Celebrate summer with ice cream recipes

smclanahan

Like many other families in the area we are gearing up for our family reunion. We have about 100 people attending the festivities fromThursday to Sunday. It is such a wonderful experience and the time goes by so quickly.

Family will be arriving from all over the United States at different times of the day, which spreads out the excitement.

We have been very fortunate to have my cousin, Megan Olson, with us for the week prior to the big event. She is such a joy to have with us and our Lexie has just fallen in love with her. I would love to just keep her but as sweet as she is, I know her parents would miss her dearly.

What's a better way to kick-off summer, Independence Day and family reunions than with ice cream? July is National Ice Cream month and the St. Louis Dairy Council would like to see everyone include ice cream in their menus for the holiday and the summer. With the help of the staff of the St. Louis Dairy Council, we have several wonderful recipes to share with you.

Coffee Candy Bar Shake

Place 3/4 cup chilled strong coffee and your favorite candy bar, chopped, in blender; blend. Add 1 pint (2 cups) softened coffee, vanilla or chocolate ice cream. Blend until smooth. Yields 2 servings.

Lickety-Split Banana Split Pie

1 (9-inch or 6 ounce) graham cracker pie crust

2 small bananas, sliced

1 quart vanilla ice cream, softened

1 jar (11.75 ounces) hot fudge topping

1 jar (12 ounces) pineapple or strawberry topping

Chopped walnuts

Whipped cream

Maraschino cherries, whole

Slice bananas into bottom of pie crust. Spoon softened ice cream on top.

Freeze 2 hours or overnight. Before serving, top with unheated hot fudge and pineapple or strawberry toppings, whipped cream, chopped nuts and maraschino cherries as desired. Slice to serve. Yields 8 servings.

Ice Cream Pudding

4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick)

2 cups graham crackers, finely crushed

2 boxes (3 3/4 ounces each) instant pudding

1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 gallon ice cream

Melt butter and mix with the graham crackers; press into bottom of 9-inch by-11-inch serving dish. Blend pudding and milk until mixed. Add ice cream and blend well. Pour over cracker crumbs and refrigerate several hours or overnight.

Yields 15 servings.

Caramel Apple Milkshakes

3 cups vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup cinnamon applesauce

1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping

Place the ice cream or frozen yogurt, milk, applesauce, and ice cream topping in blender container. Cover and blend until smooth. Pour into 4 glasses. Serve immediately. Yields 4 servings.

Pecan Ice Cream Roll

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, softened

1/2 cup chopped pecans

6 chocolate cookies, crushed

Caramel or hot fudge topping

Whipped cream

6 maraschino cherries, chopped

Divide ice cream into six equal amounts and spread into an 8-inch-by-8-inch square on plastic wrap. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons cookie crumbs down center of ice cream.

Roll up ice cream to form log shape. Freeze one half hour. Pull back from plastic wrap and sprinkle each log with pecan pieces. Rewrap in plastic and freeze for two hours or overnight. Remove plastic wrap and place on serving dish.

Drizzle with topping. Garnish with whipped cream and cherries. Option: one large roll can be made in lieu of six small rolls.

The next two recipes are ones that would be great for church youth group activities, Girl Scouts, family reunions or any time there are groups of people around willing tom take a challenge.

Squeeze Freeze Ice Cream

For each person:

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup whole milk

1 tablespoon salt

Ice, crushed or cubes

For each child:

1 small resealable plastic bag

1 large resealable plastic bag

Plastic spoon

1/2 cup measuring cup

Paper towels, napkins

Put sugar and vanilla in small plastic bag ahead of time, and put salt in large plastic bag prior to your event. Give each child the small bag containing the sugar and vanilla. Have the child hold open the bag and pour in the milk. Remove as much air from the bag as possible. Be sure the bag is sealed properly. Have the child drop the small bag into the large plastic bag with the salt in it. Add 18-20 ice cubes or crushed ice. Remove as much air as possible from the large bag. Seal properly.

The child should knead the bag for approximately 10 minutes. When a soft ice cream is formed, give each child a spoon to eat the ice cream out of the bag.

It is important to use whole milk. Other types take too long to freeze. Salt is also very important. Without it the ice cream will not freeze. One pint of half-and-half also can be added to a gallon of milk. This makes the ice cream richer and it will freeze faster.

Coffee Can Ice Cream

Materials needed:

1 1-pound clean coffee can

1 3-pound coffee can

Crushed ice

Rock salt

1 cup measuring cup

Paper towels, napkins, spoons, bowls

Ingredients:

1 cup milk

1 cup whipping cream

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Nuts or small pieces of fruit, if desired

Measure ingredients; pour into small can. Combine milk, whipping cream sugar, vanilla extract and nuts or fruit in a clean 1-pound coffee can. Cover, tape, shake, Cover with a tight-fitting plastic lid. Tape the lid to the can. Place the 1-pound can inside a 3-pound coffee can.

Layer ice and rock salt in large can. Pack the crushed ice around the smaller can. Pour about 1 cup rock salt over the ice. Cover with a tight-fitting plastic lid. Tape the lid to the can. Kick or roll can for 15 minutes.

Roll the can back and forth on the floor or sidewalk for 15 minutes. Stir, serve and enjoy!

Rose Musgrave-Quinn of Gordonville, Mo., would like for you to have her Creamy Pineapple Pie recipe. She has made it several times and enjoys it so much each time she makes it.

Creamy Pineapple Pie

1 baked 9-inch pie shell

1 small package vanilla pie filling mix

1 1/2 cups milk

2 tablespoons margarine

1/2 tmon, rum or almond extract

1 cup undrained crushed pineapple

1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 carton frozen whipped topping, thawed

Prepare pudding as directed on package, except using 1 1/2 cups milk, instead of 2 cups. Add margarine and extract. Cover with waxed paper. Refrigerate until cold. Then with a spoon, beat until smooth. Refrigerate.

Combine 1 cup undrained crushed pineapple, 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon rind, and 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice. Cook over low heat, stirring until thickened and clear; let cool. Add to pudding mixture. Stir until completely mixed. Pour into pie shell. Top with whipped topping. Refrigerate until serving time.

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For all of you who will be spending the Independence Day holiday with family, I would urge you to cherish those memories. In our busy lives with family scattered it seems more and more difficult to get everyone together.

So enjoy, have fun and make plans for your next gathering.

So until next time, happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699; Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by the Southeast Missourian staff.