Summer Snacks

by Jo Robertson

The other day I heard the ice cream man jangling his bell as his truck turned the corner near my house. No one ran after him as they did when I was a child -- lots of little kiddies racing down the street, pennies clutched in their hands.

But the sound of that bell had an almost Pavlovian effect on me. Suddenly I wanted a treat – preferable the banana popsicles of my youth. Where did all the banana popsicles go, anyway? Can you still find them in your area?

Summer snacks are the best kind. When the thermometer soars and it’s too hot to do anything outside except lie in the shaded hammock, all I want is a cool snack to ease the pain of sultry summer.

Here are some of my favorite summer snacks:

Homemade ice cream. Oh, you knew that was gonna top the list, right? I’ve shared my favorite ice cream recipe before, but I’ll repeat it below. Nothing's much better on a summer's day than a delicious, very large bowl of light, homemade ice cream.

Peppermint patties. The large kind that you nibble on while drinking a tall glass of water and reading your favorite book. My brother and I used to crouch on the floor and draw with our colored pencils, each of us with a glass of ice water and a peppermint patty.

Ah, the good old days.

California Cuties. No, not the girls, but the small oranges that are so sweet and so perfectly sized for children's tiny fingers to peel. They're a cross between a sweet orange and a mandarin orange and are delicious! In fact, any fresh fruit is on my list of favorite snacks.

Right now strawberries are on in California and will continue to produce until October. Yummy. I love strawberries!

Soda. Your choice. Although I’m just saying that in my not-so-humble opinion, Pepsi outweighs Coke in the on-going Pepsi-Coke controversy. Lots of ice in a tall tumbler and hearing the fizz as the soda pours over the ice. Yum!

Now I know the experts say soda doesn’t quench thirst nearly as well as water, but in my world, they're just plain wrong.

Jello. No, no, not the yucky horribly-flavored kind you get in the hospital. I’m talking about the kind you bling up with lots of goodies. Apricot jello with crushed pineapple, bananas, and miniature marshmallows. Strawberry jello with Cool Whip and fresh strawberries.

And I'm definitely not talking about the lime jello with shredded carrots my mother used to make. Whoever thought that was a good combo?

Any dessert that doesn’t have to be baked.







Like my Chocolate Dessert.
· Break one angel food cake into pieces and spread in a 9x13 pan
· Melt a 6 ounce package of chocolate chips with 3 tablespoons of water. Cool
· Add 3 beaten egg yolks and 3 tablespoons of powered sugar.
· Fold in 3 beaten egg whites and 1 cup of Cool Whip.
· Pour mixture over cake and chill.
· Top with chopped nuts.

Any entrée that doesn’t have to be cooked. My advice – use the grill!


Jo’s Homemade Ice Cream

2 quarts of half and half
1 can evaporated milk
3 cups sugar
1 TB lemon extract
2 TB vanilla extract

Mix well with wire whip and pour into ice cream maker.


Okay, sharing time! What's your favorite summer snack? Sweet or salty? Dry or liquid? Got any favorite, non-labor intensive recipes for us?
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