How to Host an Ice Cream Social

Summer is about to get a lot better. I’m chasing away all that summer boredom kids get with   a fun-filled, stress-free ice cream social. And of course it’s not just for kids, because let’s face it, adults get just as silly for ice cream, especially when Tillamook ice cream is involved.

If you are regular around here or on my Instagram, then you know I’m a big fan of all things Tillamook, a farmer-owned dairy cooperative from Oregon. They produce everything from cheese to yogurt to ice cream, but the ice cream—they’ve been turning out premium scoops since 1947 and I can’t get enough of it. This year not only did they do a package redesign, but they introduced a new flavor: Birthday Cake. I know—get excited, and head to the store fast. My store can’t seem to keep it in stock, so I buy as many as my freezer will hold.

Alright now for the fun. Let’s talk about how to host an ice cream social that is fun, easy and one you can repeat through-out the summer. At one time in my life, any type of entertaining used to push my anxiety into overdrive. Nowadays, I’ve learned from a few disasters that it’s all about learning to exhale along the way and that with a little pre-planning things will move along without too much effort the day of.

Here are some tips to help you out:

–          Make sure you know the weather the day of and prepare to keep your ice cream cooled properly. If it’s not too hot, buckets of ice with the ice cream in it will work just fine. But for those really hot days use a cooler filled with ice. If you are holding a party like I did here for birthdays and such, an ice cream cart like the one you see in the photo can be rented for a fairly sane price.

–          Know your audience and have some choices. We went with just about every flavor Tillamook has, but there are flavors I never leave out—ones like: Mudslide, Chocolate, Old-Fashioned Vanilla, Rocky Road, and Oregon Strawberry. There’s a reason they are classics, right?

–          When you set up your ice station, make sure it’s accessible from all sides so there isn’t a bottleneck of people waiting to fill their cones or cups.

–          Don’t forget the toppings. I like to have a mix of fresh fruit with candies and cookies. Variety is the key here.

–          Make sure you have more than one ice cream scoop, so there isn’t too long of a wait. This way multiple people can make sundae. Nothing kills a party’s momentum like having to wait in line for something.

–          Speaking of everyone making their own—yes, let them make their own. Sure you can kick things off by doing the first scoop or maybe the first few, but after that relax and join the party. Besides that, making your own sundae and piling it high with toppings is half the fun.

There you have it, all the tips to make your summer that much better and fun with a little help from Tillamook ice cream.

. .  . and pssst – head over to my Instagram, because I’m holding a giveaway for an ice cream party kit plus a ton of free ice cream to get you started on your ice cream social. You can’t win unless you enter, so hurry up and get to it!