What are the first flavors that come to mind when you think of winter? For us, it’s these ice cream topping ideas. At the end of the list, you’re surely going to feel the need to try them out.
Winter and ice-cream don’t typically go hand in hand, some may say. Isn’t ice-cream cold? Do we really need something to feel even COLDER? Well, some people have it in them. And if you’re one of them, you’ve come to the right place. Welcome the holiday season with the following ice cream topping ideas, perfect for really feeling the vibes of wintertime. Alternatively, you may try these during a scorching summer so you can try to pretend the heat isn’t there!
#1 Caramel Apple Sundae
You will need:
- 1 stick plus 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 4 Granny Smith apples, finely diced
- 1 cup lightly packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 pints vanilla ice cream, for serving
We start off with a combination of two traditional and highly popular flavors: caramel and apple. The right kind of apples will balance out the sweetness of the caramel and you will have a dessert worth swooning over. Here’s how.
#2 Brown Butter And Cinnamon Apple Sundae
You will need:
- 2 Granny Smith apples (peeled and cored)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 dashes salt
- 1/2 cup water
What’s a more iconic winter flavor than apple? Apple with cinnamon, of course! This is one of our favorite ice cream topping ideas since it brings together some of the most nostalgic wintertime tastes. It’s a hot topping, served with vanilla ice-cream, which will also warm up your cold days. Here’s how.
#3 Homemade Marshmallow Sauce
You will need:
- 1 cup water, divided
- 1 teaspoon unflavored powdered gelatin
- 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- a pinch of kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract can be substituted)
Marshmallow is a wintertime flavor by default, you may say. Few things compare to a lazy day in during snowy times while you’re sipping at a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows. For this very reason, this incredible marshmallow sundae works best on top of a couple of scoops of chocolate ice-cream. Here’s how.
#4 Cardamom Ice Cream with Honey-Apricot-Orange Sundae
You will need (for ice cream):
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2/3 cup white granulated sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 vanilla bean, split
- 8 whole green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
- 4 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
You will need (for topping):
- 1/3-1/2 cup honey
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- ½ cup fresh squeezed orange juice or fresh squeezed orange juice + water to equal ½ cup
- 1 pound apricots, halved and pitted
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)
Aside from ice cream topping ideas, we’re also dropping in some instructions for the preparation of a proper ice-cream. This is because this orangey delish of a topping works best with cardamom ice-cream, which you can make at home! Reminiscence of the time you’d peel an orange next to the Christmas tree with this recipe. Here’s how.
#5 Christmas Ice Cream Sundae
You will need:
- 75 g dried blueberries
- 75 g dried cranberries
- 100 ml limoncello , plus extra to serve
- 411 g mincemeat
- 284 ml double cream
- 3 tablespoons chopped candied peel
- 1 pinch ground ginger
- 2 limes , zest of
- 2 clementines , zest and juice of
- 1 litre good-quality vanilla ice cream
- 8 meringue nests
- 1 sprig of fresh mint, leaves picked
Last but not least, this recipe is very explicitly titled as a “Christmas sundae” so it doesn’t get any more winter oriented than this. The recipe uses wintertime fruits such as cranberries and adds some neat holiday touches with flavors like meringue and ginger. Here’s how.
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Saved any of these ice cream topping ideas down? We guarantee they will be a hit among Christmas dinner guests since they represent a change from your average pie.