Snowballs (and Cones and Shaved Ice) at Your Fingertips

By Florence Fabricant, New York Times

Shaved ice with a drizzle of bright syrup can take dessert out for a holiday spin. The machine you need to produce it usually requires a block of ice. But Little Snowie 2, with a cute robotic profile, is designed for home use and does the job with ice cubes. Six flavor samples are included. For the season, syrups in holiday flavors, like candy cane, eggnog, fruitcake, cranberry cocktail and pumpkin spice are sold separately. The machine is compact enough to fit in a gift box under the tree.

Little Snowie 2, $199.99 (including shipping) at Bed Bath & Beyond, bedbathandbeyond.com; holiday flavors, snowie.com.