Italian-Style Ice Cream Sandwich Party—Easy Summer Party Theme Idea!

I'm so excited to finally share the summer party series I created for Refinery29 with you! July 4th may be over but there's still so much to celebrate—click through all 6 summer party themes over on Refinery29's website.

Just because I love these ideas so much, I'm going to blow out each one a little further here on Food and Femininity! Let's start with the Italian Ice Cream Sandwich Party: Anyone can throw an ice cream social but a few tweaks—like using high quality gelato, brioche rolls, almond cookies and homemade dark chocolate sauce—makes this party a little more sexy and sophisticated. You can find my dark chocolate sauce recipe on Refinery29's site but here are some other things you might want to include...

mentioned on Refinery29 that my favorite go-to gelato is Talenti—they have so many incredibly luscious flavors! Other brands that I love: Three Twins Ice Cream from Northern California and Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams from Ohio (which you can actually buy online via Sur La Table)!

Go to a local Italian bakery or look online for delicious cookie alternative, like the items above: Pizzelle (Italian waffle cookies), Amaretti (almond cookies), Pignoli (pine nut cookies), miniature brioche buns or cornettos (think Italian croissants)! 

I love the combination of chambray and black-and-white polka dots, don't you? So fresh and chic! You can get the look at home with these Teroforma Chambray Napkins and paper plates by The Tomkat Studio. Finish off the table with decorative compote bowls and disposable spoons and you're set!    

[Pizzelle, Amaretti and Pignoli images from Cookies With Love / Brioche Slider image from Pasadena Baking Co. / Teroforma Chambray Napkins, $38 for 2 / Sur La Table Disposable Ice Cream Containers, $10 for 4 / Crate and Barrel Anti-Freeze Ice Cream Scoop $16 / Ice Cream Cone Pinata $12 / India Tree Chocolate Vermicelli Sprinkles $7 /  Black and White Polka Dot 9" Paper Plates $8 for 12 / Aegean Compote Bowls from Williams-Sonoma, $40 for 4 / Natural Wood Tasting Spoons by Dress My Cupcake]