10 Great Ways to Step Up Your Ice Cream

Jan 21, 2024

Have some fun with your scoops!

I am a bit obsessed with ice cream—enough to open an ice cream shop, anyway! And while I’d love for you all to visit Pawhuska this summer to try a cone or a sundae, the truth is, you can make some pretty great ice cream treats right at home. Grab a few of your favorite pints at the grocery store and dress them up in style. (Or eat straight out of the carton—no judgment here!) — Ree

Drain 1⁄2 cup syrup from a 16-ounce jar of maraschino cherries. Pour the remaining cherries and syrup into a clean jar (or keep in the same jar) and add 1⁄2 cup cinnamon-flavored whiskey or spiced rum. Cover with the lid and shake lightly to combine. Refrigerate for at least 24 hours before serving.

Put 11⁄2 cups granulated sugar in a saucepan and drizzle 1/3 cup water and 1⁄2 teaspoon lemon juice evenly on top. Cook over medium-low heat without stirring until the sugar dissolves, then continue cooking, swirling the pan but not stirring, until the sugar is deep amber, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to low. Cut 1 stick of salted butter into small pieces and whisk into the sauce, then carefully add 3⁄4 cup heavy cream and whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla and 2 teaspoons flaky salt. The sauce will seem thin, but it will thicken as it cools. Serve over ice cream and sprinkle with more flaky salt.

Scoop 1 1⁄2 pints softened mint chocolate chip ice cream into a store-bought chocolate cookie crust and spread until smooth. Sprinkle with 1 cup crushed chocolate-mint sandwich cookies; press so they stick to the ice cream. Freeze until solid, about 1 hour. Top with another 1 1⁄2 pints softened mint chocolate chip ice cream. Top the pie with whipped cream and more crushed cookies and freeze until solid, at least 2 hours.

To make a coffee version, stir 1⁄4 cup sugar into 1⁄4 cup warm espresso or strong coffee until it dissolves. Combine with 2 cups cold heavy cream and beat with a mixer until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. Serve over ice cream with chopped chocolate-covered espresso beans.

Create a signature blend in your favorite colors: 7 Combine classic sprinkles, coarse sugar, nonpareils and confetti sprinkles in 2 or 3 colors, or make a single-color blend. Store in an airtight container.

Cut 4 chocolate cake doughnuts in half crosswise. Scoop about 1⁄2 cup softened cherry- vanilla ice cream onto each of the bottom halves. Working quickly, spread the ice cream almost to the edge of the doughnuts, then add the doughnut tops, pressing gently. Roll the sides in mini chocolate chips. Freeze until firm, about 2 hours.

Put 1 cup salty mix-ins (like broken pretzels, potato chips and/or peanuts) and 1 cup sweet mix-ins (chopped malted milk balls, peanut butter cups and/or chocolate bars) in a large bowl. Add 2 pints softened vanilla ice cream. Mash with a large metal spoon until combined. Transfer to a loaf pan, cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.

Melt 2 cups white chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring. Dip 12 sugar cones in the white chocolate one at a time, spreading the chocolate with a spatula about 2 inches down the cone. Sprinkle with crushed freeze-dried fruit, place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate until set, about 10 minutes.

Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners. Melt 12 ounces chopped milk chocolate and 1 tablespoon coconut oil in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring. Remove the bowl from the pan. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the melted chocolate into each liner, then use a pastry brush to brush the chocolate all the way up the sides. Refrigerate until set, about 10 minutes. Repeat to add another layer of chocolate; reheat the bowl of chocolate only if it hardens too much to spread (if it is too hot, it will melt the first layer). Repeat once more for 3 layers total. Peel away the cupcake liners, then fill with ice cream.

Melt 11⁄2 cups candy melts (any color) in the microwave as the label directs. Stir in 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons coconut oil until melted. Let cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Pour 2 to 3 tablespoons over ice cream and serve immediately.

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