I have an embarrassing confession to make.
I hate traveling.
Okay, so maybe not traveling so much as flying. Full disclosure: I find airplanes to be downright terrifying. Sure, long car trips can be tedious, and statistically, are much more dangerous than traveling by plane, but as I’m sure you’ve gathered by now, I’m not necessarily a reasonable person who is easily swayed by facts, math, or logic. Rather, I tend to follow much more reliable indicators, such as the feelings of sheer panic and general barfiness I experience each time I step onto a plane.
The entire air travel experience makes me anxious, from the removal of my shoes and jacket (and consequently, my dignity) in the security line, to boarding the plane, to the actual flying, right up until that sweet sweet moment hours later when the plane touches the ground and slows to a gradual halt without incident.
But the absolute worst part? Taking off. Those few moments in which the plane first ascends into the air are the most complex and fear-ridden of my life.
In addition to a life-long struggle with motion sickness rearing its ugly head, I’m plagued with thoughts of dread and impending doom. So imagine nausea, coupled with anxiety, compounded by my fear of the plane crashing, then topping it all off with thoughts of “omg, I hope I don’t have to actually use this barf bag.” Welcome to my air travel experience.
While other passengers busy themselves pretending to switch their small handheld devices into airplane mode, I listen to the safety information speech, intently, taking detailed mental notes of all exits and the individuals manning those areas. I look them up and down, thinking, “Does this person look responsible?” I assess their competence based upon appearance. Argyle sweater vest? Okay, that’s a good sign. Sweater vests are a sure sign of reliability and hidden heroism.
But Miss Yoga Pants, over there? Nope. No way. This broad’s about as reliable as a car with no brakes.
After the plane takes off and starts aggressively gaining altitude, I enter what I like to refer to as my Any Minute Now stage. As in, any minute now the engine is either going to fail or explode and my fear-stricken body will go crashing to the ground. Once the plane stabilizes I relax a little, moving from a state of sheer panic to a mode of General Suspicion (so still on guard and aware of my surroundings, but not plagued with heart-racing anxiety). I tend to stay in this state until final descent, at which point I’m so emotionally enhausted I just close my eyes and hope the landing gear (and the pilot) does what it’s supposed to do.
The sad thing about all of this nonsense? I actually consider myself a well-traveled individual, at least domestically speaking. But no matter how many business trips, destination weddings, or vacations I take part in, I can’t shake those irrepressible feelings of panic and doom that I associate with air travel.
However, there is one thing that I love about traveling by plane: the airports themselves. I love how each airport, to a certain extent, represents the city in which it resides. I love the local art and murals, and the hustle and bustle of busy folks off to exotic places. I love the trinket shops full of mugs and pens and shot glasses, and those little souvenir collector spoons that look like they were made for itty bitty ice cream sundaes.
But above all, I love the standard, run-of-the-mill Hudson News-type shops filled wall-to-wall with books and magazines.
One of my very favorite things about traveling is spending copious amounts of money on said books and magazines, then pouring over the pages to help distract me from my unavoidable feelings of dread and gloom while on the plane.
Despite the recent influx of technological devices that are designed to assist with the consumption of information, I still really love books and magazines in their natural states. Don’t get me wrong, I love my iPad, but there’s something about a good old fashioned piece of paper with words or pictures on it that I find extremely therapeutic.
(It’s especially comforting during those times when your fate rests in the hands of a yoga-pants-wearing twenty-something slurping on a venti Frapp).
During our travel this past weekend, I took the opportunity to splurge on a few of my favorite foodie magazines, which were chock full of luscious summer desserts, particularly those of the strawberry persuasion. My favorite article though, was one about ice cream floats in Bon Appetit, featuring the fancy summer treat shot against bold and brightly colored backgrounds. I was instantly inspired, and found myself sufficiently distracted for the rest of the flight.
I forgot about these themes of strawberries and floats until we returned from our trip late Sunday night, and I realized that Blog Post Day (typically Monday or Tuesday) was right around the corner but I had no energy or time to plan for ice cream. As I gazed at my glossy new magazines strewn across the floor, a lightbulb went off. I thought, hey, why not make a float?
