Making Golden Chocolate Ice Cream Bowls is Easy With This Mad Genius Tip

"There is no better way to up your ice cream game than to serve them in edible chocolate bowls," begins Food & Wine culinary director Justin Chapple in the latest Mad Genius Tips, before letting you in on a little-known fact about those bowls: "it's way easier than you think."

The secret? An item more commonly used to decorate parties than to make the party's desserts: balloons! First, Chapple fills two small balloons with air (one for each bowl), making sure not to fill it too much, in order to keep the bowls individual portion sized. Then, he says, take a bowl of warm melted chocolate, dip the balloon in the bowl to coat its bottom, and transfer it over to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (which you just might have left over from last week's Mad Genius Tip).

It's important to give the chocolate balloons a "little press" to make sure they stick in place on the sheet, Chapple demonstrates, which creates a flat base that will keep the chocolate bowl upright on a plate. He pops them in the fridge for five minutes, "until the chocolate is cooled," then removes it to commence the most fun part.

First brush the outside of the bowl with some shimmering, edible gold dust. Then, you get to pop the balloons with a paring knife, leaving nothing but perfect, chocolatey bowl—and how often do you get to do that while making food? Finally, brush the inside with more gold for consistency, and add the ice cream. Chapple goes with vanilla, then, reminding us that "no ice cream sundae would be complete without some fun toppings," adds a colorful variety of candies. "That, my friends, is the ultimate ice cream sundae," he concludes, having also prepared a non-food item to make the perfect Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, or just anytime dessert: you!

This article was written by Charlie Heller from Food & Wine and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@newscred.com.