Best Summer Dessert Ever

That’s what we call this in my house.

It was first served to us at a pot-luck-style dinner party at our house in Seattle by Sarah Casey (well, that wasn’t her last name then, but it is now.) In my recipe box it is filed as “Best Summer Dessert Ever compliments of Dave Casey’s girlfriend Sarah” and, well, he married her…so yeah, it’s pretty good.

The best part…also ridiculously easy.

I serve this in martini glasses sometimes, but this particular night I was feeling nostalgic for my grandmother and these were her glasses. They are funky vintage and I love them. But I’m telling you, you could serve this in a styrofoam cup and it would still be a hit!

Put these things into a serving dish of some kind:

Mango sorbet – not sherbet…a good quality sorbet…which can sometimes be hard to find, so you might have to make your own if you get addicted and then can’t find it in the store.

Raspberries

1 crushed up Bordeaux cookie (by Pepperidge Farms) or gingersnaps…I’m sure most cookies would be good, but I think not too sweet and definitely crunchy.

Slices of candied ginger (this stuff is amazing!) It can be tricky to find in the grocery store, too, sometimes. I find it in the bulk section sometimes and other times it is with all the bagged nuts and trail mix and dried fruits. It looks like this when it is whole:

Credit: Game Widow from Recipes Wikia

If you like ginger at all, you can just eat it like this. It’s like a sugar-coated gummy candy for grown-ups.

The sugary stuff you can see here is the ginger. I sliced it, but some people find that too strong, so grating it is a good alternative.

A sprig of mint

One more cookie for decoration

And then…drizzle some Amaretto over the whole thing.  We used 2-3 spoonfuls, but you do what floats your boat.

I’m telling you all that wonderful sweet, tart, spicy, minty, cool, crunchy put together in one Amaretto-drenched bite is a little bit of heaven. Especially when it is nearly in the triple digits outside. And yes, it’s doing that already here.

Here are the exact directions as given to me in the summer of 2004, all in one place, for those of you who get distracted by photos and my commentary. You know who you are.

Best Summer Dessert Ever

2 scoops of mango sorbet in a fun dish or martini glass

finely grate candied ginger over the scoops

top with fresh raspberries

garnish with mint and gingersnap cookies (Or Pepperidge Farm Bordeauxs)

drizzle with several teaspoons of Amaretto (or more, to taste)

(and then taste and applaud!!!)

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