Once upon a time, hundreds of years ago, Charles I of England hosted a sumptuous state banquet for many of his friends and family. The meal, consisting of many delicacies of the day, had been simply superb but the “coup de grace” was yet to come.
Aftermuch preparation, the King’s French chef had concoctedan apparently new dish. It was cold and resembledfresh- fallen snow but was much creamier and sweeterthan any other after-dinner dessert.
Theguests were delighted, as was Charles, who summonedthe cook and asked him not to divulge the recipefor his frozen cream. The King wanted the delicacyto be served only at the Royal table and offeredthe cook 500 pounds a year to keep it that way.
Sometime later, however, poor Charles fell into