12 Trader Joe's Finds That Will Step Up Boring Ice Cream

Why eat plain ice cream when you can turn it into a textural dream? Straight-up vanilla is a snoozefest, but a scoop finished off with something fruity, salty, crunchy, or crispy changes the game. Sure, Trader Joe's has delicious ice cream flavors, but it doesn't always have the widest selection. What's stocked varies by store and season, and your go-to might have been among the discontinued fan-favorite Trader Joe's frozen foods. With these topping ideas, you can dress up any kind of ice cream — even if TJ's didn't have the one you were eyeing.

Honestly, all the items on this list are amazing when sprinkled on top of quality grocery store vanilla ice cream. They're also much more interesting than plain old chocolate chips, rainbow sprinkles, generic cookies, or chopped nuts. If vanilla isn't your thing, we'll be sure to give you our two cents on flavors that pair particularly well with each topping.

Perfectly crisp and delightfully bright, TJ's Lemon Flavored Wafer Cookies have exactly the texture you'd expect from this sweet treat. The creaminess and lemon tartness are well-balanced, and because they're already cut into cute little squares they're ready to be sprinkled over ice cream (try them with a scoop of strawberry and thank us later).

Buy an 8.8-ounce bag of Lemon Flavored Wafer Cookies from Trader Joe's for $3.99.

Meringues are often paired with whipped cream and custard, as with trifles, so why not enjoy them with ice cream too? These lightly sweet bites from Trader Joe's contain nothing more than sugar, egg whites, and vanilla so they have a versatile flavor that's equally delicious on fruity, nutty, or chocolatey ice creams. And of course, the delicately crisp texture of a crumbled meringue pairs spectacularly with the cool, creamy dessert.

Purchase a 7.75-ounce container of TJ's Vanilla Meringues for $4.49.

If the last time you had cake and ice cream was at a birthday party back when you were a kid, let's fix that. Trader Joe's sells a yellow sheet cake with chocolate buttercream that's about as classic as can be, and folks really like it. It's also gluten-free (though you may not even realize it), as are many ice cream flavors, so it's a solid option for an allergy-friendly dessert. "It's the best golden cake I've had in ages and it happens to be gf," commented a satisfied shopper (via Reddit). For peak nostalgia, top a square with tri-colored Neapolitan ice cream.

A 14-ounce Yellow Mini Sheet Cake from Trader Joe's costs $5.99.

If you don't like the sweet and savory combo, it's time to grow up. Salt has a balancing effect that simultaneously heightens umami and sweet flavors — the effect is craveable complexity. A sprinkle of flaky salt on chocolate ice cream is an elite move, but finishing off a bowl with Dark Chocolate Covered Crunchy Corn Kernels is even better. They're like the dessert version of Corn Nuts. Put them in a baggie and crush them with a heavy-bottomed glass or rolling pin before sprinkling them over TJ's Horchata Ice Cream.

Buy an 8-ounce bag of Dark Chocolate Covered Crunchy Corn Kernels from Trader Joe's for $3.99.

Strawberries that have been freeze-dried have an intensely fruity flavor and a satisfyingly crisp texture. This TJ's treat takes pieces of the fruit and covers them in a strawberry yogurt coating so each bite is both tart and creamy. Try them with chocolate or cookies and cream ice cream.

Purchase a 7-ounce bag of Freeze Dried Strawberry Pieces from Trader Joe's for $4.99.

You might have sampled TJ's Crispy Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies, which are already pretty tiny, but these bites are even smaller. The Tiniest Chocolate Chip Cookies are so little that in just ⅓ cup you'll be able to count about 65 of them. Needless to say, they are both delicious and adorable when scattered over a bowl of ice cream. Go all in on the theme by pairing them with cookie dough ice cream.

An 8-ounce bag of the Tiniest Chocolate Chip Cookies from TJ's will cost you $3.99.

A drizzle of caramel sauce is good, but a drizzle of Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce from Trader Joe's is even better — especially if you warm it up in the microwave first. It has real cream, butter, sugar, and French sea salt, so it tastes a bit more elevated than your typical sundae shop topping. It's a lovely finish to pumpkin and banana pudding ice creams, both of which have limited seasonal availability at TJ's.

Buy a 10-ounce jar of Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce from Trader Joe's for $3.99.

Cherry and chocolate are a tried-and-true combination, like in Ben & Jerry's rock and roll-inspired Cherry Garcia ice cream. You can enjoy the same pairing in Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries — the dried Montmorency cherries are on the tart side and enrobed in a thick layer of chocolate. Chop them up so you can distribute them evenly and try them out on top of coffee or pistachio ice cream.

Purchase a 12-ounce container of Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries from TJ's for $6.99.

Certain ice cream flavors pair really well with ginger snaps — think butter pecan, pumpkin, maple, French vanilla, matcha, and black walnut. The Trader Joe's version of the cookie, called Triple Ginger Snaps, incorporates the warming spice in three different forms: crystalized, fresh, and dried. "They are chock full of ginger," wrote one fan in a Reddit post. "They are amazingly delicious. One of the best ginger cookies you will ever eat."

A 14-ounce container of Triple Ginger Snaps from Trader Joe's will cost you $4.79.

Just like how black pepper is unexpectedly delicious on ice cream, so too are TJ's Sweet and Spicy Pecans. The heat comes from a balanced mix of ancho chile, cayenne pepper, and paprika; and they straddle the line nicely between salty and sweet. Try them on top of dark chocolate, Mexican vanilla, or caramel ice cream.

Buy a 5-ounce bag of Trader Joe's Sweet and Spicy Pecans for $4.99.

We can't forget about gummy candies when it comes to the best ice cream toppings and TJ's Scandinavian Swimmers are a great choice. Each bag of these adorable gummy sea creatures comes with four different candies: orange-flavored fish, huckleberry-flavored dolphins, mango-peach-flavored seahorses, and berry-flavored lobsters. They're softer than other similar candies, so they won't get too hard when used as a topping — try them with fruity sorbets or birthday cake ice cream.

Purchase a 14-ounce bag of Scandinavian Swimmers from Trader Joe's for $3.99.

If you can't decide on any one topping, this is the snack you need to grab. TJ's Chocolate and Peanut Butter Lover's Nut Mix has it all: almonds, dark chocolate-covered almonds, cashews, miniature peanut butter cups, mini pretzels, and some of those Tiniest Chocolate Chip Cookies. Crunchy, nutty, and chocolatey, this maximalist mix is the ideal choice for folks that love lots of stuff in their ice cream. Try it with cookie dough, brownie, or candy bar flavors.

A 12-ounce bag of Trader Joe's Chocolate and Peanut Butter Lover's Nut Mix will cost you $5.99.