By Erica H.
Summertime in central Texas can often be a bit of a struggle. What seems to be a time of freedom and outdoor fun for many areas of the country feels more like a prison sentence--too hot for a walk, too hot for the park, too hot to leave the house unless absolutely necessary. In a (valiant!) effort to take the edge off of this miserable, broiling sesason, I have been attempting to cook all 60 "SUMMER RECIPES" in the June edition of Bon Appétit (starting here). There have been some high highs and some low lows, but I think I finally hit summertime gold with the Sundae Bar Party.
It's simple, it's fun, it's sugar-packed, and it's indoors. I made all five toppings/sauces recommended:
Hot fudge sauce. A classic. I'm pretty sure hot fudge and ice cream are the only true requirements for a sundae. When I asked my daughter which ice cream she wanted, she kept pointing insistently to this bowl. "THAT ONE."
Marshmallow Sauce. I could take or leave this, but it garnered the most comments and questions from my guests. If you're into corn syrup, there are worse applications for it.
Sweet-and-salty peanut butter sauce. Ah, here's the one for me! A splash of this on some chocolate ice cream is heaven. Or you could follow my lead and spend all day dipping pretzel sticks in it.
Cherry compote. This is easy and lovely and allows you to tell yourself "At least I ate some fruit today."
Wet walnuts. Haaaaa! Wet walnuts.
The party I hosted was child-oriented, but I promise adults will go for this as well. BONUS: leftover toppings provide an excellent excuse to make pancakes the next day.
Looks delicious!
Posted by: Elsha | July 30, 2012 at 12:06 PM
I'll eat your wet walnuts, Erica.
Posted by: Jesabes | July 30, 2012 at 12:53 PM
You are going to kill me, Erica.
Posted by: HereWeGoAJen | July 30, 2012 at 01:05 PM
So the sweet-and-salty peanut butter sauce is healthy right? Because I think I might eat that on everything in the world.
Posted by: Michelle | July 30, 2012 at 01:16 PM
I want to live closer to you so I can get invited to all your parties. So, don't mind me if I start sending you a lot of Fort Worth real estate listings.
Posted by: Jennie | July 30, 2012 at 03:14 PM