Summer Evening Ice Cream Social

Last week, we had a very simple ice cream party on our front lawn with good friends. We managed to pick one of the most beautiful evenings so far this summer and of course it was extra sweet because of the ice cream. We kept it very simple – simple foods, simple drinks, simple decor, simple location. Even though we don’t have a matching set of lawn chairs and despite a minor fire incident with a kitchen towel and the gas stove, it will go down as one of those perfect summer nights and one of my favorite gatherings.

With cool ice cream bowls and the flavors of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, we were well on our way to partying.

Along with the flavored ice cream, I made a couple of toppings – hot fudge sauce, roasted raspberries and vanilla whipped cream. Again, very simple and all of which I made beforehand. The hot fudge recipe is coming soon!

Currently I’m hooked on making simple syrups with whatever produce I can find. After the Rhubarb Blueberry Lemonade, I just can’t stop. Since, in my opinion, lemonade doesn’t pair well with ice cream, I mixed the simple syrups with club soda and ice. It was delicious and refreshing. And beautiful! A post devoted to this is in the works.

I LOVE string lights. Any chance I can find to use lights, I will (like my golden birthday party earlier this year) and this was a perfect opportunity. I also made tissue puff balls because I’ve been looking for a reason to make them. I just felt inspired and they were fun to make. I stuck with white for the party but now I want to make a bunch more in lots of different colors just for fun. Not sure yet where I am going to store them. :)

While the ice cream was good and the weather sublime, it wouldn’t have been at all enjoyable without our company. Laughing with friends is seriously the best remedy. We are truly blessed.

And going back to the towel fire, here’s what happened. After cooking on the stove, I mistakenly turned it to low instead of off and then, at some point, threw a towel over the burner. Thankfully it was turned on low so instead of bursting into flames, it smoked and smoked first. It did eventually burn a very large hole in the towel. Thank goodness nothing was damaged (except the towel) and no one was hurt (except my pride).

July is National Ice Cream Month. I was compensated by Wayfair and Ben & Jerry’s for this post but the opinions are mine. Plus, I had all the fun! Thank you for being supportive of the sponsors that work with this heart of mine.