cherry -chocolate ice cream soda

For as long as I can remember, ice cream has been my dessert of choice. My favorites have changed through the years but for the most part, I’ve been drawn to nutty, vanilla-based flavors. Recently, I discovered Sweet and Salty Caramel Crunch by Our Compliments and I’ve become obsessed with it. It’s rich and buttery and the perfect combination of all the flavors I love: bits of crunchy toffee, small pieces of almonds, sea salt and swirls of caramel. We’ve been enjoying it all summer, as it’s the perfect way to end a light summer meal. We keep reinventing ways to use it - most recently as a filling for homemade ice cream sandwiches and as a sweet addition to iced-coffee.

When I was little, summers meant long evening drives to local ice cream parlors. It was something my siblings and I looked forward to and to this day, evening ice cream runs still remain the perfect way to end a warm summer day. Our ice cream preferences changed throughout our childhood, but our father always ordered the same thing: an old-fashioned ice cream float. It always looked so refreshing and decadent and recently I’ve become re-acquainted with this indulgent summer treat. 

The recipe below is a twist on a classic ice cream float. I used vanilla ice cream, classic coca cola, chocolate sauce and sweet cherry syrup using fresh cherries. You can strain it and simply use the liquid, but I added the stewed cherries because I love scraping up the last bits with a long spoon. Feel free to experiment using different ice cream and soda flavors. In one version, I omitted the chocolate sauce and added grapefruit soda instead of coca-cola and used strawberry ice cream instead of vanilla. One thing is for certain though, no matter what combinations you choose, ice cream soda's are a simple and lovely way to enjoy the lazy days of summer.

iced-coffee with ice cream

chocolate-dipped ice cream sandwiches with homemade chocolate chip cookies and crushed peanuts