Delicious Reading: 'The Soda Fountain: Floats, Sundaes, Egg Creams & More - Stories and Flavors of an American Original'

"George: Emily, would you like an ice cream soda or something before you go home?"

This line from one of my favorite plays, "Our Town," leads to the iconic soda fountain scene at Mr. Morgan's Drug Store, where George Gibbs and Emily Webb realize they were made for each other. "The Soda Fountain" by Brooklyn Farmacy and Soda Fountain owners Gia Giasullo and Peter Freeman explores a period in history when America and the soda fountain were made for each other.

Part history book, part cookbook, "The Soda Fountain" mixes facts, prose and recipes for syrups, sodas, floats, egg creams (that contain neither egg nor cream!), sundaes, milkshakes, toppings and baked goods. What a perfect read for July, which is National Ice Cream Month!

As excited as I was to make the recipes, I also wished I could visit the Farmacy in real life. I sent a message to a friend who lives in Brooklyn, New York, and asked him if he had ever been. He responded, " I love the Farmacy ! It's just out of my way enough that I don't go there very often, which is a good and sad thing." I suppose he is right -- it could be dangerous to live right down the block from a shop that serves specialties like "The Cookie Monster," "The Peanut Butter Cup" and "The Sundae of Broken Dreams." This last creation, made when their shipments of pretzel rods were continually broken, contains vanilla ice cream, warm caramel sauce, fresh whipped cream and crushed pretzels.

I whipped up the raspberry syrup below before dinner one summer night. It tasted so delicious and fresh -- just perfect to enjoy in a sundae with my sweetheart as we sat on the porch. Yes, I served it simply, over vanilla ice cream, but I have plenty of syrup -- and summer -- left to try it in a drug store-style ice cream soda.

Raspberry syrup

Ingredients:

2 pints fresh raspberries or 24 ounces frozen raspberries

2 cups (16 ounces) cane sugar, or more depending on the tartness of the berries

5 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) water

1 tablespoon honey (I recommend Gillard Family Farms Strawberry Blossom local raw honey, available at the Cape Riverfront Market)

Directions:

Put the raspberries and sugar in a saucepan. Stir briskly, mashing a few raspberries in the process. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Add the lemon juice and water and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Decrease the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the honey.

Place a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl and pour the berry mixture into it in manageable batches, using a wooden spoon to mash the mixture against the mesh of the strainer. Discard the seedy mash that remains in the strainer. Let the syrup cool to room temperature and chill before using.

Store the syrup in covered glass jars or plastic containers in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. The syrup may also be frozen in plastic containers for up to 3 months. If frozen, allow to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before using.

To make a raspberry soda, fill a 12-ounce glass halfway with ice, add 1/4 cup (2 ounces) of raspberry syrup, top with seltzer and stir gently with a soda spoon to combine.

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About Brooke

Brooke Clubbs is a Jackson mom of three, a freelance writer and a communications instructor.