Every now and then I get a reminder that my American friends and I did childhood very differently. Few know who Count Duckula is or the honor that comes with owning a Blue Peter badge, and none understand the joys of a Caramac bar. And it seems I missed out on traditions too; after they slathered peanut butter on their jam sandwiches, they settled down for a dessert of Carvel.

A few weeks ago, Meghan and I were talking about ice cream cake – and how I’ve never had it. Perhaps it’s a thing in the UK now, but when I was little, you simply scooped some ice cream into a bowl, added a square of birthday cake and threw on some jelly (jello) to create this milky, fruity goo. Meghan flashed me a look of pity and said: ‘We’re going to Carvel.’

So tonight after work we headed to the nearest Carvel, which is on John Street in the Financial District. The company is famous for its ice cream cakes – particularly Fudgie the Whale – but it also sells ice cream cones and other frozen treats. After eyeing various neon cakes and realizing they were all far too big, I opted for a Flying Saucer – a cookie ice cream sandwich – and Megg had a Chocolate Bonnet – an ice-cream cone dipped in chocolate.

As synthetic as it looked, ooh it was delicious. The ice cream was really light and the cookie was so soft. Megg managed to make a bit of a mess with hers but it was tasty too.

It’s not really flavorful ice cream like you’d get in a lot of stores, but I can see how it’s a crowd pleaser. And it was gone in seconds.

And while it doesn’t really compare to Count Duckula, it’s good to know my U.S friends had at least some joy in their younger years.