Your favorite summer pie is now your favorite ice cream flavor! This creamy, no-churn frozen treat is filled with homemade cherry pie filling and buttery pastry crust for an irresistible dessert that requires no ice cream machine.
Do You Love Cherry Pie?
What’s your favorite type of pie? Ever since I met my husband back in 2006, he has spoken of his love for cherry pie. Personally, I’m more of an apple pie lover, since cherry pie wasn’t something that I had ever been exposed to back in Ireland. (It probably won’t be a surprise to you that I don’t like pumpkin pie either….it must be an Irish thing!)
I’m a lover of natural foods as much as possible, and the thought of making a pie using some syrupy filling out of a can kind of grossed me out too. I suppose when you grow up with something you don’t really think about the ingredients, but since I didn’t grow up with it, I was very aware of the ingredients he wanted me to use to make it.
Anyway, to make a short story even shorter – I told my husband I would never make him a cherry pie because I just couldn’t get past that canned filling.
I Finally Gave in!
In fairness, after a few years of me saying no, he finally dropped it. Then I realized how selfish I was, mostly only baking things that I wanted to eat.
So for Father’s Day this year (ahem 14 years later), I thought I would surprise him with a cherry pie!
Easy Cherry Pie Filling
Of course, not just any cherry pie. I made the filling from scratch – and oh how easy it was!
In fact, assuming you have some cherries in your fridge, it was much quicker than getting in the car and driving to the supermarket to buy a can of cherry pie filling.
The pie turned out delicious and my husband was a happy man.
But it got me thinking. Lately, I’ve been on a homemade ice cream kick. I’ve made s’mores ice cream at my kids’ request and also coffee ice cream which is another of my hubby’s longtime loves. So I thought maybe cherry pie might be a fun way to experiment with my simple ice cream base.
The Creamiest Cherry Pie Ice Cream Recipe
And wow. I’m so glad I tried it! This version puts the other ice cream recipes to shame. I’m still not totally convinced about cherry pie in full-on pie form. I don’t think it’s for me. But this no-churn cherry pie ice cream I can get on board with.
It’s so creamy, with just enough sweetness from the homemade filling and just enough of the buttery, flaky pastry to make you think of pie. It’s really quite something.
If you haven’t tried a no-churn ice cream recipe before, you’re going to be amazed at how easy it is as well as how delicious the results are.
After firmly stating that my coffee ice cream was the best thing ever last month, Hubby is scratching that and declaring this the king of ice creams.
That seems like a pretty good compliment for a quick ice cream experiment, right?
Make The Filling Ahead of Time
You can make the pie filling and pastry ahead of time. The filling will keep in the fridge for about a week and any extra left over from the ice cream recipe can be used to drizzle over your ice cream.
My kids like to put a scoop into a sugar cone with the ice cream on top. That way they get a sweet treat at the bottom of the cone too!
The Moral of The Story? Try New Things or Turn Them into Something You Know You’ll Like!
And that, my friend, is the how and why behind the development of this recipe!
If you’re not a fan of cherry pie (like me) but have someone in your family that loves it, this is the perfect compromise. Because everyone loves good ice cream, right?
Cherry Pie Ice Cream
Ingredients
Cherry Pie Filling
- 2 cups pitted fresh cherries
- 1 ½ tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- pinch salt
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup water
- ½ tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp lemon zest (zest the lemon before juicing it!)
Ice Cream
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 1 cup cherry pie filling (you will have extra leftover)
- ¼ sheet puff pastry (baked and cooled according to instructions)
Instructions
For The Cherry Pie Filling
- In medium saucepan, combine cherries, cornstarch, lemon juice, salt, sugar, and water over medium heat until mixture starts to bubble.
- Turn heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often.
- Remove from heat and add vanilla and lemon zest. Cool for 10-15 minutes before transferring to a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use.
For The Pie Crust
- Defrost and bake ¼ of one sheet of puff pastry according to package instructions.
- Allow to cool completely before using in the remainder of the recipe.
For The Ice Cream
- Using a handheld electric mixer or a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the heavy cream and vanilla until the cream forms stiff peaks, approximately 3 – 5 minutes.
- Turn the mixer to low and mix in the sweetened condensed milk. Increase speed to high and mix until once again thick.
- Spoon in approximately 1 inch layer of the ice cream mixture into a metal loaf pan. Using a spoon, place small dollops of the pie pilling around the mixture, being careful not to mix it in (the ice cream will turn pink if you do). Sprinkle chunks of the pie crust over the entire layer.
- Add another layer of ice cream over the first layer, using a spatula to gently spread it out. Add more of the cherry pie filling, placing it in different spots than the first layer. Sprinkle more pieces of the pastry over it.
- Add a third and final layer of ice cream with more filling on top. Using a toothpick to make little swirls. Finally, sprinkle the remaining pastry on top.
- Freeze overnight or for a minimum of 8 hours. Allow to soften for 5 minutes before scooping.
