29 Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Ideas to Keep You Cool All Summer Long

Chilling the brownies overnight will make it easier to cut them neatly; they’ll also keep their shape nicely if you cut them in half. Feel free to swap out the Moose Tracks for your favorite flavor if you prefer.

Dress up plain vanilla ice cream with roasted summer berries.

The marvelous merger of orange and chocolate gets even better when you pair blood oranges’ raspberry nuances with dark chocolate and a little Campari for complexity. The herbal, slightly bitter liqueur also helps keep the sorbet from getting icy.

Plug in your waffle iron for a sinful, sweet treat!  Prepare yourself, these decadent ice cream sandwiches are next level. Mouth-watering, cinnamon-sugar churros (waffled) pair perfectly with large scoops of ice cream and a chocolaty drizzle.

Rose water brings out the floral quality in nectarines (who knew they’re in the same botanical family?). For the creamiest texture, serve this the same day it’s made.

Studded with vanilla seeds, this ice cream has intense flavor.

Bananas are folded into vanilla ice cream for this unique sundae.

We couldn’t believe how simple it was to make these frozen treats. You can strain out the seeds if you like, but we love the texture they lend to the popsicles. Feel free to use boysenberries, pitted cherries, or other favorites instead of the combination of fruits here.

Refreshing and sweet with a hint of earthiness, this sorbet shows off tomatoes’ fruity side.

No need to haul out the ice cream maker or pie plate for this ode to summer pies. Store-bought vanilla ice cream swirled with sweet-tart rhubarb compote, plus shortbread “crust” crumbles, gives new meaning to pie à la mode. Use other berries if you like.

Use the best-tasting oranges you can find for this sorbet. Because every orange has a different level of sweetness and acid, adjust the sorbet syrup and lemon juice to taste.

Consider the best way to use up those in-season berry bounty.

These soft, yielding cookies have a double dose of chocolate. They’re the perfect foil for rich, gooey peanut butter ice cream.

Kulfi is a rich, thick ice cream beloved on the Indian subcontinent–and on Indian menus in the West. Natural food coloring gives them a greenish hue (otherwise they are pale brown). You can use any mold you like for these popsicles, but you’ll get a different number of pops depending on the mold size.

Mexican chocolate, usually described on the package as “Mexican chocolate drink mix,” is a spiced chocolate bar that’s commonly melted for hot chocolate. It gives the ice cream a pudding-like texture.

Though the ice cream is fantastic on its own, chef and cookbook author John McReynolds turns it into a sophisticated dessert with the addition of caramelized walnuts and a drizzle of saba—ripe wine-grape juice cooked down to a fruity syrup. He makes his own saba each autumn, but you can buy saba at gourmet grocery stores (or substitute good-quality balsamic vinegar).

Cream cheese and vanilla beans give these treats an extraordinary depth of flavor. Just as amazing: the time saved by making the sandwiches in a big pan rather than assembling them individually.

Lemon verbena leaves are very fragrant and make excellent crème brûlée and ice cream. Verbena (as it’s most often called) isn’t widely available in markets, but it’s easy to grow. If you don’t happen to have some handy, you can use another aromatic herb such as mint or tarragon.

You only need three ingredients for this ice cream recipe.

This creamy, brightly flavored dessert is delicious served with your favorite cookies, but for a more festive presentation, alternate scoops with vanilla ice cream and pour Champagne over the top.

We love how easy it is to put this delicious pie together (you probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry already).

This coconut avocado ice cream is silky smooth, luscious, and surprisingly good with chocolate sauce.

If you have access to fresh chamomile, give it a try here. Or use dried chamomile tea, which imparts a more earthy flavor.

Cool-down with a nutritious and creamy, summer treat. Don’t have a popsicle mold? That’s ok. Use a mason jar! Mix ingredients in a small mason jar, shake, add crushed raspberries, a spoonful of chia pudding, and freeze until solid, 4 to 5 hours. Not only is this method mess-free but it’s also super cute!

This dense sherbet is subtly dark and elegant. If you’re wondering what the difference is between sorbet and sherbet, sorbet typically contains little more than fruit and sweeteners, while sherbet adds eggs or dairy products such as milk or a splash of half-and-half. FYI: Bing cherries will make a deep, bluish red, almost purple sherbet; lighter-hued cherries produce a tangier, brighter red sherbet.

If you’ve never made one of these classic confections, you’ll be tempted now. The bottom layer is genoise, a light, rich cake for which eggs and sugar are warmed over simmering water and then beaten with other ingredients. Ice cream goes on the cake, then the whole thing is cloaked in meringue and put in the oven. The meringue turns golden but insulates the ice cream, so it stays frozen. 

Sauvignon Blanc’s characteristic green-apple flavors blend seamlessly with the fruit itself.

Zingy lemon-lime ice cream, rich coconut sorbet, sweet ripe pineapple, and toasted coconut–it’s the taste of an island vacation. A pineapple is ripe if it smells fragrant and it’s easy to pull a leaf from the center of the crown (if you have to tug, the pineapple isn’t ready).

This bright-tasting sorbet gains an exquisite aroma from a small amount of lavender.