Reese Witherspoon posts follow-up video after snow criticism

Is snow safe to eat? ‘Legally Blonde’ star makes drink using fallen snow

Reese Witherspoon has shared her recipe for a winter-themed drink with one strange ingredient: snow.

The Big Little Lies star, 47, recently took to TikTok to share how she gets rid of snow after a big blizzard. “We got a ton of snow over the past few days, so we decided to make a recipe,” Witherspoon began the clip, as she showed the snow being scooped off a covered outdoor grill with two red-and-white striped mugs.

“First, we scooped the snow into cups and we added salted caramel syrup and some chocolate syrup because we like how they taste together,” the Legally Blonde actor said in the video shared on 18 January.

She then added some cold brew into the mixture for a “yummy coffee flavour.” As Witherspoon showed herself eating a spoonful of the snow-filled drink, she said: “Oh my gosh, that’s so good.”

The Morning Show star began contemplating names for her recipe, ultimately deciding on “Snow Salt Chococino”. In the TikTok caption, Witherspoon wrote: “Snow days were made for Chococinnos”.

While the mother of three appeared to enjoy her snowy treat, many followers on TikTok were grossed out by the drink’s main ingredient.

“Isn’t snow dirty??” one person asked, while someone else wrote: “Snow is filthy. Yuck.”

Another fan commented: “I love you but no thank you. Snow is sooo dirty full with bacteria.”

“Fallen snow can be very dirty from the air and wind but who cares,” someone else chimed in. “You only live once. I remember eating snow as a kid.”

Witherspoon’s video left many people wondering whether it’s actually safe to eat fallen snow. In an interview with Fox Weather, Dr Laura Martin - an assistant professor or pediatrics at the Ohio State University College of Medicine - revealed that some snow is safe to eat while others aren’t.

According to Martin, freshly fallen snow is the least safe to eat because it can collect chemical contaminants from the air as it’s falling. Fallen snow that’s on the ground is also not safe to eat, because it can mix with potential toxins like dirt, animal waste, fertiliser, or pesticides. The safest snow to consume are top layers of fallen snow furthest away from the ground. And of course, stay away from yellow snow.

In response to the confusion, Witherspoon shared a follow-up TikTok video on 19 January where she addressed some criticism of her wintery concoction. After many people in the comments section suggested she melt a cup of snow in the microwave to see what dirt is leftover, Witherspoon revealed her findings.

“There’s so many people on here saying that snow is dirty, so we went and took snow from the backyard and we microwaved it and it’s clear,” the Oscar winner said, as she held up a mason jar filled with clear water to the camera. “Is this bad? Am I not supposed to eat snow?”

Despite the haters, Witherspoon maintained that a little snow won’t hurt, and her Snow Salt Chococino was tasty nonetheless. “We’re kind of in the category of you only live once and it snows maybe once a year here,” she said in a separate video.

“Also I want to say something, it was delicious,” Witherspoon added while giggling. “It was so good.”