Hint: It doesn't involve the microwave.
Here's the scene: you decide to throw a last-minute dinner party, and you're totally prepped and organized. (You've probably made lists. A lot of lists.) Things go without a hitch, and soon it's time for dessert. So you pull out a pint of ice cream, planning to serve it alongside some crushed cookies and smoked nuts (#Dadstyle).
But that's when all your careful planning hits a snag. Your scooper hits a substance that resembles just-poured concrete rather than ice cream. You strain, waving aside offers of assistance as you smile. "It's fine," you say. "Just a little cold is all." But the ice cream is not merely cold. It has, somehow, become one with the Earth's polar ice cap. And even if you took a power drill to it and busted it up into pieces, it wouldn't matter—no one wants to eat frosty shards of dairy. Letting it sit out to defrost for a few minutes isn't a solution, either. It only results in a melty perimeter, leaving the icy core untouched.
What to do? Do what I did when I worked in the pastry kitchen at fine-dining restaurants (which just happens to be the same thing folks at mix-in places like Cold Stone Creamery and Marble Slab do): Mash up that ice cream.
Take your ice cream out of the freezer. Let it soften for a few minutes, but no more than 5—you want to thaw it just long enough to extricate it out of the container.
Place the ice cream into the bowl of a stand mixer* fit with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium until the ice cream is smooth and creamy. Be careful not to mix too long—it will get soupy.
Instantly forget about that icy mess from moments before and serve that silky smooth ice cream stat.
Hold on. Your ice cream is already in the mixing bowl. So why not, you know, mix something into it? Take a cue from Cold Stone and blend in anything you'd try as a topping for ice cream—crushed cookies, chopped fresh fruit or berries, toasted nuts, candy, chocolate—even crushed sugar cones.
*Don't have a stand mixer? You can also break up the hard ice cream into pieces in a large bowl, using a knife if you need to, and then mash the ice cream until smooth with a potato masher. Once smooth, stir in the toppings with a heavy-duty wooden spoon. Just keep in mind that this method will take a bit longer, so the ice cream may get too soft, and you'll want to stick it back in the freezer for 10 minutes or so before serving.