it is said that sherbet, along with ice cream, was made from chilled wines and other juices in the era of alexander the great. it was not called ice cream centuries ago, but "water ices". marco polo brought flavors of water ices to europe from the far east. catherine de medici, crowned queen of france in 1533, brought with her recipes of italian sherbet. a combination of ice and salt became the most popular use in making the dessert in the 17th century. frozen desserts found their way to america by the 18th century.