Girls' Weekend

I have cook book, it’s more like a scrap book really. It’s a standard sketch book and in it I have taped recipes I have used through the years that I like and have proven trustworthy and some recipes I have come up with and refined. There is no ‘organization’ to it. Write something down and move on. Usually it just involves a vague list of inferred ingredients. It also has menus in it, and lists. Lists upon lists. Lists of what we ate with no recipes, vague lists, and lists about things that Jim likes, lists for bridal showers, lists for engagement parties, lists for any and everything. I troll through it often, the totem of food. Recently I was cruising through it and I came across this ‘Raspberry Lambic Float’. This comes from my friend Danny. My friend Danny who hates dessert. Danny eats dessert about once a year, probably on his birthday when he has to choke down the cake someone made for him. This year he is going to have to choke it down twice since he is getting married.

Several years ago we used to have these Iron Chef offs. Four of us would each make two dishes in amuse bouche form. Then we invited two friends to be our Jeffrey Steingartens. They would blind judge and deem someone the winner. I don’t think Danny won for this dish but he should have. It was creative, tasty and it contained booze in dessert form. When I saw it in my ‘cookbook’ I thought to myself - ‘why haven’t I made this?’

I am presently having a girls' weekend with my two giggly adorable godchildren. So I decided the time was right to recreate it. Obviously a non-alcoholic version for the kids. Hamburgers, corn on the cob and ice cream floats! I’m sure it was originally made in a shot glass or a thimble or something tiny, it looked better in a pint glass, but it was way too big for me to finish. I've adjusted the recipe for a more manageable serving.

Raspberry Lambic Float - Serves 1

4 oz. raspberry lambic (or raspberry soda)

1 scoop premium vanilla ice cream (I used Haagen Dazs five and also gave the girls two scoops and 8 oz. soda)

2-3 tablespoons whipped cream (I use 1 cup of whipping cream to 1 teaspoon vanilla whipped to your desired consistency)

5 raspberries

mint for garnish

Pour the beer in to a glass larger than the beer will hold (this is so when the ice cream goes in to the soda/beer the ice cream volcano stays contained in the glass), scoop the ice cream and hang off the side of the glass, top beer/ice cream with whipped cream and garnish with the berries and mint. Serve with a spoon and a straw.