A sundae is a dessert made from ice cream. It consists of a single or multiple layers of ice cream with different types of interesting toppings which may be fruits, nuts, cream or chocolate. Dessert sauces or syrups are also used luxuriantly by sundae recipes which result in delicious versions of the dish. Popular sundae recipes include those for hot fudge. Sundaes, classic sundaes, banana spilt sundae, and black and white sundae. There is also a Korean pork dish called sundae or soondae, but this article deals only with the American dessert.
History of Sundaes
The history of the sundae is one of the most controversial. The invention of the sundae seems to be claimed by four sources namely, the Ithica, Two Rivers, Plainfield and Evanston. The ice cream soda is known to be the ancestor of ice cream sundae. There are many stories about the origin of the Sundae and they are associated with religious views. As the consumption of soda was prohibited on Sundays, the dessert was invented as a substitute for the soda. Also the spelling of the dessert was altered in accordance with the religious beliefs.
Ingredients used by Sundae Recipes
Sundaes are made with different types of ice cream and toppings. Therefore the essential ingredients for a sundae are ice cream (of any flavor), dessert syrups and sauces of different flavors, whipped cream and maraschino cherry toppings. A number of other dessert ingredients like shortcakes, cakes, cookies, fruit, granola and nuts are also used as additional ingredients in the preparation of sundaes. Gourmet sundaes are made using ingredients like caramel sauce, coffee bean sauce, hot fudge sauce, semi-sweet chocolate, dark chocolate, dulce de leche, white chocolate sauce, chococherry topping etc, with different types of ice cream. Maple cream, butterscotch sauce, and vanilla sauce are other toppings that are used for topping gourmet sundaes.
Preparation of Sundaes
The sundae requires no cooking and is an easy dish to make as it only involves assembling the ingredients in different layers and also decorating them though decoration is not a very important aspect in the preparation of a sundae. A scoop of ice cream is placed in a dessert glass and is topped with maraschino cherries, nuts fruits or a variety of dessert syrups like strawberry syrup or chocolate syrup. Rum and fruit liqueurs are also prescribed by certain sundae recipes.
Serving and Eating Sundaes
A sundae is meant to be eaten as a dessert after a meal, though it is eaten at other times as well especially on a hot summer afternoon for a soothing effect. The proper ice cream combination should be chosen. Health conscious people can opt for low-calorie ice creams. The dessert is arranged in scoops in a glass bowl or in layers in a glass and is interspersed with wafers, cookies, fruit or nuts. The dessert when served in a bowl can be decorated more explicitly with sauces than in glasses which also hold less quantity than a bowl of comparable size.