I’m actually surprised that this is the first time an ice cream float is making an appearance on the blog – I love floats, because they’re basically just sparkly milkshakes. I brainstormed some ideas, because I wanted to make a fancy float like the kind I saw in my magazine. But alas, I’m really not that fancy, so I decided to make something totally fun, old fashioned, and delicious: strawberry shortcake!
This ended up tasting exactly how I wanted it to: creamy, boozy, and full of sweet summery strawberries. The addition of Grand Marnier added a nice depth of flavor, and the cookies got all mushy and fabulous in the ice cream. I think this may be a new summer favorite!
Making this float is easy as pie! (er, shortcake). Start with an empty glass:
Add some strawberry compote and cookie crumbles, plus a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream:
Then, add in your booze and soda:
Add more ice cream, strawberries, and cookie crumbles:
Top with delectable vanilla whipped cream and garnish with cookie crumbs, and voila!
I think this recipe may have opened the float floodgates, because I can’t wait to make more! They’re super easy, customizable to whatever ingredients are in your kitchen, and require very little planning, which is awesome for a lazy summer day.
Side note: I’d like to point out that this is the second fruity dessert that I’ve posted in two weeks. AND it has alcohol. I think I’ve pretty much achieved grown up status.
What’s your favorite summer float combo?
Happy scooping 🙂
Boozy Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Float
Ingredients:
1 pint vanilla ice cream
2 cups roughly chopped strawberries
1 tablespoon sugar
½ tsp cornstarch
Splash of Grand Marnier (or, to taste)
1 cup Blackberry Izze (or other berry sparkling soda/water)
1/2 cup pound cake or sugar cookie pieces, broken into bits (I prefer sugar cookies…they hold up better in the ice cream)
whipped cream (vanilla is awesome, if you have it)
Directions:
- Make the strawberry compote: Place the strawberries in a small saucepan over medium heat and sprinkle with sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently and mashing some of the larger fruit pieces against the side of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add the cornstarch, cook for another minute or two, then remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
- In a tall glass or mason jar, layer a spoonful of the strawberry compote, then follow with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Top with a sprinkling of pound cake/cookie crumbles. Follow with another spoonful of strawberries, then ice cream, then cookies, and so on and so forth.
- Once your layers are complete, pour the Grand Marnier, followed by the blackberry soda, over top of the ice cream. Since the liquids can immediately start to melt the ice cream, I like to add an extra scoop of ice cream on top, followed by whipped cream and cookie crumbles to garnish.
- Stick in a straw and enjoy 🙂
if the spoon fits 
LOOK!! Strawberries!!! Total honorary adult status!
This looks so good I can barely handle it. Seriously. You’ve outdone yourself. And I’m cursing you because I don’t have any of the makings for this in the house. Not one single ingredient. (well maybe the sugar and cornstarch)
As for air travel, I think we’re almost exact opposites. I really don’t mind flying but the only part of the experience (in the plane) that I hate is the landing. I feel like the landing, even though it means that once it’s over we’ll be safely back on the ground, feels much more scary to me than the takeoff. I also don’t really enjoy being forced to sit in such close proximity to strangers.
The part I hate most about flying though, is the time spent in the airport! Crowds, lines, waiting and waiting and waiting, removal of clothing, more lines, more crowds, overpriced trinkets that’ll more than likely end up in a closet or attic collecting dust before finally being tossed or sold for 10 cents at a yard sale…
Not my cuppa.
Strawberries though. With ice cream. And cookies. And BOOZE.
Now that’s my cuppa.
