For Desserts With Chilling Appeal

Cool, cold, coldest is the theme for summer desserts, and the nicest way I know to beat the heat is ice cream. A hot fudge sundae may be the classic ice cream dessert, but ice cream sandwiches, sticky butterscotch pecan banana splits and ice cream cakes heaped with chocolate crunch are -- dare I say it -- even better.

Ice cream desserts have such desirable qualities: They are simple to make, can be made all or in part ahead of time and take minutes to put together. An ice cream loaf, sandwich or cake actually needs to be made hours, or even days, in advance. Sauces for sundaes can be made ahead and warmed at serving time. Whether you want to serve two or 20, quantities for ice cream desserts can be adjusted down or up to fit your crowd.

Supermarket freezers carry so many flavors and brands of ice cream that a trip to the local market is as far as you need to go for ingredients.

A good-quality, rather than a premium, ice cream is the best choice.

Premium ice creams are unnecessarily rich for these over-the-top desserts. The new slow-churned ice creams work quite well and are a good way to save calories.

When ice cream needs to be spread in a crust or on a cookie, it should be soft and pliable. Let the ice cream sit in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to soften it without melting it. If ice cream melts, the air that was churned into it is lost, creating a hard, icy texture when the ice cream freezes again.

Each of these ice cream desserts has flavor suggestions, but feel free to mix and match your favorite combinations. To cut an ice cream loaf or cake easily, let it sit for about five minutes at room temperature to soften slightly. Return any leftover dessert to the freezer promptly to prevent melting.

Very fast ice cream dessert ideas:

· Sprinkle dishes of ice cream generously with small pieces of candy, crushed cookies, sprinkles or toffee bits. Candy bars can be cut into bite-size pieces. Put out an assortment and let guests add their own toppings.

· Iced coffee becomes an ice cream float by pouring it into a tall glass and adding a scoop of ice cream. Coffee, chocolate or vanilla ice cream are all good possibilities.

· Pour warm espresso over vanilla, chocolate or coffee ice cream and top with a spoonful of whipped cream.

· Toss sliced strawberries with about 1 tablespoon of sugar to each 2 cups of strawberries. Let them sit for 30 minutes until juices form. Spoon the strawberries with their juices over vanilla or strawberry ice cream.

Elinor Klivans's newest book is "Cupcakes!" (2005, Chronicle Books).