When a Slider's a Home Run.

Close on the heels of talking about my love for dessert

come this introduction/tribute/love song 

to the newest dairy delight I've added to my life.

It's pretty tough to introduce me to something new.

... Blizzards, Sundae Drivers, Affogato...

You name it, 

I've eaten it.

... and I loved it, too.

But I was humbled this week when my friend, Rhona,

took me out for a treat in her birthplace of Linlithgow, Scotland.

side note: Linlithgow is also the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scots, 

... and the lakeside castle ruins are great to explore.

Linlithgow is a charming village

 (somewhere near Stirling & Edinburgh)

full of swans, signets ("baby swans"), 

& golden sunsets...

 that may or may not remind you of The Notebook.

After a walk around the lake,

Rhona took us to Cabrelli's.

As you approach the doors of Cabrelli's,

your senses will be assaulted by the. .. err... perfume

 of their well-seasoned deep fryer.

As the shop is mainly a "chippie,"

serving fish & chips, fried chicken, fried sausages & burgers (!!!),

Cabrelli's has a greasy smell that finds you kind of disgusted... 

kind of reminiscent of Long John Silvers...

... and kind of hungry.

Obviously, the latter won out for me 

after meeting Lawrence Cabrelli.

As the grandson of the shop's original owner,

Lawrence still makes a daily batch 

of his grandfather's secret homemade ice cream.

Only sold in vanilla,

this ice cream will overcome any skeptism 

that your initial impressions of the chippy might have brought you.

And to my delight,

Lawrence offered to make me a slider.

Nope. Not that kind of slider. 

The other kind.

The Scottish kind.

The kind of slider that has

two scoops of homemade vanilla ice cream

sitting prestigiously atop 

a chocolate dipped wafer

 filled with a creamy, marshmallow, center.

So, yeah, basically the best thing ever.

I left a happy customer

who will now be forever scanning ice cream shoppes 

for any mention of "sliders."

Anyone up for recreating a recipe for me?

I may not make it back to Scotland soon enough...