Cola float
Vanilla ice cream in cold cola. The foam makes itself, and that is the whole point — it just has to rise inside the glass, not onto the table.
Drinks with ice cream · Hands-on: 5 min · Waiting: no waiting · Total time: 5 min · Servings: 2 · Difficulty: Easy
A float is a fizzy drink with a scoop of ice cream in it. In Slovakia and Czechia the natural choice is kofola, a herbal cola that is less sweet than the usual one — vanilla ice cream balances it exactly as it needs.
The foam is physics, not a mistake. The carbon dioxide dissolved in the drink needs somewhere for bubbles to form. Cold, smooth ice cream is full of microscopic irregularities and trapped air, so a lot of gas comes out at once and the foam leaps up. That is why you pour the drink first and lower the ice cream in afterwards, and why the glass is only filled two thirds.
The colder the drink, the less foam — gas stays dissolved better in cold liquid. So taking the kofola straight from the fridge is not only about taste.
What you need
- 4 scoops of vanilla ice cream (about 200 g)
- 500 ml cola, kofola or raspberry lemonade, very cold
- juice of half a lime — optional
- whipped cream and a cherry to finish — optional
Method
- Chill two tall glasses in the freezer for at least 15 minutes. Keep the drink in the fridge, not at room temperature.
- Fill each glass about two thirds with the cola. Let it settle for a moment so the first foam subsides.
- If you like, add a few drops of lime juice — the acidity sharpens a cola surprisingly well.
- Lower two scoops of ice cream gently down the side of the glass with a spoon. Do not drop them in from above: the foam will shoot out and land on the table.
- Serve immediately with a straw and a long spoon. The ice cream should be eaten before it melts away.
Tips
- Less foam: chill both the glass and the drink, and lower the ice cream down a spoon held against the side.
- For children, raspberry or pear lemonade works well — similar in taste and caffeine-free.
- For adults: dark beer or cider instead of cola. A beer float with vanilla is surprisingly good.
- Ice cream that is too soft falls apart into mush in the drink. Take it out only just before serving.
Which ice cream works
Shop-bought will do, but homemade makes it a different dessert. These recipes of ours fit:
Amount: 2 scoops (about 100 g) per serving
Egg-free vanilla ice cream (Philadelphia style)
Pure, creamy vanilla with no egg yolks — fresh, milky and ready without cooking a custard.
French vanilla ice cream (with egg yolks)
A French-style classic: vanilla custard made from egg yolks, milk and cream. Smooth, rich and fragrant.
Fior di latte
The purest gelato of all: milk, a little cream and sugar. No eggs, no vanilla — it tastes of fresh, sweet milk.
No-churn ice cream with whipped cream and condensed milk
Three ingredients, a mixer and a freezer. Whipped cream provides the air, sweetened condensed milk the smoothness.
Cinnamon ice cream
Warming cinnamon and cane sugar in a delicate egg custard. It tastes like apple strudel, only frozen.
More desserts
Milkshake
Ice cream and cold milk in a ratio that holds both thickness and flavour. The whole trick is to blend briefly — a long blend turns the shake into lukewarm milk.
Affogato
A scoop of vanilla ice cream drowned in hot espresso. Two ingredients, five minutes, and the only thing that really matters is temperature — of the ice cream and of the coffee.
Related articles
Gelato, soft serve and cream ice cream: what’s the difference
Scooped, soft serve, cream, milk or sorbet — what the names mean in Slovakia and Czechia, and how they differ in production, serving temperature and composition.
A dessert with ice cream is not an ice cream recipe — we do not compute its mix composition or nutrition.