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Sunday, May 15, 2011

S'mores Ice Cream Pie

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I had an empty, baked graham cracker crust hanging out in my freezer for a few weeks while I pondered what to fill it with. I considered some sort of pudding pie, or just filling it with cake batter ice cream again, when my mind wandered to my favorite use for graham crackers: s'mores! At first I thought maybe I'd make a s'mores ice cream to fill the crust, but had no time to add "make homemade ice cream" to my to-do list. Instead, I took the components of s'mores and stuck them in this little ice cream pie.

The graham cracker, marshmallow, and chocolate chunks in between two layers of chocolate ice cream are a nice surprise when the pie is cut into. Topped with both marshmallow fluff and mini marshmallows, you get a double dose of the marshmallow flavor--my favorite part! This takes very little time to throw together and can be made a few days ahead of time...it's perfect for a summer party or cookout!

Do NOT skip the broiling/toasting of the top layer of marshmallows; it truly brings that s'more taste to the dessert. I loved this best right after I toasted it, with a little bit of warmth leaking from the toasted marshmallows and contrasting with the cold ice cream. Leftovers straight from the freezer were still pretty amazing though...I had to physically restrain myself from more than one piece at a time!

Looking for other s'mores desserts? Try the Giant S'mores Cake, S'mores Bars, S'mores Granola Bars or S'mores Brownies!

One Year Ago: Peach Amaretto Upside Down Cake


S'mores Ice Cream Pie


Ingredients:
-1 graham cracker crust
-1 quart chocolate ice cream, softened
-4 full size graham crackers, broken into pieces
-2 1/2 cups mini marshmallows, divided
-15 Hershey kisses, coarsely chopped (use Hershey's chocolate bars for authenticity! I didn't have any!)
-1/2 jar marshmallow fluff

Directions:
1. Spread softened ice cream into graham cracker crust until crust is completely filled with a thin layer of ice cream.
2. Sprinkle with graham cracker pieces, chopped chocolate, and 1/2 cup mini marshmallows, pressing down lightly to push toppings into ice cream.
3. Carefully spread another layer of ice cream on top of toppings. Cover and freeze for at least four hours.
4. Remove pie from freezer and spread a thin layer of marshmallow fluff over the top. Sprinkle with 2 cups of mini marshmallows, pressing down slightly to secure marshmallows. Cover and return to freezer at least one hour or until ready to serve.
5. When ready to serve, remove pie, uncover, and broil for 1-2 minutes until marshmallows are lightly browned. Cut into slices and serve immediately.

While we're on the topic of ice cream, I have to share with you a tidbit about these Magnum Ice Cream bars that I had the chance to try recently thanks to the Foodbuzz Tastemakers program. Ryan selected the  Double Caramel flavor and they sat in our freezer until we finally finished off this S'mores Ice Cream Pie and found ourselves, once again, craving ice cream.

These bars are the perfect example of why I love food--so often it connects people to memories. To Ryan and I, these were pretty standard ice cream bars...definitely good, but nothing particularly extraordinary. But my friend Kacey happened to spy them in our freezer and was immediately brought back to her summer in Spain, when she would frequently buy them on the street. Kacey started telling me stories about the Magnum bars she would buy and how her favorite part was that the chocolate sauce inside was always a little melty once she bit in. These stories of course led to other fun stories from that summer, taking us both on a trip down memory lane. Like I said, a great example of a food's ability to evoke memories and emotions!

These Magnum bars are good, especially if you've had them before in Europe and want to recreate those memories here! But I have the feeling even if you've never tried one, you'd still enjoy it now! :) Thanks Foodbuzz and Magnum for the taste!