Pretty In Pink

Cheesecake Ice Cream. Cherry Sauce. Graham Crackers.

I'll give you a moment to be alone with this lovely scoop.......okay now wipe up the drool off your keyboard, then bookmark this recipe. You can thank me later.

I know it's officially Autumn (my favorite season) but it still feels like Summer. It's hot. It's humid and downright uncomfortable. Just until the other day, we had experienced 69 consecutive days of temperatures over 100 degrees. Not fun. That made for a very cranky wife and baker. So in the midst of it all I decided to whip up some ice cream. If you ask me, it's perfectly okay to consume this all year round.

This cheesecake ice cream could not be simpler. You blitz up cream cheese, sour cream, half-n-half and lemon (and orange) zest in the food processor or a blender then you chill it. You churn it in the ice cream maker and you're done. That's it!

I decided to make a cherry sauce to add to the ice cream for a cherry cheesecake version. I added some coarsely crushed graham crackers and called it Heaven. Seriously folks, this was down right delicious. David Lebovitz my thighs curse you thank you!

Cheesecake Ice Cream from Perfect Scoop

• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1 lemon (I used a combination of lemon and orange zest)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup half-n-half
• 2/3 cup sugar
• pinch of salt

Cut the cream cheese into small pieces. Zest the lemon directly into a blender or food processor, then add the cream cheese, sour cream, half-n-half, sugar and salt. Puree until smooth.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Makes about 3 cups.

Cherry Sauce adapted from Perfect Scoop

• 1 1/2 cups cherries, fresh or frozen
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a medium saucepan, heat the cherries and sugar til the fruit begins to release their juices. Mix the cornstarch with the cold water and lemon juice until lump free, then stir the slurry into the cherries.

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for one minute. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temp. Chill til ready to use.

NOTE: Can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

The original recipe calls for blueberries which cook down a bit. The cherries don't break down as much so it makes more than you need to add to the ice cream. I used about 1-1 1/4 cups of the cherry sauce then ate the rest to put on top of ice cream. Yum!

For the cherry cheesecake ice cream, you will need one recipe cheesecake ice cream (recipe above), about 1 cup cherry sauce (recipe above) and about 4-5 whole graham crackers, coarsely crushed.

In a freezer container layer:

1. crushed graham crackers
2. cherry sauce
3. cheesecake ice cream
4. repeat 2 more times, for a total of 3 layers each
5. freeze til completely solid
6. prepare to swoon

Total girl food and I loved every bit of it.