Nothing signals summer like the sound of an ice cream truck slowly rolling down the street, its walls plastered with pictures of treats like snow cones, choco tacos, and ice cream bars in every flavor imaginable. But why wait for the truck when you can make many of your favorite ice cream truck treats at home?
To begin, you will need a couple inexpensive popsicle molds, one plastic and one silicone. To make ices, sorbets and sherbets, you'll also want to make your own simple syrup, to which you can easily add ingredients to create different flavors.
Related:Irresistible Ice Cream Flavors You Can Get at the Grocery Store
You'll need just four ingredients to make this delectable vanilla ice cream bar, which is coated in luscious strawberry "cake" with a tangy strawberry ice cream center. The crunch on the outside comes from a combination of crushed sugar cookies and freeze-dried strawberries.
Recipe: Epicurious
What's not to love about this vanilla ice cream pop surrounded by crunchy almond goodness and an almond-flavored center? Atlanta chef Kendra Nguyen has recreated this ice cream truck favorite for the food truck era. For a healthier alternative, you can reduce the sugar by half. Tip: Use your hands to press and distribute the almond paste mixture evenly on the bars.
Recipe: Chef Kendra's Kitchen
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Williams Sonoma knows a thing or two about fine cooking, and their vanilla ice cream bar recipe is a great base that can be easily modified. Case in point is this yummy treat encased in chocolate and crunchy candies with a dollop of chocolate at its center. Follow the recipe below as directed, then add ½ cup lightly crushed puffed rice cereal to the melted chocolate before dipping the ice cream bars in it. Tip: Fill only enough to barely cover the stick and use long sticks as you will be using these bars as the ice cream popsicle centers.
Recipe: Williams Sonoma
Klondike began making ice cream treats more than 100 years ago, starting with their iconic vanilla ice cream bar. Today, they make several ice cream truck favorites, including the delicious Choco Taco. The crunchy "taco shell" cone contains delicious vanilla ice cream swirled with veins of chocolate fudge, all topped with milk chocolate and nuts. Epicurious has a wonderfully easy recipe that recreates this taco treat with store-bought waffle-cone "bowls."
Recipe: Epicurious
Remember these frozen chocolaty mouthwatering summertime treats? The Brown-Eyed Baker will show you how to make the originals at home or try Baker By Nature's yogurt-based recipe for a healthier alternative.
Recipe: Brown-Eyed Baker and Baker By Nature
This burst of orange ice sherbet surrounding creamy vanilla ice cream may very well be the quintessential summer treat. Food blogger Jelly Toast makes these ice cream truck favorites for her children using just six ingredients. You can create a multi-layered pattern by freezing a portion of the ingredients in the popsicle tray and repeating the layering and freezing process. This recipe is so scrumptious you won't even realize it calls for creamy vanilla yogurt instead of ice cream.
Recipe: Jelly Toast
Bomb pops, with their three yummy frozen layers of cherry, lime, and blueberry goodness, make the perfect summer treat. Also known as rocket pops, these frozen popsicles are a snap to make. Make the MyRecipes version for your kids, then whip up a second batch for grown-ups with this boozy variation from Washingtonian magazine.
Recipe: MyRecipes
Push-ups at the gym are hard, but these tangy orange treats are a cinch to make. You'll need just three ingredients to recreate this childhood classic with this recipe from food blogger the Cooking Bride. If you don't have an ice cream maker, fear not. Just use a metal bowl and instead of sweetened condensed milk substitute heavy whipping cream. Add the remaining ingredients, cover with plastic wrap and freeze for about five hours.
Recipe: The Cooking Bride
Related: 19 Ice Pop Recipes Just for Grown-Ups
We wouldn't have made it through the dog days of summer without Otter Pops, frozen sticks of lip-smacking blueberry, cherry, orange, and lime. These were the go-to treats on the hottest of days because you could grab a handful from the freezer and go. And if they melted along the way, you could still suck up the sweet juice. You can recreate Otter Pops easily with a frozen fruits and yogurt with this recipe from PopSugar.
Recipe: PopSugar
If you grew up on the East Coast, you know what Italian ices are. These decadent frozen treats can be easily made at home with shaved ice, fruit, honey, and some lemon juice for kick. This is a great way to use all that fresh fruit filling summertime greenmarkets and farm stands.
Recipe: Food52
If you prefer your frozen fruit a little funkier, try making these frozen chocolate-dipped bananas. The best part? You can top these treats with any kind of sweet add-on you like, such as sprinkles, toasted coconut, or chopped nuts.
Recipe: Epicurious
Who can forget the thrill of slowly unpeeling the wrapper of a Nestlé's Drumstick to reveal that chocolate-and-nut-crowned vanilla ice cream in a chocolate-filled cone? Pure summer bliss. Epicurious remembers this ice cream truck classic and has concocted a delicious recreation. For extra chocolate goodness, try using chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla.
Recipe: Epicurious
Shaved ice and flavored syrup reminds us of travelling carnivals and summer fairs. This cool cone is a refreshing sweet treat on a hot summer evening. If you don't mind putting a little time into shaving the ice, you can make these fairly easily with simple syrup and flavor extracts. And if you want to make this treat truly old-school, you can add food coloring to create an identical look. The secret: use Kool-Aid in the mix.
Recipe: iSaveA2Z