A Crispy Ice Cream Crunch Cake for Kids Large and Small

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I love recipes that draw children into the kitchen and involve them in food preparation. Supervision is, of course, necessary, but this dessert - an ice cream cake - can be made by a ten year old. The result is a cake worthy of a minor feast. Aspiring young chefs will need an apron or old clothes, and you'll need lots of paper toweling and a smidgen of patience to pull this off. It's a messy but doable dessert. Their pride when the cake is unmolded is unmistakable. That alone would make it worthwhile, but the cake is actually good. Over the next two weeks, I'll be working on the recreation of prize winning recipes. Some will be mine, some will belong to friends who've taught me grace in defeat. This recipe is an award winner from the Utica Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Festival. Wilma Griffin fashioned a cake that blends crisp rice cereal with chocolate and peanut butter to form a soft crunchy brittle that's worked into ice cream. You wouldn't want to serve this to the queen or your gourmet club, but it's great for any other occasion where family and friends gather to break bread. There are no special ingredients here, but good ice cream and chocolate help this along. You'll want to make this at least 8 hours before serving. Once you've tried this you'll probably want to experiment with other flavors, but here is the basic recipe.

Just Chill - Sherbet, Ice Cream and Popsicles

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The heat wave that is currently smothering the Willamette Valley reminds me of childhood summers in the Midwest. Back in the day, only theaters were air-conditioned and relief from the heat was limited. There were no swimming pools, so the hose and sprinkler provided the quickest way to cool off. Afternoon heat could be intense and you could actually see heat waves shimmer, mirage-like, off the pavement. The hose was a blessing. As twilight fell, the Good Humor man began his evening rounds, and his truck was stormed, Hamlin-style, by the neighborhood kids. Double stick popsicles at a nickel apiece were the lure. The double stick was important because most of us had a weekly allowance of 25 cents and that wouldn't cover a weeks worth of flavored ices. We quickly discovered that the buddy system would allow us to have a popsicle every night, if we were willing to split the sticks. Since one was better than none we split the sticks. There is nothing quite as good as something cold on a hot day, and while I've set aside the orange and cherry flavors of my childhood, I still love something cold on a hot summer night. The creams and ices I'm featuring tonight are grown-up affairs that are as beautiful to look at as they are to taste. I know you will enjoy them as much as I do. Here is how they are made.

Child's Play - Ice Cream Crunch Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I love recipes that draw children into the kitchen and involve them in cooking. Supervision is, of course, necessary, but this dessert - an ice cream cake - can be made by a ten year old. As a matter of fact it was made by a 10 year old past weekend. This is a recipe for a cake worthy of a minor feast. Young cooks will need an apron or old clothes, and you'll need lots of paper toweling and a smidgen of patience to pull this off. It's a messy but doable dessert and the kids love it. Their pride when the cake is unmolded is unmistakable. That alone would make it worthwhile, but the cake is actually good. It's made with just four ingredients. Crisp rice cereal is blended with chocolate and peanut butter to form a soft crunchy brittle that's worked into ice cream. You wouldn't want to serve this to the queen or your gourmet club, but it's great for occasions where family and friends gather for birthdays or barbecues. There are no special ingredients used here, but good ice cream and chocolate help this along. You'll want to make this at least 8 hours before serving. Once you've tried this you'll probably want to experiment with other flavors, but here is the basic recipe for starters.

Blueberry Ice Cream Pie

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...As a bride, and for a goodly number of years thereafter, I'd spend hours in the kitchen preparing complicated meals for folks who might or might not enjoy them. It took me a while to accept the fact that some people live to eat while others eat to live, and it took me longer still to realize that I could not change the minds or habits of either group. So, while I cringed at first, I eventually begin to serve chili and pot roast to those with simpler tastes and allowed myself an occasional shortcut when I thought it would not be noticed or affect the quality of the food I was preparing. Tonight's dessert is an example of what I call my "rationalized" cooking technique. This recipe originally appeared in Better Homes and Gardens magazine in the more complicated form that appears below. I've simplified it to make it workable in the small cottage kitchen we rent for the summer months. While the almond crust in the original recipe is delicious, it is a bit of a production that is not workable in a small and poorly equipped kitchen. The solution? Substitute a ready made vanilla or graham cracker crust for the more complicated one used in the original recipe. I also freeze each layer before the next is added to assure that clear layers are formed and that the filling elements remain separated. At first glance, the recipe appears complicated. That is not the case, and while this is not a difficult dessert to prepare, it does require substantial amounts of time in the freezer. It can't be considered a last minute preparation. I even return the pie to the freezer once the final topping is in place to assure clean slices when the pie is cut. I find that the top layer bleeds if it is not frozen. As with most ice cream desserts, this one should be moved from the freezer to the refrigerator about an hour before you plan to serve it. I must tell you, that even in its simplified form this dessert is a crowd pleaser. Those of you who try either version of the pie will be happy with the results and the compliments you garner when it is served. Here is how this warm weather treat is made.