Quick and easy ice cream float recipe, homemade with 2 simple ingredients. This old fashioned, classic drink is made with ice cream, soda and sometimes syrup. Ready in less than 5 minutes.
This simple recipe makes any night feel special. I love that these can be customized to any holiday, event, or party just by choosing different flavor and color combinations. A family favorite is this Root Beer Float. They are easy, pretty inexpensive, and oh so delicious. Enjoy these any time of year for big events, or even family movie night this weekend. Have as much fun making them as you do drinking them. This Snow Ice Cream Recipe and How to Make Ice Cream Cake are also great ways to feature ice cream in your next tasty treat.
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Table of contents
How to make easy ice cream float recipe from scratch?
- Pour soda- In a chilled glass.
- Add ice cream- Like vanilla.
- Top it- With whipped cream.
- Serve immediately- Enjoy.
What is the difference between ice cream soda and float?
A float is typically a soft drink such as root beer or orange soda with ice cream in it. An ice cream soda is usually soda water, flavored syrup of some sort, and ice cream. However, these days, the two terms are used interchangeably with not much difference.
What is the order in which you layer ingredients? Do you put the ice cream first?
Usually you start with soda first, and then the ice cream. If you add ice cream and then the soda, it foams uncontrollably and spills over the cup, kind of like an oozing volcano. If your kids like seeing the fuzz like mine does, we add ice cream first.
Key ingredients for soda float
- Soda- 1 can is needed per serving.
- Ice cream- 2 scoops is plenty.
Soda options
- 7up
- Sprite
- Coca-Cola
- Root beer
- Fanta
- Crush
- Pepsi
- Dr.Pepper
- Mountain Dew
- Strawberry Soda
- Cream soda
- Grape
Ice cream options
- Vanilla
- Chocolate
- Cherry
- Strawberry
- Sherbet
- Butterscotch
- Cinnamon
- Coffee
- Caramel
Syrup options
Just make sure to pair the right ice cream, soda, and syrups for the best flavor profile.
- Cherry syrup- This can be homemade or store-bought.
- Rose syrup- These can be found online or in the Indian/ International aisle at grocery stores.
- Dulce de leche
- Homemade Caramel Sauce
- Hot Fudge Sauce {Chocolate Fudge Sauce}
- Butterscotch syrup- This is different than caramel sauce.
- Add jams, preserves or crushed fruits- Like pineapples, cherries, raspberries, strawberries.
- Cocktail syrups- Such as grenadine, lychee, mango, pina colada, blue raspberry, or strawberry daiquiri.
- Coffee syrups- Such as vanilla, pumpkin spice, caramel, mocha, cinnamon bun, or hazelnut.
Variations
Use rose ice cream- Instead of the vanilla one that I used in this recipe. However, it is a little hard to find. The lazy version that my Mom and I make is to mix together 1 tablespoon rose syrup per 1 cup of semi-thawed vanilla ice cream. Then re-freeze the ice cream and enjoy!
Make it boozy or alcoholic- Use champagne instead of Sprite.
Root beer flavor- Combine your favorite brand of Root beer and vanilla ice cream.
Coca Cola flavor- Combine this with vanilla ice cream for a classic version.
Add glitter- Add edible glitter for a sparkly, and magical version.
Peppermint flavor- Use either root beer or cream soda, and add peppermint ice cream.
Orange creamsicle- Combine orange soda with vanilla ice cream.
Creamsicle flavor- Combine cream soda and vanilla ice cream.
Add garnishes to the edge of the glass- Such as a strawberry, slice of orange, or a candy cane.
Add a cherry on top- For a perfect finish add a maraschino cherry on top.
Add whipped cream- Such as this Homemade Stabilized Whipped Cream.
Add cotton candy- As a topping instead of whipped cream.
Serve in pretty or fun glassware- Use what you have or take a trip to Goodwill and find some fun glassware to make these even more of an experience.
Tips and techniques
Use the best quality vanilla ice cream you can find- The cheap one dissolves really fast with the soda and becomes watery in just a few minutes.
Use the best quality syrup you can find- It will have the strongest and best flavor.
Where to buy Rose syrup? It can be bought online from Amazon or it can also be found in the drinks/juice/soda aisle in some grocery stores.
This float tastes best when served immediately- I do not recommend making these floats in advance.
Chill your cups, if possible- It keeps the drinks cooler for longer. Stick it in the freezer for 5 minutes, and you are good to go.
How to add syrup? Pour about 2 tablespoon of soda in a cup/mug, followed by 1 tablespoon syrup. Mix with a spoon. Then, add the remaining soda. Finally, add scoops of ice cream gently.
Storage
I do not recommend keeping leftovers because the soda will become flat, and the ice cream will become watery.
More easy frozen desserts
- Watermelon Ice Cream {2 Ingredients}
- Healthy Chocolate Banana Ice Cream
- Homemade Ice Cream Sandwich
- Strawberry Icebox Cake {No Bake}
- Frozen Yogurt Bark
Recipe
Easy Ice Cream Float
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Ingredients
- 1-2 scoops Vanilla ice cream
- 1 can Soda 12 oz. can, Your choice of 7UP, Sprite, Fanta, Crush, Coca Cola, Pepsi, Root beer, Dr.Pepper, Mountain Dew e.t.c.
Instructions
- Optional step: Chill the glass cup in the freezer for about 5 minutes prior to assembling to keep the float cold for longer.
- Pour your soda in the chilled glass.
- Add scoops of vanilla ice cream.
- Top with whipped cream, if you like.
- Serve immediately and enjoy.
- If you are adding any flavored syrups, pour about 2 tablespoon of soda in cup/mug, followed by 1 tablespoon syrup. Mix with a spoon. Then, add the remaining soda and finally, add scoops of ice cream gently. Enjoy.
Video
Notes
- Read all my tips above.
- Tastes best when served immediately. I don't recommend storing leftovers for later. The soda loses all its bubbles and goes flat and the ice cream melts and becomes watery.
An automated tool is used to calculate the nutritional information. As such, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information provided for any recipe on this site.
Patty K-P
Rose syrup and rose ice cream sound so romantic for Valentine's Day and I have only ever had rose tea. Going to have to get my hands on some rose syrup!
Kelly
This brings a whole new meaning to stop and smell the flowers! Eating them sounds much better