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Buckle up, ice cream lovers, this homemade fried ice cream recipe is a game changer. The secret? It isn’t actually deep-fried. That means less mess, less work, but all the goodness of a crispy fried ball of ice cream.
Everything you need to know for making Easy Fried Ice Cream at home!
Creamy vanilla ice cream with a crunchy coating, yes please! I have a life-changing ice cream hack for you: fried ice cream balls that aren’t actually deep-fried, but they taste just as good! In this recipe, we take frozen ice cream balls and coat them in a crispy shell made with cornflakes, butter, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Yes, it tastes just as good as it sounds!
Keep reading for the recipe and all my best tips and tricks!
Why you’ll love this Recipe for Fried Ice Cream
There are so many things to love about this delicious ice cream recipe. Here are a few:
- Only 10 minutes of active prep time
- No-bake dessert
- Healthier than deep-fried, and easier too!
- No deep fryer needed
- Perfect texture combo with cold vanilla ice cream and crunchy corn flakes
What is Fried Ice Cream?
Fried ice cream typically consists of a scoop of ice cream that is breaded or coated in a crispy outer layer, and then quickly deep fried. You may have tried it at your local Mexican restaurant. While it’s called fried ice cream, the ice cream itself is not fried, just the outer layer is quickly fried so it gets crunchy without melting the inside. It’s often served with toppings such as whipped cream, chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, or fruit.
In this recipe, nothing is deep fried. Instead, the coated ice cream balls are covered in a cooked mixture of cornflakes, butter, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla extract.
Fried Ice Cream Dessert Ingredients
Making friend ice cream balls has never been easier, and all you need are some basic ingredients including, of course, ice cream! Get the full recipe with measurements and directions in the recipe card below. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Vanilla ice cream
- Corn flakes cereal
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Ground cinnamon
- Salt
- Vanilla extract
Toppings
- Chocolate sauce
- Caramel sauce
- Whipped cream
- Maraschino cherries
How to Make Fried Ice Cream
Your whole family is going to love this fun dessert! And you will love how easy it is to make. Get the full recipe in the recipe card below. Here are the easy steps to follow:
- Prep plastic wrap. Prepare 6 large pieces of plastic wrap.
- Wrap ice cream. Scoop out the ice cream onto each sheet, creating 6 mounds that are 2 ½ inches in size, roughly 1 ⅓ cups per mound. Wrap each mound with plastic wrap, shaping them into balls with flat bottoms by gently pressing. If the ice cream softens quickly, place the wrapped mounds in the freezer as you go). Place the wrapped ice cream on a baking sheet and freeze until solid, around 1 hour.
- Crush cereal. Use a food processor or ziploc bag and rolling pin to crush the corn flake cereal into small pieces. Set aside.
- Make corn flake mixture. In a medium skillet set over medium heat, melt the butter. Once melted, stir in the corn flakes, granulated sugar, cinnamon, salt and vanilla extract. Stir continuously and cook the mixture for 2 minutes. The mixture will deepen in color and smell toasty.
- Cool mixture. Remove the corn flake mixture from the heat and transfer it to a shallow bowl. You can either roll the balls in the warm mixture or allow it to cool completely.
- Roll ice cream balls. Once cooled, roll the ice cream balls into the cornflake mixture, using your hands to press the mixture into the ice cream.
- Enjoy! Serve immediately with your favorite toppings or keep in the freezer until you’re ready to serve.
How to Make this Fried Ice Cream Dessert in Advance
If you want to make this a few days in advance, just prepare the wrapped ice cream balls and then corn flake mixture separately, and wait to coat the ice cream in the corn flakes mixture until you’re ready to serve. This way, it won’t lose its crunchy texture.
Variations of Homemade Fried Ice Cream
Another great thing about this recipe is that you can customize it to your liking! Here are some ideas:
- Change the ice cream flavor: I love this with vanilla ice cream, but you could also try strawberry or chocolate ice cream, or whatever your favorite flavor is.
- Change the cereal: You can use a different cereal to make the crispy coating, like using cinnamon toast crunch cereal instead, but then you may want to omit the sugar and cinnamon from the mixture.
- Add-ins/swaps: You can try substituting some of the corn flakes for other things in your crunchy mixture, like shredded coconut or chopped nuts.
Fried Ice Cream Recipe Tips
For best results, follow these tips:
- Freeze ice cream balls well: After forming the ice cream balls and wrapping them, be sure to give them enough time to freeze solid so you can successfully coat them without them melting.
- Crush cereal into small pieces: Make sure the cereal is in small pieces to help it stick well to the ice cream ball.
- Don’t overcook the cereal mixture: Cook just until the color deepens and it smells toasty and then remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl so it stops cooking.
How to Serve Fried Ice Cream
This dessert is best served immediately after preparing it. Put each ice cream ball on individual plates or shallow bowls and serve with desired toppings (whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and a maraschino cherry on top, for example) and a spoon.
Storing Homemade Fried Ice Cream
This recipe is best enjoyed right away. If you have leftovers, you can place it back in the freezer in an airtight container, but the outside layer will likely lose its crunchy texture. If you need to store it for a few days, it is best to freeze the ice cream balls wrapped in plastic wrap and then coat them with the cereal mixture before serving.
Easy Fried Ice Cream Recipe FAQs
Traditional fried ice cream is really deep-fried, quickly so that the outside gets crispy and the inside stays cold. However, this recipe gives the same texture contrast without the need to deep fry.
The trick to frying ice cream without it melting is to make sure the ice cream inside is frozen solid, and the outside layer is only cooked quickly.
More Ice Cream Recipes
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Easy Fried Ice Cream
Ingredients
- Half gallon vanilla ice cream
- 5 cups corn flakes cereal
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
Toppings
- Chocolate sauce
- Caramel sauce
- Whipped cream
- Maraschino cherries
Instructions
- Prepare 6 large pieces of plastic wrap.
- Scoop out the ice cream onto each sheet, creating 6 mounds that are 2 ½ inches in size, roughly 1 ⅓ cups per mound. Wrap each mound with plastic wrap, shaping them into balls with flat bottoms by gently pressing. If the ice cream softens quickly, place the wrapped mounds in the freezer as you go). Place the wrapped ice cream on a baking sheet and freeze until solid, around 1 hour.
- Use a food processor or ziploc bag and rolling pin to crush the corn flake cereal into small pieces. Set aside.
- In a medium skillet set over medium heat, melt the butter. Once melted, stir in the corn flakes, granulated sugar, cinnamon, salt and vanilla extract. Stir continuously and cook the mixture for 2 minutes. The mixture will deepen in color and smell toasty.
- Remove the corn flake mixture from the heat and transfer it to a shallow bowl. You can either roll the balls in the warm mixture or allow it to cool completely.
- Once cooled, roll the ice cream balls into the cornflake mixture, using your hands to press the mixture into the ice cream.
- Serve immediately with your favorite toppings or keep in the freezer until you’re ready to serve.
