Celebrate National Ice Cream Month With These 15 Mouthwatering Treats
These highlights from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest feature creamy frozen delights to help beat the summer heat
Who needs a spoon to enjoy this perfectly swirled chocolate-and-vanilla soft-serve ice cream served on a cone? Put the formalities aside.
Saundi Wilson, Pennsylvania, 2020
Text by Tracy Scott Forson
Photographs selected by Jeff Campagna
It’s National Ice Cream Month! Ice cream is one of America’s favorite desserts, and it pairs perfectly with so many other popular sweets: apple pie, chocolate chip cookies, cake! The average American eats about 20 pounds of the creamy dairy delicacy each year. So, when it comes to loving ice cream, you’re far from alone. See children, seniors and even animals enjoying ice cream in these images from our Annual Photo Contest.
Maybe with enough love and hope, this giant faux ice cream will become real. It worked for Geppetto.
Pamela Green, New York, 2017
Lucy the Weimaraner knows how to keep cool in the summer heat, thanks to a generous human. A few licks of this treat should do the trick.
Patricia Petit, Massachusetts, 2010
A red-hued ice cream cone is deconstructed and transformed into abstract art. Does this creative interpretation taste as good?
Andre Boto, Portugal, 2021
Having kids around offers the perfect excuse to stop by the ice cream cart for a treat, as this father can attest.
Jorge Peniche, California, 2010
What’s a holiday without a sweet treat? This holy man celebrating Kumbh Mela, a major Hindu festival, pauses for an ice cream break.
Suresh Jayaprakash, India, 2012
A squirrel enjoys an ice cream cone sitting atop a historic Spanish-American War cannon at the United States Naval Academy. Sometimes, the soggy cone is the best part.
Priscilla Hart, Maryland, 2016
An ice cream truck parks in the middle of New Smyrna Beach, playing its enticing lullaby, on a hot day.
Oliver Ehmig, Florida, 2021
It’s worth the delayed gratification to pause and take a moment to appreciate that first bite. And it’s double the fun when your friend gets a cone, too.
Kiet Anh Vo, Vietnam, 2009
You know it’s good when you’re too busy enjoying your dessert to bother wiping away the ice cream on the tip of your nose.
Josh Blanchard, California, 2008
The apples can wait. When you’re with your sister aboard a yacht, it calls for a treat—like a tub of ice cream.
Iulia Galushina, Australia, 2020
A young girl observes an elder’s ice cream-eating techniques. It’s wise to learn from those who’ve gone before.
Rachel Chambers, Texas, 2010
You can just imagine the disappointment when this appetizing ice cream hit the hot pavement.
Megan Young, Pennsylvania, 2011
Jada Coleman, at age 7, eats an ice cream cone while waiting for her mom to vote in a Washington, D.C. primary election. Food for thought: Would voter participation increase if ice cream were provided at the polls?
Julia Nikhinson, Washington, D.C., 2022
A little redhead nears the end of her ice cream cone. It’s not over until it’s over.
Chele Marker-Cash, Washington, 2013
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