Hansen's Sno-Bliz was started by Ernest and Mary Hansen in 1939. Ernest invented the first ice shaving machine and Mary created her own flavored syrups.Decades later, Hansen's still makes its own flavors every day, from Mary's secret recipes, and creates snoballs from the original machine. The combination of fluffy ice and homemade syrups demand that each Sno-Bliz be made in layers – ice, syrup, ice, syrup, and so forth – so that the final product is fully saturated upholding the Hansen's motto: "There are no shortcuts to quality."