Into the Pensieve, III

For as long as I can remember, Mom has always loved vanilla ice cream. A few moments in time creep into my mind when I see her ordering Butter Pecan at Baskin-Robbins, but if given the choice for a half-gallon of ice cream at home (when companies still routinely sold half-gallons), she'd choose vanilla.

I like vanilla ice cream. But I always perceived Mom's choice as boring, bland, dare I say, vanilla?

Until I thought about Mom's choice more and realized that by choosing vanilla ice cream, she chose a simple, pure flavor that probably isn't appreciated as much as it should be. Good vanilla ice cream is a pleasure to eat, really, and can form the basis of so many wonderful desserts.

I looked up what desserts could be made with vanilla ice cream as their base, and since these pictures from Coastal Living were so pretty (taken by Levi Brown), I thought I'd share them here.

Brownie Ice Cream Sundae Cake

Nut-crusted Key Lime Ice Cream Cupcake

Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream Bites

Strawberry Ice Cream Shortcakes

Tiramisu Ice Cream Cake
Mom never dared to make desserts as intricate as these with her vanilla ice cream. The most she'd do is drizzle some chocolate sauce on top. But I'd like to think that if given the chance, she'd try these desserts, maybe even like one or two. Perhaps the next time she comes to visit, we'll find out.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Those peanut butter banana ice cream bites look amazing! And the year my grandfather died he was asked what he wanted for his birthday, and it was family and ice cream. So we all crowded into my aunt's living room and ate homemade ice cream the way grandma always made it... with so much vanilla it was no longer white :)
Christina said…
Fantastic story. Sounds like great memories to have.

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