Life in this relentless tropical heat can be extremely difficult at times, the solution to this dire situation, a slice of caramel cashew nut ice-cream dessert of course. Soothingly delicious it simply makes your worries melt away. A great after dinner dessert or even a weekday treat, this is an extremely easy dessert to make, resulting in the even most novices of cooks emerging as a culinary geniuses. Originally the recipe did require pecans, which are a little hard to find on our side of the world, cashew nuts work just as fine or you can even use peanuts if it takes your fancy. Nuts or no nuts, the important thing here is not miss out on a life changing experience but instead indulge to your heart's content and stay cool!

Ingredients

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup butter, melted
1-1/2 cups caramel sauce ice cream topping
2 quarts vanilla ice cream, softened

Method

In a large bowl, combine the flour, oats, nuts and brown sugar. Add butter and mix well thoroughly. Spread as a thin layer in a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until golden. Crumble the slice whilst warm and then let it cool, as we prepare for the next step. Press half of crumb mixture into a 13-in. x 9-in. dish. Drizzle with half of caramel sauce; spread with ice cream. Top with remaining caramel sauce and crumb mixture. Cover and freeze until firm. Remove from the freezer 10 minutes before serving.

*If caramel sauce is not liked, then you can substitute with chocolate as well.

By Mayuri Jayasinghe