Summertime Ice Cream Pool Party + Mini Ice Cream Cakes Recipe!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SoHoppinGood #TopYourSummer #CollectiveBias

Hey party peeps! This week is the last day of school for my kids. It just so happens that it also is a perfect weather day for a pool party! Y’all know I love hosting parties and the last day of school is the perfect day to let loose and embrace summer! Here in the midwest, we have rough, long winters, so when summer comes knocking we swing open that door with a huge smile. My daughter Riley has been asking to go to the pool for the last two weeks and this weekend she was SUPER EXCITED to FINALLY be able to swim and welcome summer with open arms.

Want to throw a fabulous Summertime Ice Cream Pool Party too? Follow along while I show you how I did it and also my Mini Ice Cream Cakes recipe! My kids saw the new Blue Bunny® ice cream commercials on TV and have been dying to try their new flavors. So, while we were shopping in Walmart last week, we saw the freezers full of so many Blue Bunny® ice cream flavors! Right there in the middle of the freezer aisle at Walmart I decided to set up an Ice Cream Bar at the kids’ end of school year party! We picked out a few of our favorites, Blue Bunny® Vanilla Bean and Blue Bunny® Butter Pecan, of course. Then we decided to pickup a few new flavors too like Blue Bunny® Cherry Pickin’ Chocolate™ and Blue Bunny® Blu’s Birthday Party®. The new clear packaging is so cool! You can see all the flavor swirls right through the packaging. While there, we also picked up yummy & affordable toppings like Smucker’s Caramel Spoonable Ice Cream Topping, Smucker’s Strawberry Spoonable Ice Cream Topping and Smucker’s Microwaveable Hot Fudge Topping. And…don’t forget the Keebler ice cream cones! We picked up all three types: sugar, waffle and cake cones.

SET THE SCENE FOR A SUMMERTIME ICE CREAM POOL PARTY WITH DIY MINI ICE CREAM CAKES BAR!

Summertime is always chaotic and circus-like around here so a circus theme seemed perfect for this Summertime Ice Cream Bar! Full of bright colors and covered with a rainbow big top canopy made out of a sheer fabric that perfectly protects your ice cream bar from flies! Simply pull the sides of the canopy all the way around the table until you are ready to serve. Then pull back the sides and secure with the ribbon ties. Super easy and looks awesome! The backdrop is a vinyl background with a water pattern that I had from a previous party and fit this theme perfectly.

I had this awesome white wire ferris wheel in my party stash that was the inspiration for the table. I used it to hold the mini cakes (unfrosted cupcakes). How adorable is that! I also filled the table with all the Smucker’s toppings and ice cream cones.

GIRLFRIEND TIP: Get creative and repurpose items in new ways. This spiral cupcake stand is supposed to hold cupcakes but thought it would be a whimsical way to display toppings and waffle cones. I also pulled out my white wire bicycles that are meant to hold a flower arrangement and used it instead to hold the sugar cones and cake cones.

SERVE DIY MINI ICE CREAM CAKES!

Making Mini Ice Cream Cakes as a party activity is super fun! The guests simply put a mini cake (unfrosted cupcakes) in the bottom of a small juice glass, top with their favorite Blue Bunny® Ice Cream flavor and finish with Smucker’s toppings and fresh fruit, nuts or sprinkles.

GIRLFRIEND TIP: Unfrosted cupcakes are the perfect mini cake to use. I use store-bought unfrosted cupcakes to save me time. Simply ask for them from your local bakery. Another timesaver? Pre-scoop your ice cream ahead of time in single scoops in a cupcake pan with liners. Keep in the freezer until it’s time to serve and everyone gets a single scoop at the same time! NO MORE WAITING FOR YOUR SCOOP! Yup…that’s a tip I’ll keep!

VANILLA & STRAWBERRY MINI ICE CREAM CAKES RECIPE!

I don’t know about you, but for every single birthday, my kids ask for an ice cream cake. This recipe was inspired by their love of ice cream cakes. I wanted to make them individually portioned which is perfect for a party so you’re guests can try different mini ice cream cake combinations.

HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED:
– Blue Bunny® Vanilla Bean
– Smucker’s Strawberry Spoonable Ice Cream Topping
– unfrosted vanilla cupcakes
– fresh strawberries

HERE’S HOW TO MAKE THEM:
STEP 1: Dice the fresh strawberries.
STEP 2: Place one unwrapped unfrosted cupcake into a juice glass.
STEP 3: Top with one scoop of Blue Bunny® Vanilla Bean ice cream
STEP 4: Top the ice cream with some diced strawberries.
STEP 5: Spoon some Smucker’s Strawberry Spoonable Ice Cream Topping over the top of the strawberries
That’s it! Super easy!

Thinking of hosting your own Summertime Ice Cream Party? Be sure to check out more summertime party ideas and head out to Walmart for all you need!

What’s your favorite Blue Bunny Ice Cream flavor and how do you top it?

Cheers!
Tonya

– Photography: Soiree Event Design
– Blue Bunny ice cream, Smucker’s Ice Cream Topping, paper plates & napkins: Walmart
– Rainbow canopy: Oriental Trading

DON’T MISS A SINGLE POST!

Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to my blog so you can get all my blog posts delivered right to your email’s inbox so you won’t miss a thing! Subscribing is easy! Just enter your email address in the above right corner of this page and be sure to confirm your email once you get our confirmation to your inbox! That’s it! AND…you’ll get a code for 10% off your next order in our shop.

FOLLOW ME ON INTEREST FOR LOTS OF INSPIRATION!

CLICK HERE to check out my PINTEREST BOARD full of recipes, parties, home decor and more!