Sunday Sundaes

Today I’m going to share a fun treat that I made some time back, not only to dish out to my family but to prepare my first article for our local community magazine Village Life & Home!  I’m so thrilled to share crafting, entertaining, and decorating ideas every now and again in this monthly publication…so if you’re local you’ll see some of my ideas from time to time!  Now that we’ve had some warm weather over the holiday, and the publication arrived in the mail over the weekend, I decided to finally share this simple idea for summer entertaining! Summertime is definitely a season to enjoy frozen treats!  I love serving up cold snacks on a hot, steamy day…and I also know some boys who love eating them!  Several weeks ago when we had the very first glimpse of the heat to come, I decided on a Sunday afternoon to break out the ice cream and create a sundae bar on the patio.  It’s really a very simple thing to do…you can make it as elaborate or minimal as you want.  All you really need is a carton of ice cream and some of your family’s favorite toppings…and I bet if you raid the pantry you’d find plenty of goodies to pile on top without even setting foot in the grocery store!  With plenty of long, summer days ahead and the Fourth of July coming at us soon, a sundae bar would be an easy and festive treat for any celebration!  Get ready to cool off and let your family and friends have some yummy fun creating the perfect…

custom made ice cream sundae!

if you keep a gallon of frozen stuff in your freezer…you’re just a few simple steps away from making a sundae station!  and if you’re like me, you may already have some paper products in your party pantry…but no worries if you don’t, just use your regular bowls & spoons!  earlier this spring i picked up some disposable wood spoons, napkins, and tassels to put away for my patriotic entertaining…so why not make the most of my purchase and use them as many times as i can before they’re gone?

it makes no difference if you use paper products or dishes & utensils from your kitchen, just collect them together to make easy to access for your guests!  i love self-service buffets…it makes it easier on the host and allows everyone to nibble at their leisure–AND fill their bowl as many times as they want!

i honestly didn’t go and buy any new toppings for this dessert bar.  my family loves ice cream so we often have a gallon in the freezer along with fudge and other toppings.  the extra goodies are merely baking supplies…mini marshmallows, chocolate pearls (for cupcake toppings), and mint baking chips!  you could also use crushed graham crackers, cookie bits, candy, fruit, cereal…whatever you’ve got that sounds yummy!

i also LOVE using old, galvanized buckets–especially when i entertain outdoors!  this one makes a perfect ice container to nestle the paper carton down inside.  if you’ve got lots of little ones participating you could also toss a bunch of individual ice cream cups on the ice…much easier for little hands to self-serve!

set everything out on a table and let the fun begin!

i’m determined to use my patio buffet as often as i can…so i HAD to set up my sundae bar here!  a quick message in chalk makes a whimsical addition!

keep it light, keep it fun, and no matter where or how you set it up…

a sundae bar will always please!

(paper cups & wooden spoons from Michaels stores, tassel garland from Target.)

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