Shaved ice is a universally refreshing treat on hot, muggy days. True, it’s not health food, but a sweet-tasting snow cone never fails to improve your state of mind when the temperature seems unbearable. You don’t have to wait for the ice-cream man to roll around or the carnival to hit town. Enjoy a shaved-ice confection any time of day with one of these easy-to-use treat factories.
For push-button convenience, a single-serve snow cone machine is the way to go. Some will produce shavings with ice straight from the freezer. Others require that you pre-freeze specially shaped pods of ice that fit the machine. The latter are more time consuming but less expensive. Both are efficient and will allow you to experiment with flavors and portions to your heart’s delight.
Once you have the ice machine, it’s time for the secret ingredient: fruit syrup. If you want to keep things simple, look for a shaver sold with some starter flavorings included. You can sample the line up and decide whether you want to order more of the same in bulk, try another brand, or start experimenting with your own concoctions.
For heavy-duty fun, only a commercial-grade ice shaver will suffice. A stainless-steel countertop model with a rugged, replaceable blade can produce as much as 140 pounds of shaved ice per hour. That’s more than adequate for even the largest family, and enough capacity to add this popular refreshment to the menu of any food or beverage business.
