Ice cream social in the Valley? I'm there

Some of you may have seen my Ice Cream 101 posts in recent weeks that I've been writing just for fun. This is another in a series.


On Thursday I attended an ice cream social with members of our Circle of Friends breast cancer support group at Griffin Hospital in Derby.

Our support group treated several Ansonia Girl Scout Troop 60500 and their leaders to an ice cream social to thank them for their support of our group and of breast cancer awareness in general.
Only five of the 12 Scouts in the Troop were able to attend along with their three leaders.

My daughter and I took part in the ice cream fun. At least we had fresh strawberries and blueberries to make the sundaes slightly nutritious. 

 

There were chocolate chip cookies and brownies as well. Yum.

I commend the Girl Scouts and their leaders on their caring and compassion. 
At right is one of the hundreds of ornaments they made last year to honor breast cancer survivors.

Those who were able to join us for ice cream were: Rebecca Cafaro, 12, Allie Ricci, 13, Jessica Palmer, 12, Kaitlyn Sarandrea, 13, and Shelley Hopkins, 13. All five are going into eighth grade.

Leaders Carole Cafaro, Heather Ricci and Carol Palmer were there as well. Cafaro said many of the girls have been together in the same Troop since they were in kindergarten, which is quite a feat. 

I'd like to thank you all again, and thanks to the other members of Troop 60500. I appreciate your thoughtfulness.

Sundae on Wednesday at the Ansonia Riverwalk

Ice Cream 101: The series continues 
 

If you're low on cash, you can always get an inexpensive frozen treat on a hot day at your local McDonald's.

That's what I did yesterday. Daughter Allegra and I were in the mood for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up and we opted for ice cream instead of iced tea or coffee.
We got hot fudge sundaes and went over to the new pavilion at the Ansonia Riverwalk to enjoy them. We put them down on a bench to take the photo.

I checked the McDonald's website to find out how many calories we consumed. The sundaes are small but they pack 330 calories. Many more than I thought.

But we did consume eight grams of protein, and 25 percent of our daily value of calcium so that made me feel better.

I'll be back soon with another ice cream report. Stay tuned.

Finding frozen delight in Shelton

Ice cream 101: An occasional series just for fun

SHELTON - Friday afternoon was so hot my son and I opted for some Italian ice instead of ice cream.
Yes, I finally made it to Addeo’s Italian Ice at 97 Center St. in Shelton.

In keeping with the theme I can sum up our visit it one word: delicioso.

A perfect treat to beat the heat

I chose the almond flavor (the white on the right)  and it was wonderful, but not before I took a sample of the cheesecake-flavored ice. It was equally tasty.


Cameron enjoyed a combo cup of blackberry and watermelon. Refreshing was how he described them both. 


We sat outside at one of two tables in front of the shop and enjoyed. There is also indoor seating in air-conditioned comfort.


My colleague Jean Falbo-Sosnovich and I mentioned Addeo's in our recent story about summer fun in the Valley. A Shelton resident she interviewed raved about Addeo's, and I knew that I just had to go there.


For information visit Addeo's Facebook page.  


I urge you to take a trip to downtown Shelton and get an ice. You won’t be disappointed.

Summertime in the Valley ... and the livin' is easy

Christopher Waugh, 13, of Ansonia, waits to catch "the big one" last week at Pickett's Pond in Osbornedale State Park in Derby. Photo by Patricia Villers


From free outdoor concerts to kayaking on the Naugatuck River, check out a variety of ideas in today's New Haven Register to make your summer in the Valley a fun one!


And stay tuned to my continuing series on where to find frozen treats in the Valley and beyond. 

I've tasted the offerings at seven spots so far, and I still have quite a list of places to visit.

On farmers, history, and a sundae on Sunday

Yumm...a hot fudge sundae, an ice cream cupcake, and Moose tracks 

Ice cream 101 continues: Bethany edition

On Saturday I went to the newly-opened Ansonia Farmer's Market and met a young couple selling vegetables grown at Darling Farm at the historic Thomas Darling House in Woodbridge. The two are caretakers there and started a farm this spring.

Since husband Ralph, daughter Allegra and I all like learning local history, we drove there today to take a peek.

This house at 1907 Litchfield Turnpike in Woodbridge is on the National Register of Historic Places.  

While we were in the "neighborhood," we continued driving to Bethany and stopped at Billy's Old-Fashioned Ice Cream, 742 Amity Road (Route 63). We had been there before, but it had been quite a few years.

Since it's my ice cream series I threw caution to the wind and ordered the big, fat hot fudge sundae...strawberry ice cream was under all the whipped cream. I haven't had a sundae in a long time. It was quite good!

Next post I do I'll have to go back to having just one unadorned scoop.


Ralph enjoyed a cup of Moose tracks ice cream, and our daughter tried something a bit different, an ice cream cupcake.
It was a chocolate brownie topped with vanilla ice cream and sprinkles. She said it was super-sweet and she couldn't finish it.

But she liked what she did eat!

I was surprised that we were the only customers. The weather wasn't bad, no rain or humidity, and I thought there would be people there enjoying ice cream.  But maybe they had gotten there before us, or arrived later.

Will we return? Probably, but not before trying out ice cream places in the Valley, Milford, and beyond.