Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars Recipe
Summer should be a time to relax and enjoy time at the pool, picnics at the park, and trips to the beach. However, when you’re Gluten Free, being carefree with what you eat isn’t a possibility, no matter what the season. That’s why I’ve come up with this recipe for Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars made with Chex cereals, so Gluten Free kids of all ages can enjoy this traditional summertime treat.
What’s so wonderful about Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars made with Chex cereals, is that you can choose your favorite ice cream and Chex cereal flavor combinations. Even better, you can make this summer dessert even more wholesome by using dried fruit and unsweetened coconut instead of sprinkles. Also, if you’re dairy free, you can choose a coconut or soy milk ice cream instead of regular ice cream.
They’re also so easy to make that even very young children can help mom and dad make these. If you don’t have an ice pop mold (which you can purchase online or at your favorite discount retailer) you can make these Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars in mini-paper cups with wooden craft sticks.
The best thing about making Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars is that they’re worry free since you made them yourself with a Gluten Free cereal you can trust.
Why Chex cereals are awesome!
For years, I would buy expensive health food store Gluten Free cereal for my mother-in-law as a special treat. So we were both thrilled when Chex became Gluten Free, as she’s on a limited budget and Chex cereals are comparable to regular cereals. Plus, a trip to the health food store was a hassle for her.
I love Chex cereals, granola and clusters not only because they’re Gluten Free, but because they have no artificial flavors and no colors from artificial sources. They also don’t contain high fructose corn syrup, so they’re cereals you can feel good about serving to everyone at the table – not just the kids (and adults) who are Gluten Free.
Chex also tastes great – even my non-Gluten Free kids love it! However, this means the boxes magically disappear before I’ve managed to have a bowl or two. Luckily, we have our favorite flavors. My daughter loves Chocolate™ Chex Cereal and my son’s favorite is Cinnamon™ Chex Cereal. Both kids like Vanilla Chex™ Cereal. I’m a fan of Rice Chex™ Cereal and mix in dried cranberries or raisins into my morning cereal. The new Chex™ Clusters Cereal is delicious, so I bet we’ll be making that disappear quickly, too!
Chex also comes in these flavors:
Honey Nut™ Chex Cereal
Corn™ Chex Cereal
Chex™ Granola Mixed Berry
Chex™ Granola Honey Nut
Summer fun with Chex Cereal
There are so many ways to enjoy Chex cereal during the summer months, such as:
Trail mix – Combine your favorite flavors of Chex cereal with dried fruit and take this yummy Gluten Free trail mix with you when you hit the outdoors!
On the go snacks – It’s a perfect Gluten Free snack (instead of greasy chips) along with some fruit in your summer camp lunch bag.
Good for you sundaes – Get out the Greek yogurt, Chex cereal, and some berries and make some yogurt parfaits for breakfast or an afternoon snack!
Movie time – Mix in your favorite Chex cereal flavor with some air popped popcorn for a sweet and salty treat.
Kitchen duty – Rainy day blues got you down? Stay inside and make Spoonful of Sugarfree’s Gluten Free Healthy Puppy Chow!
And of course, cool down with Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars just like the other kids in the neighborhood!
For more recipe ideas, check out Chex on Facebook, Pinterest and @ChexCereal on Twitter.
Gluten Free Ice Cream Crunch Bars
Ingredients
- 2 pints ice cream – your favorite Gluten Free flavor(s), regular or dairy free
- Chex cereal – your favorite flavor(s)
- Dried fruit (papaya, cranberries, raisins, etc.) cut into small pieces (optional – for “sprinkles”)
- Unsweetened shredded coconut (optional – for “sprinkles”)
- Ice pop mold or mini-paper cups
Wooden craft sticks
Directions
Remove the ice cream from the freezer to soften.
Scoop out the ice cream into a medium bowl and stir until creamy.
In a small bowl, add enough ice cream for one ice cream pop. Take a handful of Chex cereal and as you’re adding it to the bowl, crush it with your hand. Mix cereal and ice cream together and crush any bigger pieces with the back of your spoon.
Carefully spoon ice cream and cereal mixture into ice pop mold. Repeat until all molds are filled.
Place lid of ice pop mold on top and place wooden craft sticks in the molds.
Place any remaining ice cream back in container.
Freeze ice cream pops overnight.
If adding “sprinkles,” soften remaining ice cream inside their original containers by leaving them on the counter top. While the ice cream is melting, place a cookie sheet in the freezer.
Place the shredded coconut and cut dried fruit on to plates.
Remove ice cream crunch bars from mold per manufacturer’s instructions. (Usually you place the mold in warm water. Then you gently remove the bars.)
Quickly dip the end of ice cream crunch bar in the melted ice cream. (Dip about 1/3 to 1/2 or so.) Then roll or tap the end of the bar in the “sprinkles.” Then place the ice cream bar on the tray in the freezer. Repeat with the remaining bars.
To serve, remove the cookie sheet from the freezer and let warm on your countertop until you can easily remove the ice cream crunch bars. Enjoy!
Prep Time: 1 Hour
Total Time: 1 Hour
Servings: Makes 8 ice cream bars
This post is brought to you by CafeMom and Chex™