Perfect for everyone, these faux ice cream grahamwiches have almost no sugar! They are a breeze to make and a special treat ready from your freezer anytime.
If you don’t have the inclination to visit this morning, just click that red “Jump To Recipe” button at the top of this post and go straight to the printable recipe card.
In this post, I’m going to show you how to make these delicious Grahamwiches with the only sugar being the scant amount present in the graham crackers. They are not only delicious but another great treat ready from your freezer anytime! They are also great to make with your kids. Before I do that though, I want to take a few moments to tell you why today is so special. Note: This post was written in 2009 and I updated the photos in 2019 but kept the story and remainder of writing the same. As of now, in 2019, Brady is now twenty!
Ten years ago today, I became a mother. July 6, 1999, my little Bradybug came into this world and it will truly never be the same. I had wanted to be a mother all of my life, for as long as I could remember. I had dreamed of it, having visions of being every ounce the kind of mother that mine was. Motherhood had always seemed to come naturally to her. She knew just how to nurture us, talk to us, care for us, and make every single day special. I just knew that, having always been the spitting image of her in everything else, motherhood would be no different.
I took parenting classes, childbirth classes, infant cpr, and several early childhood education classes in college. I had taught preschool and babysat more hours than I could count. I felt certain that I was ready.
One of the funny things about parenthood is how it seems to take delight in knocking us flat on our rears when we think we’re at the top of our game. If nothing else, Parenthood requires a sense of humor.
Around day two in the hospital, I realized that I had no idea what I was doing. Not just minor insecurities, mind you, but full blown out “If the hospital finds out how unqualified I am for this, they’ll never let me take him home!”.
I remember that day so vividly. Brady needed changing and my first thought was “Well, I’ll wait til Mama gets back from the gift shop so she can help me”. Then I became indignant with myself. “Hmph, I’m his mother, I can do this.” Ten minutes later I had a pile of wipes a mile high. Brady was crying, I was crying, and we had our first ever conversation. “Brady baby, I’m sorry, but I’m the only mother you’ve got so you’ll just have to make do with me”. His response was to scream louder. Can’t say I blamed the little fella.
I watched the door nervously during my entire stay, just waiting on a nurse to come into the room and cluck her tongue before whisking my baby away to someone infinitely more qualified to raise him – one of those mothers who instinctively knew how to care for him, who could change a diaper in two wipes while humming and mentally constructing the perfect college fund.
The next year was a blur of colic, milestones, scrapbook pages, stage three lasagna splattered on the walls, and this incredibly amazing bundle of cuteness and energy who charmed and won everyone over in a single glance.
There was a bit of a learning curve but Brady was patient with me and I had lots of help learning the ropes.
By the time he is twenty, I feel confident I’ll know what I’m doing. (HAHA! This is hilarious reading this now that He is twenty. I’m still just winging it!)
Has it really been ten years? Matchbox cars and dinosaurs have been replaced with the weather channel and science experiments. This kid is the only one in the house who knows how to set up a wi-fi connection and operate all DVD players, video game systems, and VCRs. He is brilliant, articulate, and an incredibly personable boy but the thing I am proudest of is his heart. My Brady is a very kindhearted person who, despite all of the material things he is blessed with, still places the highest value on people and small moments, sentiment and friends.
Maybe I got lucky or maybe I’m not so bad at this motherhood thing after all. My money is on luck. (2019 note: blessed. There is no luck. It’s all blessings.)
Years ago, Brady and I were talking right before he fell asleep. We talked about taking a trip one day when he grew up and where we’d go. Even then, I knew time was slipping away fast and I found myself longing for a little more time just between the two of us. We went over possibilities of things we could do together, what we’d like to see and where we’d like to go. Somewhere amidst all of that we came up with going somewhere in the desert and riding camels along with seeing pyramids (do they even have camels near pyramids? I suppose so.). We made our plans to go and mentally sent Katy on a two week cruise with her Daddy during our time away.
Now as I sit here, my little boy (who eats everything in the house and still manages to have ribs poking out through his skin) is standing in his rapidly growing body that is struggling to keep up with his overly large feet and playing Guitar Hero. I can steal a hug or kiss from time to time and even coax him into my lap if no one is looking but the moments are fleeting. He’s too busy growing and learning and experiencing every moment of his fast forward life.
