Do you like surprise parties? I sure do, but my partner-in-crime here at Cottonwood Limited (Laura) dies of embarrassment if the surprise party is for her! Well, I sort of ignore that fact, and my friends and I have successfully pulled off two surprise parties for her in the past 10 years. :-)

Our friend, Rachel, planned party #1 to celebrate Laura's 30+ year teaching career. Former students came from near and far to surprise her! Rachel prepared an awesome meal and shocked us with a fancy and delicious dessert - nonfried fried ice cream! We all couldn't stop talking about it, and I'm confident that Rachel had to share the recipe with all of the guests before the night ended.

We affectionately refer to this dessert as "ice cream balls" around here. LOL! "Ice cream balls" are requested often, and we've made them more times than we can count. They are easy to make, but make sure you plan ahead so that you can allow enough time for the ice cream to freeze well after each step. Please let us know if you try them!

 

 

 

Tutorial

Step 1: Gather all of the ingredients.

 

You'll need:

  • 1.5 quart of vanilla ice cream

  • 3 cups of Corn Flakes (crushed)

  • 1 cup of light brown sugar

  • 2 teaspoons of cinnamon

  • 2 tablespoons of melted butter

 

Step 2: Portion ice cream into ball shapes.

  • Find a small pan or container that will fit inside of your freezer. Then line the pan or container with parchment paper.

  • Begin by scooping out desired amount of ice cream. I personally use a #12 large ice cream scoop. (see video below)

  • Use your hands to pack the ice cream tightly into a round ball shape. (see video below)  Warning: Handling ice cream is a little messy and can make your hands cold! Use food-safe gloves or keep paper towels handy to clean and warm your hands after creating each ice cream ball.

  • Place ice cream ball on pan or in container that is lined with parchment paper.

  • Continue scooping ice cream and making ice cream balls until you have removed all ice cream from the container. Makes approximately 8-12 depending on the desired ice cream ball size. Place all of the ice cream balls on the pan or container. It's not uncommon that the ice cream begins to melt a little bit. Don't worry about it! Just work quickly and do your best to ensure that the ice cream balls are not touching. We do not want them to freeze together!

  • Cover pan or container and place in the freezer. Freeze ice cream balls for at least 1 hour.

 

 

Step 3: Create topping.

  • Preheat the oven to 350° F.

  • Crush 3 cups of corn flakes. You can either pour the cereal into a large Ziploc bag and crush using a rolling pin OR you can crush the cereal using a food processor.

  • Pour the 3 cups of crushed corn flakes, 1 cup of light brown sugar, 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, and 2 tablespoons of melted butter into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Stir until all ingredients are mixed well. (see video below)

  • Pour mixture on a small baking sheet/pan. Be sure to spread the mixture evenly on the pan.

  • Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake the topping for 10-12 minutes. (see video below)

  • After removing the pan from the oven, use a spoon to stir the topping. We want to break it up a bit to ensure that it doesn't cool into a large blob. :-)

  • Allow the mixture to cool for at least 30 minutes.



Step 4: Coat ice cream with topping.

  • Remove ice cream balls from freezer.

  • For each ice cream ball, press the topping on the ice cream ball. Ensure that each is fully covered with the topping mixture. (see video below)
  • Return the pan of ice cream balls to the freezer. Freeze for another 2+ hours. They taste best when they have had time to really harden. I try to wait at least 2 hours before serving.

  • These do not taste well on day 2. The topping gets soggy, so plan on eating them all within one day! :-)



Step 5: Serve dessert!

  • We typically drizzle chocolate or caramel sauce on top of each dessert and add a dollop of whipped cream to the side of the ice cream. If we have leftover topping, we sometimes sprinkle that on top of the whipped cream to add some fanciness! (see video below)




Printable Recipe

 

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