National Ice Cream Day is Sunday: 25 crazy cool recipes

1/25

Make it with semisweet chocolate or bittersweet chocolate. Your choice.
Recipe: Port-infused chocolate zabaglione
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

2/25

This ice cream has some heft to it.
Recipe: Buckwheat ice cream
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

3/25

These creamy pops take their inspiration from the yogurt-based coolers of the Middle East.
Recipe: Blueberry and lavender pops
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

4/25

Hiccup.
Recipe: Beer ice cream
(Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

5/25

This flavor combo is hugely popular in Paris.
Recipe: Prune-Armagnac ice cream
(Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

6/25

Flakes of gray sea salt add something special.
Recipe: Chocolate sea salt cookie ice cream sandwiches
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

7/25

A perfumed dessert.
Recipe: Rose water granita
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

8/25

A refreshing twist on an ice cream sandwich.
Recipe: Hazelnut meringues with orange sherbet
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

9/25

You won’t miss the cake.
Recipe: Carrot cake ice cream
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

10/25

A perfect use for very ripe bananas.
Recipe: Creamy coconut and banana pops
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

11/25

The molasses adds a subtle sweetness.
Recipe: Molasses cookie ice cream sandwiches
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

12/25

Consider it a bit of a palate cleanser.
Recipe: Parmesan gelato
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

13/25

Sweetened with dates and honey.
Recipe: Dark chocolate, date and sesame pops
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

14/25

This recipe works for a crowd.
Recipe: Coconut cookie ice cream sandwiches
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

15/25

Try to find orange blossom honey -- but no worries if you can’t. Other honeys work too.
Recipe: Peach and orange blossom honey pops
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

16/25

Thick, rich and creamy.
Recipe: Marsala-infused zabaglione
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

17/25

Tart and sweet.
Recipe: Lemon cardamom ice cream
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

18/25

A little bit cool, a little bit spicy.
Recipe: Cucumber-chile paletas
(Carlos Chavez / Los Angeles Times)

19/25

Not too sweet.
Recipe: Green tea ice cream
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

20/25

Rich and creamy.
Recipe: Orange, buttermilk and mint pops
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

21/25

This one has some tang to it.
Recipe: Goat cheese ice cream
(Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

22/25

Candied ginger adds some heat.
Recipe: Spicy cantaloupe and ginger pops
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

23/25

Guests won’t be able to guess the secret ingredient.
Recipe: Ricotta-honey gelato with orange
(Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

24/25

We always get requests for this one at Thanksgiving.
Recipe: Pumpkin pie ice cream with pecan praline
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

25/25

There’s really no reason to wait for November for this.
Recipe: Cranberry frozen yogurt
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

By Rene Lynch

July 20, 2013 7:30 AM PT

Are you ready for the double holiday weekend? What holiday, you ask? Don’t you know that Sunday, July 21, is National Ice Cream Day? And that July is National Ice Cream Month?

There are few things better than homemade ice cream, made with fresh ingredients like vanilla bean, and fresh blend-ins like juice peaches or fresh strawberries. But here’s the catch: Most ice creams -- or gelatos, sherbets, sorbets, what have you -- require some advance planning.

Which begs the question: Is your ice cream maker bowl in your freezer? No? Then stop reading this right now and put it in the chill chest. Go on. We’ll wait.

PHOTOS: 25 crazy cool flavors for National Ice Cream Day

A well-chilled ice cream maker freezer bowl is often a crucial prerequisite to making ice cream -- as opposed to ice cream soup -- so you need to get that started. Believe it or not, that’s often the hardest part of making homemade ice cream.

We pored through the L.A. Times Test Kitchen’s archives for some of our favorite ice cream flavors and styles. In addition to ice creams, we’ve got granitas, frozen zabagliones, popsicles, sherbets, gelatos and more, all to help you enjoy this double holiday weekend.

You’ll find that many are blissfully easy to make -- so welcome on a hot summer day -- and just require blending a few ingredients together before pouring the mixture into your chilled ice cream maker bowl.

Or you could skip that and go to your local ice cream parlor.

How are you planning to celebrate this ice cream weekend?

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