Latest Greatest Discovery - Missoula, Montana

Eureka! Split scoops are available on a sugar cone!

For the ice cream novice, a split scoop means you avoid the agony of decision when you really, really  want two flavours but only want a single scoop's worth of ice cream.

For some unknown reason made up on my own pea brain, I always thought this option only was served in a cup.  And - no offense to The Best Hisband Ever and Delightful Daughter - what is the point of ice cream in a cup? There's no dripping that you must hastily - and tastily! - amend, no satisfying crunches, no perfect miniature cone at the very end that you eat in one bite....Especially when Sweet Peaks has the most delicious, pointy sugar cones? (They also offer the soft-serve style  cone, which takes me back to my Baba's house where ice cream always tasted better served in a flat-bottom cone.)

Featured flavours are Chocolate Sorbet (dark chocolate with a subtle undertone of coconut) and Strawberry Rhubarb Jam (with homemade jam - I'm not making this up!). 

(Notice the big bite marks: 
   "My, what lovely teeth you have, my dear!"
   "The better to eat you with!!" 
   Munch munch munch!)

Baby It's Cold Outside - Missoula, Montana

Before the wind chill factor, we've warmed up to minus 6 degrees Fahrenheit (aka minus 22 Celsius) - but a scoop of Sweet Peaks' new Boozy Eggnog flavour will keep you warm. (And you thought we were done with Sweet Peaks until spring - hah! WE are made of sterner stuff!)  If you ever want to guiltlessly try every ice cream flavour on the Specialty board before selecting your scoop(s), I highly recommend borrowing a 9-year-old for your accomplice. (Yes, we really did this! Of course, law-abiding person that I am, I made her skip the Boozy Eggnog and Flathead Fireweed Cherry.)  Children are indeed a delight to spend time with - especially when you can sugar 'em up, then take'em back!

Balanced Meal - Missoula, Montana

From left to right, clockwise: S'mores, Salty Caramel, Chocolate Love. 

All locally made from scratch from real ingredients, the Sweet Peaks way.
Which inspires so much loyalty that I was at Sweet Peaks twice last night. The first visit was in the company of The Best Husband Ever, Delightful Daughter and We're Watching You Boyfriend, who simply could not wait until after the arrival of my sis and brother-in-law, whose flight from Vegas was delayed a couple hours. Must. Have. Sweet Peaks. Now!
The second visit was with sis and brother-in-law, who buckled up into my car at 9:41 PM and immediately asked, "Are we gonna make it to Sweet Peaks before they close?" at 10:00 pm. Since I have my priorities straight, we made it with 4 minutes to spare.

And for al of this, we are thankful.

Tasteful Advice - Sweet Peaks, Missoula, Montana

"My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it's on your plate." 

- Thornton Wilder (1897-1975)

(Yes, the taste-full season at Sweet Peaks is again in full swing and fine form. We've already gleefully indulged this summer in Strawberry Fields Forever, all-time fave Orange Cardamom, Coconut Dream, Chocolate-Covered Potato Chip and something, London Fog, DOMO Espresso, several chocolate-laced originals...and a few more...on the generous side of "few"...not counting the multiple new flavours sampled off a taste-testing popsicle stick in search of each visit's perfect flavour. Good thing we now have Pokemon Go to provoke a post-ice cream walk about downtown.

Embracing The Last Best Day For Ice Cream - Missoula, Montana

A perfect farewell to the waning summer: eighty degrees and the last motorcycle ride to enjoy the last summer ice cream at Sweet Peaks.

"Whoever said its better to have loved and lost has never eaten half a bucket of tear-stained ice cream in their underwear." 
-Nico Lang in http://thoughtcatalog.com/nico-lang/2013/08/instead-of-looking-for-love-look-for-the-right-person-to-fall-in-love-with/

Summer Assignment - Missoula, Montana

“...stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice creamy, go barefoot oftener, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. ” - Robert J. Hastings, Tinyburg Tales

(I'm getting top marks in the 'eat more ice cream' part of the above assignment. And since this is Sweet Peaks ice cream, maybe I've also completed the 'climb more mountains' assignment?)

Mapley Goodness - Missoula, Montana

As a kid, when our family headed into town for a special treat night at the W & E drive in, I invariably agonized over choosing the best ice cream flavour for that day - but we could always count on my mum getting her standard favorite: a maple walnut sundae. Good times.

Today's pic is a whole other version of mapley goodness - a bursting, bright fountain of delicate flowerets heralds the unfurling of tender-new claret-hued maple leaves. Goodness all around - before our eyes, in our hearts' memories - ours to feast upon.