[donotprint]This Berry Ice Cream Pie is perfect for summer. Read on for how to keep one in your freezer for hot summer nights when you want a cool dessert.
Berries, Berries, Berries
One of my favorite things about summer is the berries.Whether it’s strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, or blackberries….there is something so marvelous, so mystifying about these perfect little orbs, so intricately designed and colorful.
As a child, however, the beauty of berries didn’t fully register on me as we knelt down in the hot Nebraska sun to pick those luscious strawberries in our farmyard garden before the rabbits or birds ate them or the deer trampled them.
Today, I buy my berries at the grocery store or farmer’s market, and then look for ways to use them. One of my favorite desserts is to fill a pastry crust or cookie crumb crust with a berry ice cream or sorbet and then make a sauce from the fresh berries.
Here is a quick, easy dessert….at least once it’s made, it is so quick and easy to just pull it from your freezer and serve it on a hot summer day. So, keep one of these in your freezer and you’re ready for anything.[/donotprint]
Berry Ice Cream Pie©
Choose your favorite seasonal fresh berries as the theme for this ice cream pie. Here, strawberry ice cream, topped with strawberry jam and fresh strawberries is delightful. Or, follow the same idea with raspberries or blackberries or blueberries.
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Basic Pastry Crust for a 9-inch pie, single crust (gluten-free storebought, or see any of my cookbooks for a recipe)
1 quart gluten-free berry ice cream, softened enough to spread in pie crust
1 cup gluten-free chocolate chips
1 cup berry jam of choice (I use strawberry jam in the photo)
2 cups fresh berries to complement berry jam (I use fresh strawberries in the photo)
[1] Place racks in the bottom and middle of the oven. Prepare the Basic Pie Crust dough as directed in any of my cookbooks. Divide the dough in half (freeze remaining half for another dessert) and roll the dough to a 10-inch circle between two sheets of plastic wrap. Remove top sheet of plastic wrap, invert the crust into a 9-inch nonstick (gray, not black) pie pan, and remove the remaining plastic wrap. Trim the edge and flute it decoratively. Prick the bottom of the crust with a fork to let steam escape.
[2] Bake the crust on the bottom rack of the oven for 15 minutes. Shift the pie crust to the middle rack and continue baking just until the crust and edges become firm and are lightly browned, about 10 to 15 minutes. Watch carefully at this stage to avoid over-browning. Remove the crust from the oven and sprinkle the bottom evenly with chocolate chips. Cool completely on a wire rack.
[3] Spread the softened ice cream evenly in the baked crust. Wrap tightly and freeze at least 4 hours or overnight.
[4] To serve, thin the berry jam with enough hot water to make a sauce. Cut the pie into 8 slices and drizzle the sauce on top, garnished with fresh berries. Makes 8 slices.
NOTE: See Carol’s Pie Crust 101 for her pie crust tips.