June 2 Rocky Road Day

June 2 is Rocky Road Day observed every year. Rocky Road ice cream was composed of chocolate ice cream, nuts, and marshmallows. Today, there are variations with vanilla ice cream, cholate chips and almonds.

Sometime during the late 1920s William Dreyer used inspiration from his partner Joseph Edy’s chocolate candy to make rocky road ice cream. Dryer did something he was probably told a hundred times not to do. He used his wife’s sewing scissors to chop up marshmallows and walnuts and added them to chocolate ice cream.

Another who laid claim to the creation of rocky road ice cream was George Farren. He had simply blended a candy bar into chocolate ice cream creating the creamy dessert.

Australia, people add jam to their rocky road ice cream. And in the United Kingdom, they add cherries and raisins. It instantly became an American favorite and soon became popular all over the world. 

Rocky Road Recipe

June 1 Say Something Nice Day

June 1 is Say Something Nice Day observed every year. Say Something Nice Day began in Charleston, South Carolina, when the Mayors of North Charleston and Charleston came together with members of the Charleston-Atlantic Presbytery and the South Carolina.

The purpose of this holiday is to counteract bullying and the lack of civility and common courtesy that is growing among people in today’s world. Hopefully the practice of “saying something nice today” will continue onto all tomorrows.

The message of the day is that positivity goes a long way in spreading happiness and joy. When we are kind in our interactions with others, we receive positivity and kindness back. This enriches our lives, makes us happy and keeps us healthy - studies have shown that happy people are healthier and live longer. 

June 1 Go Barefoot Day

Go Barefoot Day is observed on June 1. The real purpose behind this quirky holiday is to encourage people to donate new and used shoes to the victims of natural disasters.

Go Barefoot Day was launched by a non-profit organization calledSoles4Souls. Take a moment to do a little spring cleaning and give away the shoes you no longer need. You can even organize a shoe drive in your community.

The holiday got its start after the Tsunami disaster in 2004 to support those affected by the event. However, donations have continued to come in and over 19 millions of pairs of shoes have been donated worldwide since 2005.

Now is a good time to donate a pair or two of gently used shoes to a charitable organization in your area. 

June 1 Hazelnut Cake Day

June 1st is The Hazelnut Cake Day. Hazelnuts give any cake perfect nutty flavor, these nuts are underestimated. Worldwide there are over 100 varieties of hazelnuts grown and 70% of those come from Turkey. However, in the U.S. 99% of our hazelnuts are grown in Oregon instead of being imported.

There are several kinds of hazelnut cakes you can make. Use hazelnuts in any form that you like. Add whole or chopped nuts to the batter or use grounded hazelnuts to substitute some part of flour. No matter what kind you prefer, the distinctive and rich nutty flavor is a winner.

Cadbury-Schweppes company in Australia imports over 2,000 tons of hazelnuts annually. The nuts are used for chocolate, but some amount undergoes pressure to produce strongly flavored hazelnut oil. 

Hazelnut Cake Recipe 

Spend some time in the kitchen baking up a delicious hazelnut cake as you take part in National Hazelnut Cake Day.