Peppermint Ice Cream With Hot Fudge Sauce
I don’t remember eating peppermint ice cream at any other time of the year. The alternative to this seasonal desert treat was spumoni, which had something unpleasant in it like raisins or candied fruit. The pinkish peppermint ice cream just seemed to invite garnishing with chocolate. My mother made her hot fudge sauce from the recipe on the back of the Baker’s Chocolate package. When you put the butter into the melted chocolate, the sauce became shiny and smooth. It was holiday magic.
“Peppermint Ice Cream,” Carol Crump Bryner, gouache, 2015
My husband, on the other hand, has been crisscrossing Manhattan in search of spumoni, a seasonal treat he adores. He found Neapolitan, but real spumoni with its nuts and candied fruit has become rare, along with the disappearance of Little Italy; the district has been largely swallowed by Chinatown as Italians became more successful and moved out of cramped quarters there. We have yet to get over to Pleasant Street in East Harlem, where a vestige Italian community remains. The mob bosses are gone, though.
Good luck in finding the spumoni. I didn’t like it especially as a child, but I think I might enjoy it now, and will be keeping my eye out for places that might actually sell it. Portland is full of gourmet ice cream, but I don’t think any of it is spumoni.
We found some. Mike liked it. I thought it was awful. Tasted like it had been in the freezer for months. Which may well be the case!
Peppermint ice cream has always been my father’s favorite. We try to keep some tucked away in the freezer for times that he visits. It is very satisfying to see his eyes light up when we offer it for desert. I agree that it calls out for hot fudge, but then most things do.
Say hi to your dad next time you see him! And to your mom too.
Carol – I just started reading your Christmas posts and am looking forward to each new one until Christmas. I Just pulled out cookie cutters to make ginger cookies yesterday, so I feel like I am on track. The kids will love eating peppermint ice cream with the chocolate sauce. We have never tried it before and only hope it will be easily available. I love the photo of the kids in the snow and the painting of your studio window is so cheery. Thank you for not only sharing, but possibly prompting some new traditions. Bobbie
Hi Bobbie! Glad you’re enjoying the posts, and hope they do inspire some holiday treat ideas. See you in January!
Hi Carol, have not thought of peppermint ice cream for eons. Sounds good with the chocolate sauce. I am enjoying your writings and paintings about your Christmas traditions.
Thanks, Netzy!