But when things settle down in the evenings, sometimes he’ll curl up next to me and we’ll both whisper about our dreams of riding camels together in the desert and I know it means as much to him as it does to me, even if we never make it there. Even if we only go there in our minds during these stolen moments on quiet evenings – me and the ever growing spirit whose magical presence in this world turned me into a mother. Thank you so much, Brady. I sure do love you.
~sighs and looks at the screen as the photos of grahamwiches come back into focus~
Today’s recipe has nothing to do with Birthdays but my tangents seldom do have anything to do with the dish. Y’all are so lenient with me!
I love to have cool treats in the summer and I also love to have things in my freezer handy should unexpected guests drop by. This recipe is the kid’s version of Granny Jordan’s frozen cranberry banana salads on both counts. They are easy to make (of course) and the only sugar involved is the scant amount in the graham crackers and what is on the sprinkles (if you use sprinkles). I use nuts on mine or leave them plain, saving the sprinkle ones for the kidders. If you make these, you’ll end up with at least thirty. I quit after thirty and started passing out spoons for all of us to lick what was left in the bowl. ~smiles~
They taste just like ice cream sandwiches, but with a bit more flavor to them and a lot less guilt.
I don’t split hairs when it comes to calling a recipe low sugar or sugar free. In this recipe, I am using sugar free pudding mix and sugar free whipped topping, the only sugar I count is the small amount added to the graham crackers. I realize there is some natural sugar in the milk but I count sugar in my recipes as sugar added in so milk in its natural form is alright in my book as is fruit which is naturally sweet. If I tried to keep up with the FDA’s labeling practices with regards to sugar, my eyes would cross after day one.
Be sure you check at the end of this post for a listing of other recipes on Southern Plate for those of us watching our sugar. There are several!
You’ll need: Graham Crackers, whipped topping, milk,and a large box of instant pudding mix.
You really need two or three boxes of graham crackers to make sure you have enough since I generally don’t use the broken ones for these. Broken ones are eaten immediately ~grins~. I do tend to get name brand at times when I need to make something like this because the generic ones tend to have a lot more broken crackers whenever I’ve gotten them in the past. I guess the more expensive ones get upgraded to first class during the shipping process.Those little snobs…
Lets get to making goodies!
Add your pudding mix to the milk, using the amounts called for on the package.
Mix that up for about two minutes, until well blended.
When your pudding is all mixed up, add whipped topping and mix again until well blended.
There we go, all whipped up! This will be smooth and creamy, the perfect “faux ice cream” for our grahamwiches! This really is delicious and I hope you try it. Make them with your kids or grandkids or save ’em all for yourself, whatever cranks yer tractor. I’ve been known to make these and keep them all to myself for a least a month before letting other folks know they exist.
Break graham crackers in half and place on a plate to get ready to make these.
This is just the amount I started out with, I ended up using about double this.
Put a dollop of cream on half of a cracker.
Top with another.
For the kids, I pour out some sprinkles on a plate and just gently press each side into them.
I love the crushed nuts on them for me. You get the whole salty, chocolaty, sweet thing goin’ on!
Plain is also delicious though!
You can smooth the sides with a butter knife or the back of a spoon if you like.
I put each one in a cheap little sandwich baggie and then place all of the baggies in the freezer until we need them. They will be frozen in an hour or so. This is important to know because Katy kept coming to “check”on them.
With sugar free pudding, sugar free whipped topping, and naturally low in sugar Graham crackers, these are Ice Cream Grahamwiches for everyone!
Ingredients
- Approximately 30 graham crackers broken in half
- Large box sugar free Instant Chocolate Pudding
- 8 ounces sugar free or lite whipped topping*
- Milk
- Sprinkles and nuts optional
Instructions
- Prepare pudding with milk, according to package directions. Whip in whipped topping and blend until smooth.
- Place a large dollop on a graham cracker and top with another. Dip each side into sprinkles or nuts if desired.
- Place in individual zipper seal sandwich bags and freeze until firm.
Nutrition
*Can use regular pudding and regular whipped topping
Don’t sweat the petty stuff and don’t pet the sweaty stuff.
~Southern Plate Reader Lynn from GA. Fill me up! Click here to leave your quote and make my day!
Happy Birthday Brady!
Brady and his traditional Birthday Biscuit!
Brady today, at age 20.
