With summer swinging in, we are lightening up and cooling down in the kitchen. But that doesn’t signal deprivation — just a different style of cooking and eating.
Summer brings more casual vibes and, for the cook, a desire to avoid long bakes, roasts and braises. In terms of dessert, we still want our sweets for a nice finish to a meal; we just don’t want the oven on for an hour to achieve it.
Enter these two masterpieces. The first is a shortcut strawberry-vanilla ice cream that beats the scoop out of the store-bought variety, and the second is a simple icebox cake version of key lime pie. No oven, no stove, not even a microwave!
Shortcut Strawberry Vanilla Ice Cream | Dairy
Serves 2 generously or 4 sensibly
I was inspired to create this in response to the amazing crop of fresh strawberries that burst onto the scene this spring. It more closely resembles cherry vanilla ice cream than traditional strawberry in form — the berries are cut and mashed a bit, then strewn through the ice cream, keeping the vanilla intact while showcasing the beautiful, fresh fruit. I fully intend to replicate this cooling treat with whatever fresh fruit arrives throughout the season — peaches, blackberries, raspberries, oh, my!
1 pint premium vanilla ice cream
1½ cups fresh strawberries
Rinse, hull and chop the strawberries and place them in a shallow bowl with any juice that accumulates, then mash them a bit with the back of a spoon, fork or potato masher. You want mostly solid pieces but also some juice expelled to spread the flavor through the ice cream.
Cut the pint container off the ice cream with scissors and then, using a large, sharp knife, cut the block of ice cream into 1- to 2-inch chunks. Place the chunks in the bowl with the strawberries, toss to coat and allow it to soften for about 5 minutes.
Using two large forks, mix and mash the vanilla ice cream with the strawberries until all the berries and juice are evenly distributed. Serve immediately or store, well-sealed, in the freezer. Let it soften for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Key Lime Ice Box Cake | Dairy
This recipe mimics key lime pie without the hassle of making the graham cracker pie crust or baking the pie to avoid eating raw eggs in the custard. For a larger crowd, it can be doubled and made in a 13-inch-by-9-inch pan.
A note on the limes: The pie is called “key lime” because it traditionally uses the small, pit-strewn, hard-to-find limes indigenous to the Florida Keys. I find that fresh squeezed juice and zest from regular limes work perfectly well, but if you prefer the key limes, be my guest.
This cake could be made with any citrus fruit — lemon would be delightful in summer, and it can also be made with oranges or grapefruit for variety.
Serve garnished with fresh mint leaves and/or sliced limes, if desired.
1 can sweetened condensed milk
⅓ cup fresh squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon lime zest
1¾ cups heavy cream, divided
14 whole graham crackers
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
In a large bowl, mix the condensed milk, lime juice and zest. In a separate bowl, beat 1 cup of the heavy cream. Gradually fold the whipped cream into the lime juice mixture. In a square 8-inch-by-8-inch pan, place a single layer of graham crackers (you may need to break them to cover the bottom completely).
Spread half of the lime mixture over the graham crackers. Cover this with another layer of graham crackers, then the remaining lime-cream mixture. Top it with one more layer of graham crackers.
Whip the remaining ¾ cup of cream with the sugar and vanilla. Spread the whipped cream over the top layer of graham crackers, then cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
