After another dance number by the tapping ice-cream cones, Jim and Barry stepped up to the microphone. They wore T-shirts with tuxedos printed on them.
“Let the contest begin!” Jim shouted.
Jim and Barry went down the line, tasting each flavor of ice cream. They liked the fan club’s Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Crunch. They loved Kendra’s Chock Full of Chocolate.
“It’s our turn,” Bess whispered as Jim and Barry walked over.
“And what’s your ice cream called?” Jim asked.
“Clue-berry!” Nancy, Bess, and George said together.
“Snappy name,” Barry said. “Let’s have a taste.”
Nancy smiled as she handed Barry the container. But when he pulled off the lid, the container tipped and—
Splat!
Nancy, Bess, and George gulped as they stared at the puddle on the stage. Their Clue-berry ice cream had melted!
“Um,” George said. “Can we enter a milkshake?”
“Maybe next year,” Jim said.
“But nice try, girls,” Barry said.
As the guys walked to the next contestant, Nancy felt awful. But what did they expect after carrying their ice cream around in the hot sun for almost an hour?
In the end, the winner wasn’t Kendra. Or the Jim and Barry Fan Club. To everyone’s surprise, it was Kevin Garcia!
At the last minute Kevin came up with an entry called Naturally Nutty. It was made with frozen yogurt, dried apricots, and all kinds of nuts.
It was the perfect flavor for Jim and Barry. Especially since they wanted to sell a healthier new frozen dessert!
After the contest, Kevin waved his silver ticket in one hand. In the other hand was his parents’ permission slip.
“My mom and dad said I can visit the factory once a month,” Kevin explained. “So long as I pick a flavor they think is okay.”
“What are you going to pick first?” Nancy asked.
“Anything but chocolate!” Kevin said, laughing.
Kendra ran over with a big smile. “Guess what?” she said. “Mr. Drippy is naming my ice cream after me. So every bar will say Kendra’s Chock Full of Chocolate!”
“Way to go,” Nancy cheered.
“You’ll be as famous as Jim and Barry!” George said.
“I can’t wait to write about this contest,” Deirdre said. “Nancy, Bess, George? Can I call your ice cream Goo-berry?”
“No!” the three girls said together.
“Oh well.” Deirdre sighed. “Come on, Kendra. Pose in front of the Mr. Drippy truck so I can take your picture.”
Nancy was glad that Kendra and Deirdre were friends again. But she was sad that Clue-berry turned out to be a mushy mess. As they waited for Hannah to pick them up, Nancy, Bess, and George talked about the contest.
“We lost,” Bess said sadly.
“Big-time!” George added.
Nancy turned to her two best friends and smiled.
“But we did solve the case, Clue Crew,” she said. “And that makes us winning detectives!”
Nancy, Bess, and George’s Coffee-Can Ice Cream
Nancy, Bess, and George know that making ice cream can be as easy as one, two, freeze! All you need is a sweet tooth and these simple ingredients:
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon sugar
4 cups crushed ice
4 tablespoons salt
Standard size coffee can with plastic lid
*Economy size (jumbo) coffee can with plastic lid.
A hand towel or gloves to keep fingers from freezing. Brr!
E-Z INSTRUCTIONS:
Mix the milk, vanilla, and sugar together in the smaller coffee can. Seal the can with the plastic lid. Put the can inside the larger can. Fill the larger can with ice and salt, and seal with the plastic lid. Now you have one can inside another!
READY TO ROLL!
Using your hand, roll the can back and forth on the ground until the ice cream is firm. Five to ten minutes is enough time for the mixture to freeze.
Now here comes the best part. . . . Grab a spoon, dig in, and enjoy!
FUN FACTOID
The ice-cream cone was invented at the St. Louis expo in 1904! The vendor ran out of plates and used rolled-up waffles instead! The rest is ice-cream history!
(*No jumbo coffee can at home? Try a restaurant or teacher’s cafeteria for an empty one!)
Carolyn Keene, Scream for Ice Cream
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