I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

Except Ross from Friends, who doesn't love ice cream? Especially in summer, this dense, scooped treat hits the spot. But there is something even more nostalgic about a swirl of soft-serve ice cream or softie (as it is lovingly called!) that is made right in front of you. This Saturday (August 19) is National Soft-Serve Ice Cream Day in the U.S.9doesn't mean we can't celebrate it here) and almost everyone has a soft spot for soft-serve. It is hard to resist the taste of this cold creamy creation that has been our companion on many hot afternoons.
Soft-serve is different from regular ice cream in that the vendors use a special technique to double the amount of air in soft ice cream, which creates its feather-light, creamier and smooth texture. The delish ice cream melts-in-the-mouth, with its delightful vanilla flavour, soft as a cloud texture, and its super affordable price tag, makes it all the more enticing.
You should also not feel guilty while indulging in soft-serve. It's injected with almost 50 per cent air, so it is much lower in fat when compared to regular ice cream. Plus, you won't get a brain freeze as soft-serve will cool you down with its light and creamy swirls. Soft-serve's simplicity makes it the perfect comfort dessert.
Some of the city's best soft-serves
When the craving for a cone sets in on one of these hot afternoons, satisfy your sweet tooth at these spots.
McDonald's: Soft-serve has become synonymous with McDonald's Dhs1 ice cream cone. A pick-me-up, the sweet creamy va-nilla soft-serve in a crispy cone is the perfect way to end a meal. Available at all McDonald's stores.
Milkcow: Located in JBR, this adorable store serves up soft-serves in a cup and you can see them design your customised treat. They have 14 dif-ferent flavours from the original Milky Way to Snow Drop that comes with candyfloss on top (yum!) and their healthy offering Milky Peace comes with pistachio syrup, sunflower seeds and cashews. Trident Grand Tower, JBR, Visit www.milkcow.ae
Salt: The popular joint offers a decadent Lotus Softie that has vanilla ice cream topped with caramel sauce and Lotus crumbs, creating a mouth-watering des-sert! They also serve the original flavour. At Dubai Marina Mall and Kite Beach
Godiva Chocolate Cafe: For the ultimate indulgence, sample their vanilla white chocolate, dark chocolate or a mix of white and dark chocolate soft ice cream. You can choose to have it in a waffle cone or a cup and slurp away at its smooth textures. At City Walk, Mall of the Emirates, The Beach JBR and Dubai Festival City
How the soft-serve came into being
The soft-serve as we know it was invented by American brand Dairy Queen's J.F. Mc-Cullough and his son Alex, reportedly in the mid 1930s. The duo believed that their customers would love ice cream that was much more softer. They perfected the recipe, and found that using 5 per cent butter fat and serving the ice cream at 18°F made for the optimum soft ice cream. Tom Carvel, the owner of the Carvel ice cream chain of stores in America, is also credited as the inventor of soft-serve. Apparently, on the Memorial Day weekend of 1934, Carvel had a flat tire and had been selling ice cream from the back of the broken vehicle, and his goods were melting away. So, he started selling the partially melted, soft ice cream as a brand new type of dessert, which was a huge hit!
deepa@khaleejtimes.com
Deepa is a foodie, a proud geek and an unabashed Harry Potter fan.