Peppered Strawberry Flambé

Aren’t fruit flambés (or flambes for those not as anal about French accents as moi) just the most lovely thing ever? Strawberry, banana, peach…it matters not. So long as there is alcohol and fire involved, the recipe is guaranteed to be delicious.

Do you know what hubby and I have needed a lot of lately? Two words: date nights. Why, you might ask? Well, our adorable son, the darling little prince, has hit the wonderful age of two. Yes, two. The age of temper tantrums, “NOOOOO!!!”, and an aversion to all foods except for grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, cheese quesadillas and crackers and cheese….are you seeing a pattern here? As a food blogger, this is very difficult for me to cope with. The child who used to eat everything in sight has become a walking, screaming, temper tantrum-throwing menace when he doesn’t get his way with food (or anything else for that matter).

What has this done for our sanity? Well, as echoed on a fellow sufferer’s Twitter account, “Does hard liquor have any idea what parenting has done for it?”

Coincidentally, as I sit here with my glass of wine, ~~contemplating the deep wonders of life~~ wondering how I will cope with another day of the terrible twos, I am very thankful for date nights. Date nights with my hubby help give me back a level of sanity. While we try to plan an “official” date night out to a restaurant every couple months, there are many days when supper at home is our date night (thanks to a 7:30 bedtime).

This is one of those date night desserts. Not only does it have Sambuca in it (which I actually loathe and would never drink straight, but it’s so delicious in here!), but it’s simple, romantic, and sure to impress.

My parents had a recipe similar to this at a restaurant one time, and our family has been cooking and re-creating it ever since. The butter, brown sugar and Sambuca combine to make a yummy syrup for the strawberries, and it is oh-so-decadent served over vanilla ice cream.