Cool Off with These Homemade Ice Cream, Sorbet, Sherbet, and Gelato Recipes

Ice Cream in a Cone Against Wall
Karl Tapales / Getty Image

While we believe ice cream can be enjoyed 365 days a year, it feels extra right come summer. There's nothing like cooling off with a double (or triple) scoop in a cone topped with hot fudge sauce, sprinkles, and a cherry on top. Here, we're serving up all kinds of flavors that range from traditional churning methods to no-churn, delicious dairy delights and vegan recipes, as well as sorbet, sherbet, and gelato iterations. You'll find classic ice cream recipes for old-fashioned scoops like vanilla, chocolate, cookies and cream, and coffee, as well as seasonal spins such as pumpkin and peach ice cream. It's time to put your ice cream maker to good use.

If you need to follow a dairy-free diet, know that you can still enjoy ice cream. We have recipes including vegan ice cream made from a coconut milk base (as opposed to the usual heavy cream, whole milk, or condensed milk). Plus, all of our sorbet recipes—which run the gamut from Meyer lemon to mixed berries to grapefruit—are dairy-free and are made just with a few ingredients (usually puréed fruit, sugar, and lemon juice).

Along the way, our recipes will teach you how to prevent ice crystals from forming when churning ice cream and achieve a smooth, luscious texture. If you're short on time, we also have quick ice cream recipes that come together in less than one hour and chill in a flash.

On a hot day, grab an ice cream scoop, your favorite toppings, and prepare a delicious bowl (or cone!) of ice cream, sorbet, sherbet, or gelato using these sweet recipes. Make them ahead so that you can enjoy them at the drop of a hat on a beautiful summer day.

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Cookies and Cream Ice Cream

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Mike Krautter

Kids and kids at heart will love this black and white ice cream that has chocolate sandwich cookies folded into the cream mixture and sprinkled on top as a garnish.

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No-Churn Mint-Chip Ice Cream

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Bryan Gardner

Since you're using sweetened condensed milk as the base, you don't need to worry about churning this ice cream recipe. A combination of peppermint extract and crème de menthe bring a fresh mint flavor to each scoop.

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Martha's Strawberry Ice Cream

strawberry ice cream
Marcus Nilsson

Our founder's favorite ice cream recipe uses an entire pound of strawberries, which gives it not only a pretty pink hue but plenty of fresh flavor, too.

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Peach Ice Cream

peach ice cream scoop
Bryan Gardner

This summery ice cream recipe calls for an entire pound of sliced peaches, plus equal parts of heavy cream and whole milk and eight egg yolks to form the creamy base.

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Rose-Geranium-and-Cardamom Ice Cream

Rose Geranium and Cardamom Ice Cream with Roasted Peaches and Almond Cookies
Jake Stangel

How elegant is this ice cream? It calls for steeping rose-geranium leaves and cardamom pods in a combination of heavy cream and whole milk before the dairy is strained and churned.

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Pumpkin Ice Cream

Pumpkin Ice Cream

Come autumn, we're all about pumpkin ice cream, no matter the temperature. Try it with our favorite caramel sauce, which perfectly complements the fall flavor.

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Mango-Olive Oil Sorbet

mango-olive oil sorbet served in glass bowls
Johnny Miller

Extra-virgin olive oil adds a richness and fruitiness that is intoxicatingly delicious in this vegan fruit sorbet, which is made with two pounds of yellow mangoes.

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Meyer Lemon Gelato

meyer lemon gelato brioche

If you can't make it to Italy for a scoop of gelato, try making this version at home. This recipe calls for the juice and zest of five Meyer lemons, which are more aromatic and a touch sweeter than the regular Eureka lemons.

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Vegan Avocado Ice Cream

avocado ice cream
Martyna Szczesna

No cream here! A combination of avocados and coconut milk make this dairy-free ice cream plenty rich. Xanthan gum also helps to provide some body and prevent ice crystals from forming.

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Chai Ice Cream

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Con Poulos

Sweet, spice, and everything nice, this ice cream recipe gets its chai flavor by infusing milk with black tea and an assortment of whole spices—black peppers, coriander seeds, allspices, cloves, and cardamom pods.

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Grapefruit Sorbet

Grapefruit Sorbet recipe
Paola + Murray

Ultra-refreshing and totally vegan, this four-ingredient citrus sorbet is made with a combination of fresh grapefruit and lemon juice, sugar, and Campari, which is an Italian apertif that contributes a bright orange hue.

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Peach Sorbet

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Marcus Nilsson

Whether you choose a cup or a cone, this three-ingredient peach sorbet couldn't be easier to make or more delicious to eat.

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Strawberry Ice Cream

Strawberry Ice Cream

Eight egg yolks plus heavy cream make this ice cream deliciously rich, and the addition of a whole quart of sliced strawberries makes it explode with fresh berry flavor.

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Chocolate Ice Cream

scooping chocolate ice cream
John Kernick

This chocolate ice cream offers a mix of bittersweet and milk chocolate, plus a pinch of salt for an irresistible treat.

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Quick Vanilla Ice Cream

Quick Vanilla Ice Cream

This rich and fragrant vanilla-seed-flecked ice cream begins with a cooked custard base of egg yolks and cream.

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Coffee Ice Cream

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Crushed espresso beans infuse the vanilla custard base for an aromatic coffee ice cream that captures the essence of an espresso shot in cool, creamy form.

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Berry Sorbet

berry sorbets

Use any combination of blueberries, currants, or red, black, or white raspberries to give this sorbet its varied, vivid colors.

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Strawberry Aperol Sorbet

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Naho Kubota

Aperol, a favorite aperitif of Martha's, puts a sophisticated twist on traditional strawberry sorbet.

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Cucumber, Celery, and Gin Sorbet

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Naho Kubota

The herbaceous freshness of cucumber, celery, and gin tastes like summer on a spoon.

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Banana-Caramel Ice Cream

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Jonathan Lovekin

The secret to the intense banana flavor of this banana-caramel ice cream is starting with very overripe fruit. Ribbons of salty, chewy, ever-so-slightly bitter caramel wind their way through every sweet and creamy spoonful.

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Rose Raspberry Sorbet

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Naho Kubota

Life is a bed of roses—and raspberries—when you scoop up a bowl of this aromatic sorbet.

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Blueberry Buttermilk Sherbet

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Naho Kubota

The sweetness of fresh blueberries pairs beautifully with the creamy tang of buttermilk.

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Banana-Rum-Raisin Ice Cream

Banana-Rum-Raisin Ice Cream

A soak in rum syrup gives a kick to golden raisins. Whipped cream folded into a base of sweetened condensed milk gives this ice cream a smooth texture, no ice-cream maker required!

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Coconut Gelato

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This smooth gelato is a coconut triple threat, incorporating grated coconut, cream of coconut, and sweetened angel-flake coconut, too.

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No-Churn Vanilla Ice Cream

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Petrina Tinslay

Sweetened condensed milk, whipped cream, and a dash of bourbon are the secrets to achieving a perfectly creamy texture without an ice cream maker.

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Orange Ice Cream

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Fresh orange zest infuses the simple custard base for a subtle citrus flavor. We especially like this ice cream in a cream soda float or drizzled with hot fudge sauce.

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