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Dairy Queen: A Small-Town Texas Icon

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Seventy-seven years of Dairy Queen highlights:

1940: First Dairy Queen store opens in Joliet, Illinois.
1949: DQ introduces malts and shakes.
1951: Banana splits appear on the menu.
1953: First DQ store opens in Canada.
1955: Dilly Bar debuts.
1957: Dairy Queen/Brazier concept is introduced.
1958: Dairy Queen/Brazier food products introduced.
1961: Mr. Misty slush treat cools throats in the warm South.
1962: International Dairy Queen, Inc. (IDQ) is formed.
1965: First national radio advertising sends DQ message 169 million times a week.
1966: First national TV commercial, “Live a Little,” is aired.
1968: Buster Bar Treat is introduced.
1972: First DQ store opens in Japan.
1973: Say the word “Scrumpdillyishus!” and get a Peanut Buster Parfait for 49 cents.
1979: The DQ system debuts in the Middle East.
1980: “We Treat You Right” tagline debuts.
1985: Over 175 million Blizzard Treats sold in its first year.
1989: Dairy Queen ranked America’s #1 treat chain.
1991: First DQ store opens in Mexico.
1995: DQ Treatzza Pizza and Chicken Strip Basket debut.
1999: Pecan Mudslide Treat is introduced.
1999: A DQ operator in Massachusetts builds the world’s largest Blizzard Treat, weighing in at 5,316.6 pounds.
2001: Crispy Chicken Salad is introduced.
2001: The first DQ Grill & Chill restaurant opens in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
2002: Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA Dallas Mavericks, becomes manager of a DQ location in Texas for the day.
2003: The Blizzard of the Month program kicks off.
2004: The MooLatte Frozen Coffee Flavored Beverage line debuts in mocha, vanilla and caramel flavors.
2004: Award-winning Dairy Queen commercials can be seen throughout the country in the system’s first full year of national advertising.
2005: GrillBurgers are introduced on national TV.
2005: A new World’s Largest Blizzard record is set when a new 22 foot tall Treat is built weighing 8,224.85 pounds in Springfield, Massachusetts.

When I was a young boy growing up in North Texas in the early 50s, Interstate highways didn’t exist. In fact, I’m not sure if the two-lane roads of the time could even be considered a highway, at least not by today’s standards. So when my parents, sister and I made the three and a half hour trip to my birthplace in southeastern Oklahoma, we drove through a number of small Texas towns–Melissa (pop 405), Anna (pop 520), Howe (pop 680), to name a few. I was always amazed that each and every one of those towns, no matter how small, had at least one Dairy Queen.

Always located close to the town’s edge, the local Dairy Queen, also referred to as “DQ” by many, seemed not only to be a popular eatery (in some cases the only eatery) but the community’s social center as well. You may not have been able to find a public library, or even a city hall in many of these towns, but everyone knew how to find the local Dairy Queen.

Dairy Queen got its start in 1938 in an ice cream store in Kankakee, Illinois owned by Sherb Noble. It seems his good friend John “Grandpa” McCullough and McCullough’s son Alex convinced Sherb to begin offering his customers the soft-serve ice cream they had formulated. After selling more than 1,600 servings in just two hours the trio knew they were on to something big, so two years later, on June 22, 1940, the three friends opened the first Dairy Queen on 501 North Chicago Street in Joliet, Illinois, a Chicago suburb. And although that Dairy Queen closed for business in the 1950s, the building still stands as a city designated historic landmark.

The name Dairy Queen was derived from the phrase “the queen among dairy products” used by Grandpa McCullough in describing his ice cream. While the McCullough’s may or may not have invented soft-serve ice cream (some say that honor belongs to Tom Carvel), their proprietary recipe for it has always been a highly guarded trade secret known only by a trusted few.

While there are more than 4,500 DQ stores in the continental U.S., Texas is home to more Dairy Queens than any other state. All 593 stores in the Lone Star State are owned and operated by franchisees, a group of independent operators so large and with so much leverage they have their own Operator’s Council (TDQOC), host a separate marketing website from the national organization, and even maintain their own menu.

Yes, Texas Dairy Queens’ menu has food offerings not found in other U.S. locations. Branded as Texas Country Foods, some of the unique items you’ll find only at Texas DQ’s include “Hungr-Buster” burgers, the “Dude” chicken-fried steak sandwich and steak finger baskets, T-Brand tacos, and the “BeltBuster” half-pound double meat hamburger.

The first Dairy Queen in Texas opened its doors May 31, 1950 on U.S. Highway 259 in Henderson, a small East Texas city (pop 6,800) in the midst of an oil boom. Today this DQ holds the title of the oldest continuously operated Dairy Queen in Texas with almost seven decades of providing patrons courteous, efficient service and soft-serve ice cream, shakes, burgers and fries.

