Homemade snow cones: Make your own sno-cone/shaved ice treats

Easy and fun

Buy small paper cups for your snow cones in. Look for markdowns on party goods to keep around this summer for snow cones and other treats.

You can crush the ice in your blender -- some have a specific setting for this. Alternatively, you can crush ice by hand by placing the ice in a clean kitchen towel and crushing it with a rolling pin. You can even buy a special appliance (usually under $30) to simplify things. Take a look at the Hamilton Beach Snowman Ice Shaver and the Rival IS450-W Deluxe Ice Shaver.

Here are two easy syrup recipes:

Snow Cone Syrup 1

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup water
1 package unsweetened powdered drink mix, any flavor

Directions:
Place the sugar and water in a medium pan and bring to a full boil. Remove from heat and stir in the Kool-Aid. Cool to room temperature, then place in the refrigerator until chilled. Pour over crushed iced.

Snow Cone Syrup 2

Ingredients:
4 ounces of sweetened flavored drink mix powder*
3/4 cup hot water

Directions:
Mix the water and the drink mix. Cool and drizzle over crushed ice.

* While you can use sugarfree drink mix powder (such as Crystal Light), it makes for a super runny "syrup."

Get more great ideas for summer treats:

• More than 25 ways to make freezer pops for pennies!
• Homemade popsicle recipes: How to make ice pops at home
• Use popsicle molds to make simple, inexpensive summer treats