National Rocky Road Day is on Wednesday, June 2, 2027, and it falls on June 2 every year. It celebrates chocolate ice cream loaded with marshmallows and nuts, plus the no-bake candy bars of the same name. Early June is perfect timing for a scoop.
When Is National Rocky Road Day?
It’s always June 2. It’s an unofficial food day, not a federal holiday.
Who Started National Rocky Road Day?
No founder or start year has been documented.
Background: who invented rocky road ice cream?
Several people claim it, and none of the stories can be fully confirmed. The best known involves William Dreyer, an ice cream maker, and Joseph Edy, a candy maker, in Oakland, California, in 1929.
Dreyer reportedly cut marshmallows and walnuts with his wife’s sewing scissors and added them to chocolate ice cream, Mental Floss notes. The pair supposedly swapped in almonds and named it Rocky Road, a nod to the stock market crash of October 1929.
The rival claims
Fentons Creamery, also in Oakland, says it created the flavor. Some sources credit George Farren, a candy maker who worked there, and say he accused Dreyer of taking the idea. Tasting Table notes these claims aren’t verified.
A 1920 Kansas candy book even printed a “Rocky Road” ice cream recipe, which, if the date is right, would predate them all.
What Is in Rocky Road?
Modern rocky road ice cream is chocolate ice cream with marshmallows and nuts, usually almonds. Some makers use walnuts or pecans instead. The “rocky” texture is the whole point.
The flavor stood out because most ice creams at the time were basics like vanilla, strawberry and chocolate. The day celebrates one of America’s first mix-in flavors.
How to Celebrate National Rocky Road Day
- Grab a scoop: compare an almond version with a walnut or pecan one.
- Make no-bake bars: melt chocolate, stir in mini marshmallows and nuts, chill in a pan and slice.
- Build a sundae: top chocolate ice cream with toasted marshmallow fluff and chopped almonds.
- Make it nut-free: swap the nuts for pretzels or crisped rice for allergy-friendly treats.
- Bake rocky road brownies: scatter marshmallows and nuts on brownies for the last few minutes of baking.
- Try homemade: fold marshmallows and nuts into churned chocolate ice cream before freezing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called rocky road?
The popular story says Dreyer and Edy named it after the “rocky road” the economy faced following the 1929 stock market crash. That explanation is reported, not documented.
Is rocky road the same in Australia?
In Australia, rocky road usually means a chocolate candy with marshmallows and nuts. Tasting Table notes claims that it inspired the ice cream, but that link isn’t confirmed.
Which nuts go in rocky road?
Almonds are the most common. Walnuts and pecans also appear, depending on the brand.