Ice Cream

Is there anything better than ice cream on a hot summer's day? Maybe not.

Here are six yummy ice cream recipes to try, including Peanut Butter Coconut Ice Cream and Lemon-Gingerbread Ice Cream Sandwiches. Enjoy!

FRESH MANGO ICE CREAM

Several years ago, I signed up for newsletters from Authentic Florida. If you haven't signed up for their newsletters, I highly recommend it (especially if you live in and/or love Florida).

This recipe was posted in the Authentic Florida newsletter on July 21, 2020, and reposted on July 15, 2021. It's definitely yummy, and is an Authentic Florida recipe. It begins, "Florida mangos are in season and Authentic Florida’s fresh mango ice cream recipe is the perfect dessert to help you cool down. Try this fresh, delicious, tropical, and refreshing dessert that does not require an ice cream machine!"

Yield: 1-1/2 gallons

To view this online, go to https://authenticflorida.com/authentic-floridas-fresh-mango-ice-cream/. (And while you're there, don't forget to sign up for Authentic Florida's newsletter.)

Ingredients

2-1/2 cups of cubed mangos (about 3 ripe medium-sized mangos)

1/3 + 3/4 cup of granulated sugar, plus extra if needed

2-1/2 Tablespoons of lime juice (1-2 limes)

1-3/4 cups of Half & Half cream

1-1/4 cups of coconut milk (1 can found in the Asian section of a grocery store)

6-8 fresh mint leaves for garnish (optional)

1 ice cream maker (optional)

Instructions

Peel the mangos and cut them into small cubes. (You’ll be cutting around a large seed.) In a medium bowl combine the cubed mango with 1/3 cup of sugar, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for one hour (or longer if you have the time).

Next, pour the contents from the refrigerated mangoes (including the juice) in a saucepan over medium-low heat for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and cool. Note: if you have leftover mango (more than 2-1/2 cups), keep the mixture refrigerated to place over the finished ice cream.

In a blender or food processor, puree the mango mixture.

Next, add the lime juice and process it again. Cover and chill for an hour.

Gently stir in the pureed mango. Taste test the mixture to decide whether it’s sweet enough and if not add 1-2 tablespoons of sugar. From this point, pour into a plastic container, cover with a tight lid, and chill in the freezer, stirring occasionally until hardened. If you have an ice cream maker, following the recommended directions. In a large bowl, combine the Half & Half and the coconut milk with the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Remove from the freezer 15 minutes before serving. Top with some mint and fresh-cut mangos. Enjoy!

PEACH ICE CREAM

This comes from Julia Reed in The New York Times cooking newsletter. Julia wrote, "This easy ice cream is meant to evoke hazy memories of a summer spent luxuriating on a front porch, cold glass in hand, waiting as your ice cream maker does the churning work for a late-afternoon treat. Use the best peaches you can find — the flavor of this depends directly on the fruit. You can also use mangoes or strawberries, or other stone fruits. Use your imagination, but let the ice cream maker do most of the work."

Yield: About 1-1/2 quarts, 6 to 8 servings; Time: About 1 hour, plus freezing

This was featured in "FOOD; Frozen Assets", and can be viewed online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/6658-peach-ice-cream.

Ingredients

4 pounds ripe peaches

1 1/4 cups sugar (or more, as needed)

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 quart (4 cups) heavy cream

1 2-inch piece of vanilla bean (or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)

Preparation

Peel peaches over a large bowl to catch the juice. Halve and pit them and chop roughly. Place in the bowl and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of sugar, the salt and lemon juice and let them sit for 30 minutes.

While peaches macerate, put cream and remaining sugar in saucepan with vanilla bean or vanilla. Heat over medium-low heat, stirring frequently to keep from scorching, until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool. Discard vanilla bean.

Pour cream over peaches and mix thoroughly. Taste to see if it needs more sugar. (This will depend on the peaches.) Refrigerate until chilled.

Pour the mixture into an ice-cream machine and freeze according to the manufacturer's directions until set but not quite hard. (If serving immediately, freeze harder.) Pack the ice cream into a bowl or mold to completely solidify. When it has hardened, dip mold into hot water or wrap in a hot towel and invert onto a serving platter. Or, simply scoop and serve.

Tip

This recipe is also delicious made with fresh mangoes.

FRESH FRUIT YOGURT POPS

This comes from Vegetarian Times (July/August 2005 issue, page 65), and begins, "Corn syrup keeps these super-simple treats from developing ice crystals or freezing into blocks. Feel free to play around with fruit combinations." It also states, "Any summer fruit except watermelon, which has too high of a water content, will work in this recipe for healthy, colorful popsicles." Makes 8 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/fresh-fruit-yogurt-pops-recipe/.

