Refreshing & Light Summer Dessert Ideas

With the high temperatures we’ve been experiencing of late, try cooling yourself down with some of the following light summer dessert recipe ideas.

Berry Cool

2 cups plain yogurt

2 cups fresh raspberries or strawberries or 1 1/3 cups frozen

1/3 cup honey

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups crushed ice

Combine yogurt, berries, honey and vanilla in a blender and puree until smooth. Strain through a sieve. Pour over crushed ice and serve. Makes four servings.

Instant Lemon-Mint Ice

Empty 2 pints lemon ice or sherbet into your largest mixer bowl, add 1/3 cup green Creme de Menthe and beat quickly at high speed to blend. Repack in cartons and freeze until soft-firm. Serve topped with fresh berries.

Citrus Snow

1 package lemon, lime, or orange flavor gelatin

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups boiling water

1 tsp grated lemon rind

2 cups strained fresh grapefruit juice

Combine gelatin and sugar in a heatproof bowl; pour in boiling water and stir until gelatin and sugar are dissolved. Stir in lemon rind and grapefruit juice.

Pour into a 9x9x2-inch pan; freeze two hours or until mushy-firm. Transfer to a chilled medium-sized bowl. Beat until fluffy with an electric mixer at high speed. Return to freezer for another hour.

Spoon into bowls. Makes six servings.

Strawberry Sorbet

2 pints strawberries

1/2 cup sugar

1 tbsp. lemon juice

Combine all ingredients and puree in a food processor or blender until smooth. Pour into a baking pan or ice-cube trays and freeze until firm, three to four hours. Break mixture into pieces and whirr in batches in a blender or food processor until smooth, but still frozen. Serve the sorbet immediately or return to freezer. Makes four servings.

Coffee Granita

2 cups strong coffee

1/2 cup sugar

Combine coffee (leftover coffee works great) and sugar in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until sugar dissolves. Pour into a baking pan or ice-cube trays and let cool. Freeze until solid, about three hours. To serve, scrape a spoon across the top of the granita to form ice shards and pile them into serving bowls.

To microwave: Combine coffee and sugar in a glass measuring cup. Cook on high, stirring once until sugar has dissolved, about four minutes, and proceed as above. Makes four servings.