Although the Dairy Queen system has had many changes throughout the years, one constant has remained. DQ’s have always been and will continue to be the place where local sports teams celebrate their victories, business people go on their lunch breaks and families enjoy great food and soft-serve treats. In fact, Dairy Queen is the largest seller of soft frozen desserts in the world.

It’s been more than 50 years since those childhood trips to Oklahoma. Many of the small towns we used to drive through have all but died since being bypassed by the new super highways. As for myself, I prefer the nostalgia of driving the back roads. I enjoy the slower pace, the old turn-of-the-century buildings, and the friendly people. Most of all I enjoy stopping for a burger with extra onions, fries, and a soft-serve chocolate shake at the local Dairy Queen.

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An American Favorite – Carrot Cake

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Carrot-Cake-300x300Several years ago, I did a stint as executive chef at a busy Texas hotel. Once or twice a month, usually after a busy Friday night, the kitchen staff and I would meet at Evelyn’s Café for a late-night breakfast before going home. Evelyn was known miles around for was her delicious three- layer carrot cake—moist, not too sweet, filled with crushed pineapple and pecans. Fluffy cream cheese frosting was generously stuffed between each layer, and thick swirls of the stuff covered the cake’s top and sides.  And the wedge they gave you was big enough for two normal people to share, though I enjoyed each and every bite by myself, as carrot cake has always been one of my favorite cakes. Evelyn’s suddenly closed in February of 1989 and with its closing went the recipe for her signature cake.

Tomato Soup Cake

In spite of what some think, tomato soup cake was not the invention of Campbell Soup Company, but rather the creation of Depression-era housewives.

Recipes for tomato soup cake (sometimes called “Mystery Cake”) first began making its appearance in community cookbooks during the 1920s and 1930s. Tomato soup concentrate was used in place of milk, butter and other dairy products to bring moisture and texture to this unusual dessert. After all, these products were hard to come by during the country’s Great Depression.

Campbell’s Tomato Soup was introduced to the American consumer in 1897, but the company didn’t open their test kitchen until 1941. And though Campbell’s was quick to develop their own version of tomato soup cake and use it to promote their soup, the first version was more like a British-style pudding than a cake. It was 1966 when Campbell’s finally came out with the modern version of this once popular cake.

The first tomato soup cakes were most often simple single-layer or loaf cakes, usually served plain. Updated recipes called for two-layer cakes topped with cream cheese frosting.

Adventurous readers feeling up for the challenge can find the recipe for Campbell’s Spicy Tomato Soup Cake in the recipe section of this blog.

Originally carrots grew wild in what is now southern Afghanistan. Quite different from the sweet, orange variety so popular today, these small, woody, unpleasant tasting purple roots were used primarily as a medicine and its seed as a spice. Silk traders eventually brought the seeds to Western Asia where after centuries of cultivation the anthocyanin pigment was bred out resulting in pale yellow carrots with better taste and texture.

In the 10th century the yellow carrot made its way to Holland where by the 13th century it was further improved and was being planted throughout France and Germany as a food crop mainly for the wealthy. Continued selective breeding eventually produced an orange carrot quite similar to those available today.

Carrots were first brought to North America by the colonists and generally used only in stews and soups. By the end of the 19th century, the French had introduced a longer, sweeter variety of carrot that was tasty both cooked and raw. This new, modern carrot found instant commercial success in both Europe and America.

Enter the carrot cake

The exact origin of the carrot cake is somewhat debated although most food historians feel it descended from the carrot puddings of Medieval Europe. Over the years these recipes took on several forms—some were steamed like pie and served with a sauce, others were baked in cake pans and glazed like a cake. One of the earliest recipes for a true carrot cake appeared in a 19th century French cookbook printed in England. Another early recipe was published in Switzerland where according to the Culinary Heritage of Switzerland it is still the most popular cake in the country, especially for children’s birthdays.

Likely the first recipe in the U.S. for modern carrot cake appeared in The 20th Century Bride’s Cookbook, published by the Twentieth Century Club in Wichita, Kansas in 1929. After World War II, bakers began applying the chiffon principle of eggs and oil to carrot cake, which resulted in the dense, tender and moist cake we know today.

Still, even after this improvement the carrot cake remained just a local delight. It wasn’t until the early 1960s that the carrot cake went from novelty dessert to a standard menu item in restaurants across the nation. One reason for this rise from obscurity was the pairing of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting (developed in the 1930s as the topping for the tomato soup cake). A 2005 survey taken by the Food Network shows carrot cake with cream cheese frosting as number five of the top five 1970’s fad foods.

I was first introduced to carrot cake by my mom who got the recipe out of aCarrot-Cake-Whole-1 community cookbook published by a local radio station. And while it was absolutely delicious, I’m sorry to say Evelyn’s was better. I only wish I had been able to get Evelyn’s recipe before the café doors closed. With that said, I have included my mom’s version of carrot cake which I believe you will enjoy.

Make Em: Tomato Soup Spice Cake, Evelyn’s Carrot Cake