sundaes

If you can't decide between serving cake and pie on Christmas, offer a totally different treat: ice cream sundaes! With homemade peppermint ice cream and a super rich hot fudge sauce, this childhood favorite becomes sophisticated enough for adults to enjoy. The ice cream must be made in advance, so you can start on this today. To get guests involved, consider setting up a sundae bar with the ice cream, sauce, and other delicious treats like fudgy brownies or chewy sugar cookies. Check out the recipe after the break.

Every year for my birthday I bake myself a cake. However, I'm spending the actual day on vacation in Spain, so that means the elaborate cake baking will happen when I return.

At the celebratory dinner in Cadiz, I'll offer my new Spanish friends an easy-to-make but delicious-to-eat sundae. Not just any sundae, one that keeps up with my Tex-Mex-inspired menu, a Mexican sundae with cinnamon chocolate sauce and dulce de leche ice cream.

Salty, crunchy peanuts and flaky sweetened coconut give texture to the frozen dessert. To look at the recipe I'll be using, read more.

As a child, one of my favorite ice cream truck treats was the Drumstick. I loved the classic combination of vanilla ice cream, hard chocolate shell, and crunchy waffle cone. The Drumstick has always reminded me of Summer, so when I came across this recipe for a homemade take on the frozen dessert, I decided it would be perfect to serve at a Memorial Day barbecue. To prevent the ice cream from seeping out of the bottom, the cones are stuffed with malt balls. How clever is that? Get the recipe, which must be made in advance, when you read more

My sister's favorite dessert is the brownie sundae. She's had countless brownie sundaes in her life, but for a recent party in her honor, I decided to put together the best brownie sundae ever. What makes this brownie sundae so spectacular is the double dose of mint and chocolate. There's mint chip ice cream, and the brownies are made with mint dark chocolate. I wanted to top the whole thing with a decadent fudge sauce, but ran out of time. Thus, the sundae is quite simple with just brownie, ice cream, and whipped cream. The simplicity adds to its scrumptiousness, and each bite is perfectly balanced. It's creamy, cool, chocolaty, and minty all at the same time. While you could easily do this sundae with store-bought ingredients, it's wildly rewarding to take the time to make the components from scratch. Between bites, my guests could not stop raving about how good this sundae was. My sister declared it, "one of the top 10 desserts" I've ever made! If you are looking for an impressive finish, I highly recommend the recipe. Get it, after the break.

FabSugar and I are totally obsessed with the card game Apples to Apples. We love it so much that we're gathering an intimate group to play the game. Fab's providing the party space and I'm in charge of the cuisine. The savory menu features apples and the dessert is no different. I'm making these caramelized apple sundaes. They're a delightful combination of caramelized apple wedges, cinnamon ice cream, pecan-oat crumble, and whipped cream. How amazing does that sound?! After we play the game, I'll invite everyone into the kitchen to help assemble the sundaes. It's the perfect sweet finish to what's sure to be a successful event. To check out the recipe, read more

Cinnamon is looking to be a popular flavor this season. Not only did PartySugar and I recently have a chance to try Ritz's new Brown Sugar Cinnamon Crackers, but we also took the time to put two of Smucker's limited-edition ice cream topping flavors, Pumpkin Spice and Apple Cinnamon, to the test. Did they prove to be goopy and gross, or were these spoonable sauces the epitome of holiday sugar and spice? Find out after the jump