If you ever find yourself on a flight (gulp) to NYC some day, we’ll have to go for an ice cream cone! There’s a place near my work that I think you’d go crazy for. Check out their flavor archive if you’re in the mood to have your brain explode. http://www.oddfellowsnyc.com/
Airport shopping – so we finally found something that we don’t have in common! haha
I just checked out the OddFellows site and OMG are you serious?! I want it all! I demand that you go there tomorrow and get the buttermilk honey blueberry and then tell me all about it!!!! Not sure about some of the flavors listed (foie gras?), but cream and milk and eggs can make anything taste good!!!! Maybe they’ll franchise and open a location in the booming metropolis that is Akron, OH lol
My in-laws actually live in northeastern PA and like to make trips out to NYC a few times a year for shopping and sightseeing, and it would be very easy for the hubby and I to tag along and make a stop in Brooklyn 🙂 Worlds will collide and heads may explode from all of the epic awesomeness that is a Brooklyn Homemaker/If the Spoon Fits real-world meeting, but WE WILL MAKE THIS HAPPEN!!!!!
Some day… Some day… (you can’t tell but I’m tapping my fingertips together like Mr. Burns)
I smell a crossover episode!
Anyway- I’ve only been to OddFellows a few times, and so far I’ve tried the Thai Iced Tea, the burnt caramel, the olive oil, and the Beet, Goat Cheese, & Candied Pistachio. All were unbelievable. I was a little unsure about the beet but it was earthy and sweet and wonderful in a way I can’t even find words for. I feel like the foie gras is probably a little weird but I’m really curious. They don’t do the weirdo flavors as often as the rest, but they’re the ones I’m most interested in!
They just opened a second location in Manhattan, (the first was in Brooklyn) so it’s only a matter of time before they find their way to Akron!
The next time I go in I’ll definitely try the blueberry buttermilk and report back. haha!
Ooh I love the white-washed backdrop you’ve used here! Sets off the red strawberries very nicely.
I’m missing my photography and cooking. I’ve been battling ongoing health issues the last couple of months and have lost my mojo for even these things I enjoy most. And I get the guilts for abandoning my site blog… So for the moment, I’m living vicariously through you!
Oh Angelica, I’m so sorry to hear that! I hope you feel better soon. I’ve been wondering where you are – I check your page all the time just to make sure I haven’t missed anything!
I totally understand what you mean about feeling guilty. For me, it’s even a strange mix of guilt/envy, because I’ll have long stretches where I don’t really feel like posting, yet I’ll look at some of the blogs that I follow who are posting regularly, and I’m like…jealous of their motivation! If that’s possible. Don’t be too hard on yourself – sometimes I don’t have much going on in my life other than work days and general laziness, and it’s hard for me to keep up with the ol’ blog, so I can’t imagine how you feel. Hang in there!
My awesome mother in law found the backdrop for me – it’s actually old window shutters that she cut in half! I want to try to do some lighter pictures this summer, because I feel like I’ve been getting so complacent with the dark moody thing (not that I’ve mastered it by any means, but I feel like I need to push myself a little more).
Just know that when you’re ready to start wowing the blogosphere with your awesome writing and pictures again, you’ve got a friend on the other side of the world that will be anxiously awaiting your return 🙂 xoxo
Linsday, what a heart-warming message – thank you, it really means a lot.
And right back at you – I can empathise with everything you mention, including blog motivation envy and self-critical styling complacency…! I do get enormous enjoyment and pleasure from my site but I think only fellow bloggers and photographers can understand the associated abandonment issues and guilt complexes that have the tendency to arise (wow, do we need to start group therapy sessions and support groups??).
Tonight I posted the first set of photographs and blog entry since I returned from my overseas trip in February, so hopefully that breaks the ice a bit and I’ll be able to return to a more regular routine. I’ve only prepared one actual meal during the past few months since becoming unwell because I totally lost interest in eating (which for a foodie is rather anxiety provoking) but having now been able to pick up my camera I feel like I’ve taken the first step to getting back to what I love.
Warm wishes and friendship from the other side of the globe
xoxx
I feel the same way about flying! However, I like the takeoff. That’s the one part I like. Maybe because I like when my stomach drops? I mostly just hate having to sit still and wait to get to my destination. I just want to BE THERE already, you know!?
I’m glad your travel led you to the magazine that inspired you to create these pretty ice cream floats! These pictures are absolutely GORGEOUS! Wow. So pretty.
I understand completely – if I weren’t so terrified, I’d probably actually like the takeoff! Thank you so much for the sweet complement, I’m glad you enjoyed the post and I appreciate you stopping by 🙂