Harbor Life Ministries

For a long time we’ve heard of the fabled Milan Melon Festival (in Milan, Ohio, not Italy) and their even more renowned treat that’s served up over the 3-day run of the event: melon flavored ice cream and sherbet, served, if you like, in melon bowls.

If I had been offered to try a cantaloupe-flavored Slushee or similar treat, I probably would have turned it down. I’ve had watermelon-flavored drinks, gum and candy, and it doesn’t do much for my palate. But ice cream? Ice cream is always good, and in this case the dish came highly recommended from two people who wouldn’t possibly mislead us: Eric and Kim Phillips, the former youth sponsors at the church we attend in Norwalk.

(I shot some video of everyone trying the musky treat and then used some Photoshop tricks to animate it–see below).

I liked the ice cream, although I wouldn’t put it high on my list of favorite flavors. But then, we chose cones instead of melon bowls, so maybe that took something away from it. I did manage, in the experience, to get cantaloupe ice cream on my Veggietales T-shirt. I’m sure Mike Nawrocki or Phil Vischer could write a catchy song about it, if they chose.