I’ve recently discovered my super market stocks frozen pitted cherries. They are the best! My boys love them for dessert either on their own or with some shaved chocolate. But when I made this cherry ice cream for them the other day they were beyond excited.
If you can’t find commercial frozen cherries, you could pit and freeze your own. Or just substitute frozen berries.
Quick Cherry ‘Ice Cream’
Instructions
- Get cherries out of the freezer about 10 minutes before you’re ready to start.
- Place cherries and cream in the food processor and puree until you have a lovely soft serve ice cream. It might take a while to get going so be patient.
Variations
different fruit – lovely with berries, apricots, plums or peaches. Tropical fruit like mango, pineapple and banana are also lovely but watch the carbs!
dairy-free / paleo – replace cream with coconut milk, nut milk or water.
short on time – just serve the ripe fruit with cream.
no food processor? – you really need one here…. just serve the fresh fruit with cream instead.
chocolate – Stir in shaved chocolate before serving.
firmer ice cream – pop back in the freezer for a few hours to firm up. Longer than about 4 hours and it will start to go icy so the texture won’t be as nice.
extra creamy – use extra cream or use double cream (my favourite!).
Waste Avoidance Strategy
cherries – keep in the freezer for years.
cream – freeze it or use for another meal.
Problem Solving Guide
too soft – pop back in the freezer to firm up.
not coming together – keep processing! A little more cream or a splash of water can help speed up the process.
Serving Suggestions
Lovely in little bowls on its own. Or try mixing with other flavours.
Prepare Ahead
Yes! You can puree the frozen cherries a few hours ahead and keep in the freezer. Longer than about 6 hours, the ice cream will be more solid and icy but still edible.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
I have made this a number of times since cutting out sugar. It’s creamy and delicious and just sweet enough that I don’t miss ice cream anymore. My favourite variation is cherry ripe ice cream – I add a bit of desiccated coconut and some cocoa powder, and leave a few chunks of cherry in it. So good!
Yum Rita!
This is good. I’ve been doing this with various berries and mango using yoghurt instead of cream. I put the yoghurt into my blender then throw in the berries in ones and twos and threes until it gets stiff. Pour it in a bowl and it’s lovely eating on a hot day. You can make a mango lassi this way, too.
Yes Virginia!
If you want to get more of an Indian vibe to your lassi add a few cardamom seeds.