Agnes Bertha Marshall ( néeSmith; 24 August 1852 [2] – 29 July 1905) was an English culinary entrepreneur, inventor, and celebrity chef. [3] An unusually prominent businesswoman for her time, Marshall was particularly known for her work on ice cream and other frozen desserts, which in Victorian England earned her the moniker "Queen of Ices". [3] [4] Marshall popularised ice cream in England and elsewhere at a time when it was still a novelty [5] [6] and is often regarded as the inventor of the modern ice cream cone. [3] Through her work, Marshall may be largely responsible for both the look and popularity of ice cream today. [7] This poor, unattractive, smart, yet sarcastic and crippling Malka soaks up everything from Catholicism, and embraces the family business, while at the same time excels at school, and her life begins to change drastically for the better. Fueled by her grief and abandonment, she begins to redefine herself as Lillian, The Ice Cream Queen of America. (Lillian Dunkle) Chetwynd, Josh (2012). How the Hot Dog Found Its Bun: Accidental Discoveries and Unexpected Inspirations That Shape What We Eat and Drink. Guilford: Lyons Press. p.86. ISBN 978-0-7627-8529-2. Unfortunately I didn't feel whole-heartedly engaged in the storyline. As Lillian goes from a likeable young girl to the matriarch of her family's booming business I tended to like her less and less and she became someone I hardly recognized. Some of her speech, specifically when she referred to people as 'darlings' and bringing her small dog everywhere she went, reminded me of the infamous Zsa Zsa Gabor. But her incessant mean streak had a strong Leona Helmsley (the original 'Queen of Mean') feel to it. This combination of overly exaggerated arrogance and nastiness got old fast and didn't endear her to me in the least. As the ice cream industry was directly affected by the greatest events of the twentieth century and American history, parallels as Lillian’s own life is shaped and her motivations for some of the things which led her down certain paths. (loved the ice cream flavors, interesting facts, and research about the entire industry).

New York, 1913. Nach einem Pogrom in ihrer russischen Heimatstadt ist die jüdische Familie der kleinen Malka ausgewandert. Ursprünglich sollte es nach Südafrika zu einem Onkel gehen, doch der Vater hat heimlich stattdessen Karten für die Schiffspassage in die USA gekauft. Im neuen, verheißungsvollen Land steht die Familie jedoch ganz am Ende der Gesellschaft – sie muss im Wohnzimmer eines Schneiders zur Untermiete wohnen und die Kinder müssen sich ihren Lebensunterhalt mehr oder weniger selbst verdienen – wie, überlassen die Eltern den Kindern. Zu allem Überdruss entpuppt sich der Familienvater als unverantwortlicher Gauner. Und dann hat Malka auch noch einen verheerenden Unfall… Her mother Susan then had three further illegitimate children with a man named Charles Wells: Mary Sarah Wells Smith (1859), John Osborn Wells Smith (1863) and Ada Martha Wells Smith (1868). Susan and Charles Wells were married in 1869, and the children thereafter discarded the surname Smith. [2] The story and characters propelled me through, and I enjoyed reading about the growth of ice cream in the 20th century (though it made me want to go out and get some Carvel). She does whatever she needs to do to survive (seriously), and assure that her company remains on top. Playing the caring, motherly Ice Cream Queen in the public while scheming, lying and drinking too much in private can only last so long, as the two worlds collide, forcing Lillian to take a good hard look at her life or risk losing it all. In the end, my favourite part of this book was seeing what life was like for new immigrants in NYC. While this book kept my interest enough for me to finish the book, in the end I was left a little disappointed with the pace and character development since I felt that it was overly long and Lillian came off as little more than a cliché.The Marshall's School of Cookery mainly taught a mixture of high-end English and French cuisine [9] and swiftly became one of only two major cookery schools in the city, [5] alongside The National Training School Of Cookery. [8] A year into the school's operation, Marshall was lecturing classes of up to 40 students five to six times a week [6] and within a few years the school reportedly had nearly 2,000 students, lectured in cooking by prominent specialists. [3] Among the lectures offered at the school were lessons in curry-making, taught by an English colonel who had once served in India [10] and a class in French high-end cuisine taught by a Le Cordon Bleu graduate. [1] The couple also operated a business involving the creation and retail of cooking equipment, [3] [5] an agency that supplied domestic staff, as well as a food shop that sold flavorings, spices and syrups. [3]

The Marshall's Patent Freezer, patented by her husband, was able to freeze a pint of ice cream in less than five minutes [3] and her design remains faster and more reliable than even many modern electric ice cream machines. [6] Marshall also designed an extensive range of over a thousand different molds for use with ice cream. [1] [6] She also invented an "ice-breaking machine", [11] an "ice cave" (an insulated box for storing ice cream), [4] and several different kitchen appliances and food ingredients, sold by her company. [9] The Table and A Pretty Luncheon [ edit ] Advertisement for the Marshall's School of Cookery a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Jenkins, Terry: "The Truth about Mrs Marshall", Petits Propos Culinaires 112, November 2018, pp. 100-112. Until the mid-Victorian period, ice cream had been an expensive delicacy, because ice was hard to come by. Only those wealthy enough to own ice houses—storage structures with cool, underground chambers—were able to enjoy frozen dishes year-round. In the mid-19th century, England began importing ice from the United States and Norway, making the chilly commodity more accessible to the upper-middle classes. A wider demographic could now prepare ice cream at home, and Marshall was ready to capitalize on the opportunity. Her books catered to moderately wealthy housewives, who did not boast the luxury of a large kitchen staff, but still wanted to transform their desserts into the striking displays that Victorian fashions demanded. Within three months of arriving in New York, her Papa abandons her, and her mother blames her for their misfortune-- Malka gets trampled by a horse, leaving her crippled. Abandoned by her parents, fate steps in---the man steering the horse takes pity on Malka, welcoming her into his home and world, where she becomes part of the family.

The story progresses through her marriage to Albert Dunkle and her savvy business skills. In an era when women and the drive for success in business did not usually mix, Lillian faces obstacles and each one only makes her stronger. She believes that her hard work makes her superior and says wonderful things like: "So your eldest brother, Lord Such-and-Such, inherited the family estate, and you, Poor Thing, had to make your fortune in the New World instead? Please. Don't even bother me with that." She is "old school" and definitely makes her opinions known, and like anyone that's had to pull themselves up from the gutter, she has no time for things she considers frivolous and unneccessary such as paperwork: "Today, if one of our franchises wants to hire a sixteen-year-old to scoop ice cream for a summer, the management is required to provide more information than my entire family was asked to supply at Ellis Island." Which leads to some problems..... there was a time I shared a container of rum raisin Häagen-Dazs ice cream every night with Paul. I was nursing our first born daughter….. I do not believe that the author meant for us to love the old woman Lillian has become. She is irascible, demanding, impatient, insulting. Through betrayals, biased against her disability, her inferior status as a woman who built a business that is always viewed as her husband’s—we see her developing into a shrewd business person. But she becomes obsessed with success and with keeping her eye on the competition so she cannot even enjoy the company of her husband who still adores her. When we meet her as an old woman, she acts as if rules of society no longer apply to her. She is an unlikeable character, but again, the author made her authentic. And we never forget for a moment what she had to overcome to get to this place…. lots of history about ice cream in America and how ice cream 🍧 made the soldiers during World War II *happy*🤗 So…. whether you have a craving to eat ice cream after reading this book, (or during) or have a story to share about a special time in your life where ice cream was a part of a great love or friendship connection — the personal pleasures will be multi-faceted.