Ingredients

2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup corn syrup

2 cups fresh summer fruit, such as raspberries, pitted cherries, etc.

Preparation

Place yogurt, vanilla, lemon juice, corn syrup and 1 cup fruit in blender or food processor, and purée until smooth. Add remaining fruit, and pulse 3 or 4 times, or until fruit is broken down into small pieces.

Pour mixture into 8 1/2-cup frozen-pop molds. Place top on mold; insert wooden sticks. Freeze at least 4 hours.

LEMON-GINGERBREAD ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

This comes from Vegetarian Times (July/August 2005 issue, page 62), and begins, "These ice cream sandwiches will become a year-round favorite." Serves 12

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/lemon-gingerbread-ice-cream-sandwiches/.

Ingredients

1/3 cup molasses

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup boiling water

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

2 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. each ground cloves, ground nutmeg, ground black pepper and salt

8 Tbs. (1 stick) soy margarine, softened

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 pints lemon sorbet

4 cups vanilla soy "ice cream"

Preparation

Put molasses in heatproof bowl. Sprinkle baking soda over top. Add boiling water; whisk with fork.

Blend flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, pepper and salt in large bowl. Cream margarine and brown sugar in another bowl. Add molasses mixture; beat until soft dough forms. Divide in half, wrap each in plastic wrap and chill 1 hour.

Put 1 dough ball between 2 sheets wax paper. Roll into 8 1/2 x 12 1/2-inch shape; remove top wax paper. Using sharp knife, trim dough edges; cut dough into 12 2×4-inch rectangles. Prick with fork. Transfer on wax paper to cookie sheet; chill 30 minutes.

Repeat with remaining dough.

Preheat oven to 325F. Grease 2 cookie sheets. Transfer rectangles from wax paper to cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until set but still soft to the touch. Transfer to wire rack, and cool completely.

Meanwhile, scoop sorbet and ice cream into large bowl; blend with wooden spoon. Freeze 20 minutes or longer, or until mixture is firm.

When completely cool, spread 1/2 cup frozen lemon filling onto bottom of one cookie. Pat filling down with spatula. Place second cookie on top (pricked side up), and gently press down. Scrape away any filling that spreads past edges, and use it to fill in corners. Smooth edges. Repeat with remaining cookies. Wrap sandwiches in plastic wrap, and freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.

ICE CREAM IN A BAG

This is from Lena Abraham, Senior Food Editor at Delish. Lena wrote, "You don't need a fancy ice cream maker to make ice cream at home. All you need is a plastic baggie and 15 minutes. Top with any of your favorite topping and enjoy homemade ice cream instantly! If we had known making your own ice cream was this easy we would have started making it a long time ago!

"To customize you can change up the extract or add in a little chocolate syrup before you start shaking. We also love folding in chopped Oreos or Reeses after. If you want your ice cream a little firmer, place it in an airtight container in the freezer before serving."

Prep Time: 5 minutes; Total Time: 15 minutes; Yields: 1 serving

To view this online, go to https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a54721/ice-cream-in-a-bag-recipe/.

Ingredients

1 c. half-and-half

2 tbsp. granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

3 c. ice

1/3 c. kosher salt

Toppings of your choice

Directions

In a small resealable plastic bag, combine half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla. Push out excess air and seal.

Into a large resealable plastic bag, combine ice and salt. Place small bag inside the bigger bag and shake vigorously, 7 to 10 minutes, until ice cream has hardened.

Remove from bag and enjoy with your favorite ice cream toppings.

PEANUT BUTTER COCONUT ICE CREAM

This is from the June 2008 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 63. It begins, "A heavy-duty blender (such as a Vita-Mix) makes quick work of this frozen treat, but a regular blender will get the job done if you just keep turning it off and pushing down the ice cubes. Or you can simply blend all the ingredients, chill, and process in an ice cream maker." Makes 6 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/peanut-butter-coconut-ice-cream/.

Ingredients

1 13.5-oz. can light coconut milk (1-1/2 cups)

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup French vanilla soy creamer, divided

Preparation

Purée coconut milk, maple syrup, peanut butter, and vanilla in blender until smooth. Pour mixture into 2 ice cube trays, and freeze solid. Transfer to resealable plastic bags if storing for more than 2 days.

Place half of ice cream cubes and 1/2 cup soy creamer in blender, and process until smooth and creamy. Repeat with second tray of cubes and remaining 1/2 cup soy creamer.