when you’ve collected snow for your ice cream so it doesn’t melt when you take it inside. Instead of bringing the snow in and then scrambling for things to make the snow ice cream with, make sure you have all the ingredients you need to mix in ready to go: snow en place instead of mise en place. Gather up your milk or cream, sugar and also your favorite mix-ins like strawberries, blueberries, syrups, candy, sprinkles or non-pareills.

You could also consider setting up your snow cream station outside. Make and eat the ice cream with snow falling all around. This way, everything stays cold.

Tip: If your snow does start to melt when you take it inside, lightly pack it into a container and pop it into the freezer to get it cold again.

Try This Recipe: Strawberry Snow Ice Cream

2. Avoid Yellow Snow

If you know snow is coming, you can get ready by putting out a clean and new bucket to collect the snow in. If not, make sure you take clean snow from the top one to two inches to make sure the snow hasn’t touched grass that might have fertilizer or other chemicals on it.

Tip: Buy a special snow ice cream bucket and keep it separate from other buckets so you know it is food safe. And always, stay away from dirty snow.

Try This Recipe: Chocolate Snow Ice Cream

3. Snow Ice Cream Requires a Cook’s Eye

Just as when making ice cream with ice, the type of snow and how cold it is can be very important. A drier mix of snow might need more cream/milk, while wet snows may need less. Adjust how you utilize recipes accordingly for the best results. If you find your snow ice cream getting soupy as you mix in the liquid, back off of that ingredient a little until you get an ice cream consistency.

Tip: If you add too much liquid and can’t get back to a more solid ice cream form, add in your mix-ins and announce you’ve created snow milkshakes. Hand out straws and the recipe is saved.

Try This Recipe: Snow Ice Cream

4. Save the Snow

If you live in a state where it doesn’t snow often, you can freeze snow to make ice cream later on. While it might seem simple to just put the snow in the freezer, that would turn your snow into a big snow brick. Freeze the extra snow in a container (ice cream ones work great). When you open it up later on, treat the snow like shaved ice and chisel, shave off bits, or run it through a shaved ice machine. The consistency won’t be powdery like the initial snow but you can add syrups to make frozen ices.

Tip: Freeze some snow in the shape of snowballs for an impromptu snowball fight in the summer. Let them thaw a little before throwing so they aren’t too hard.

Try This Recipe: Easy Snow Ice Cream

5. Find Family Fun With the Snow Ice Cream

Allrecipes home cooks like tsandlitz remember making snow ice cream fondly. Try some of our snow ice cream recipes and create your own memories. After making snow angels and sledding down hills, bring the fun indoors with Snow Angel Ice Cream.

“We always had snow ice cream as children and my Dad perfected the recipe over the years! Let the kids help as much as you can stand, because the little mess will be outweighed by the amazing memories you’re making! Fun and delicious! Use frozen strawberries, blueberries, or peaches for optional fruit flavors,” tsandlitz writes.

Try This Recipe: Snow Angel Ice Cream

6. Make Snow Candy

Another fun winter option is to make “sugar on snow.” Requiring just two ingredients — maple syrup and clean snow — maple syrup taffy candy does need a parent to pour the boiling hot maple syrup.

Allrecipes recipe creator Tessia says it’s “great for people who live up north with lots of snow. I love to make it with my little brothers! Do not let the syrup burn.”

Tip: Have wax paper and popsicle sticks or chopsticks handy to manipulate the “taffy.”

Try This Recipe: Maple Syrup Taffy

Is It Safe to Eat Snow?

Snatching snowflakes from the air, scooping a handful of fresh flakes from the ground into your mouth, making snow cream — these snow day activities are a rite of passage, something we have all done (and all do) as we bask in the glory of winter’s white days. But not far from your mind might be the fact that snow falls from the sky, and the sky is not exactly the most pristine place in the environment.

So if the smoke and smog in the sky isn’t healthy for our lungs, can the snow be safe to eat? In short, yes, snow can be safe to eat, but you’ll want to keep a few things in mind.

First, snow acts as an air purifier. The first flakes can help clear the air of pollutants. It’s smarter to eat accumulation after the first hour of snowfall.

Instead of scraping snow off car hoods or outdoor tables, set out bowls for collecting the snow. That way, the flakes will fall right into your mixing bowl, and snow cream is even easier to make.

Lastly, don’t eat too much snow. No matter how hard you try, the snow you pick up is likely to have captured some level of pollutants. Most people have strong stomachs and will have no problem with their bowl of snow cream, but limiting how much you eat is recommended just in case.

Try This Recipe: Mema’s Snow Ice Cream