How Julia Child Turned Plain Ice Cream Into The Ultimate Grown-Up Dessert

Ice cream is among the most popular desserts across the globe, and a big reason why is because of how versatile the treat truly is. Whether you enjoy it on its own or pair a scoop of vanilla ice cream with a pint of Guinness, the sweet treat is absolutely delicious in a variety of ways. Julia Child had her own signature recipe for success when it came to upgrading a simple bowl of ice cream using just three additional ingredients. Child would add a splash of bourbon, a sprinkle of instant coffee, and a cookie to top off a bowl of ice cream.

Child revealed this concoction in an interview with Cosmopolitan magazine when asked what her go-to dinner party menu would be, saying that the simple ice cream upgrade was the perfect dessert to serve for the occasion. In fact, the ice cream upgrade could easily be considered the quintessential adult version of the sweet treat, as the splash of bourbon gives it a boozy twist and the instant coffee provides an intense, slightly bitter coffee flavor that helps balance the treat's sweetness. "This is very nice, and people don't realize how easy it is," Child claimed.

Now, while it's pretty simple to replicate this dessert of Julia Child's, the details matter immensely when making it the best it can possibly be. For starters, while Child says that coffee ice cream can be used, a high-quality store-bought vanilla ice cream is likely your best bet for a truly delectable and balanced experience. As for the bourbon, bottles like Old Forester 86 or Four Roses Small Batch are great choices due to their sweet notes, but any of your favorite bourbons should be capable of doing the job fairly well. Similarly, you can pick any instant coffee powder, and while Child didn't clarify what kind of cookie to top it with, mild cookies like tea biscuits or vanilla wafers are likely optimal choices.

Plus, because there are just four ingredients, adding a few more that you think would mesh well with them is as easy as can be. For example, topping the ice cream with some whipped cream can make it even sweeter, while the addition of marshmallows can give it a texture and flavor boost. Alternatively, because ingredients like chocolate and peanut butter pair well with bourbon, adding some Reese's Peanut Butter Cups or peanut butter and chocolate chips would be a great way to expand on Child's delicious ice cream concoction.