On hot summer days, few people have a good appetite. Ice cream and fruit sound more refreshing than a bowl of hot noodles.
炎炎夏日，许多人都会胃口不佳。冰淇淋和水果听起来就比一碗热面条更提神。
In the past, ancient Chinese people also enjoyed "ice cream" and specially prepared fruit in summer. Here are three delicacies they treated themselves to in hot weather.
在过去，中国古人们也很喜欢“冰淇淋”和夏天特制的水果。本文就为你介绍三种古人最爱的夏日消暑佳品。
Su shan
一、酥山。
Su shan (酥山) is a dish that looks like crushed ice with milk and butter.
酥山这道冷饮由碎冰混合奶、黄油等制成。
Poet Wang Lingran from the Tang Dynasty (618-907) described how people made and enjoyed su shan in his poem Ode to Su He Shan. According to the text, sugar was added to su shan that was shaped into many forms. Sometimes, su shan was decorated with flowers and leaves to make it more beautiful.
唐代(618-907年)王泠然就在其诗作《苏和山赋》中描绘了人们是如何制作、享用酥山的。根据诗文介绍，酥山被塑成各种形状，然后加入糖。有时酥山还会用绿叶红花来做装饰，使其更加秀色可餐。
"It is neither solid, nor watery and disappears once it touches teeth," the poet wrote.
《苏和山赋》有云：“非固非稀;触皓齿而便消，是津是润。”
The su shan in his poem was thought by many scholars to be an early form of ice cream. However, only the royals and nobles were lucky enough to have large iceboxes to create the delicacy in summer.
许多学者认为，王泠然诗中的酥山就是一种早期的冰淇淋。但是，只有皇家和贵族才有幸在炎炎夏日拥有巨大冰窖，能够制造这种美味。
Ice and iced beverages
二、冰与冰饮。
Although there were no fridges in ancient times, iceboxes to store ice cubes in summer had become very common in rich families by the Tang Dynasty.
虽然古代没有冰箱，但是唐代大户人家拥有夏日储存冰块的冰窖已经很常见了。
At that time, people either had ice water or crunched shaved ice.
那时，人们用这个方法可以得到冰水和捣碎的刨冰。
People could easily buy iced beverages on the street during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). As a community service, some rich people even provided free ice water and medicine on the street for free.
而到宋朝(960-1279年)，人们已经很容易在街市上买到冰镇饮料。作为一项社区服务，一些富人甚至还会免费提供冰水和药品。
Ice water sold during the Song Dynasty was often added to mung beans or licorice to help prevent heat stroke.
宋代售卖的冰水通常会加入绿豆或甘草，有助于防止中暑。
Cherries with cheese and cane syrup
三、奶酪樱桃甘蔗汁。
During the Wei, Jin and Southern and Northern dynasties (220-581), dairy food appeared more frequently on ancient Chinese people’s tables.
魏晋南北朝时期(220-581年)，乳制品已经频繁出现在中国古人的餐桌上了。
People made three kinds of cheese. One was called tian lao, or sweet cheese, which tasted like cheese yet looked like yogurt. Another is gan lao, or dried cheese, similar to solid cheese eaten today. The last one is cu lao, a kind of half-sour, half-sweet cheese, like yogurt.
人们制作出了三种奶酪。其一是甜酪，尝起来是奶酪味儿，但外形却酷似酸奶。其二是干酪，和今天的固体奶酪很相似。最后一种是粗酪，半酸半甜，和酸奶类似。
The climate in the Yellow River area in the Tang Dynasty was warmer and moister, very different from today. Many cheery trees were planted there at that time. The fruit was common in early summer and people often added cheese and cane syrup to the cherries.
唐朝时期黄河流域气候更加温暖湿润，和今天非常不同。那时，该地区种植有许多樱桃树。樱桃在夏初很常见，当时的人们会加入奶酪和甘蔗汁一起吃。
Lu You, a noted poet from the Song Dynasty, once wrote: "eat cherry, peach and cheese at the same time".
宋代著名诗人陆游就有诗云：“槐柳成阴雨洗尘，樱桃乳酪并尝新。”
Thus in the Song Dynasty, when ancient Chinese people sent cherries as gifts, cheese was often presented together.
因此在宋代时，人们经常会用樱桃来送礼，往往和奶酪一起赠送。
When rich noble people had cherries with cheese and cane syrup, they often used plates and bowls made of gold or colored glaze to make the fruit look more mouthwatering.
当贵族和大户人家食用樱桃奶酪甘蔗汁的时候，往往会使用金或者五彩琉璃制成的碗碟，让这些水果看起来更加美味诱人。
