Baby, it’s hot outside. These 90+ degree days have us craving a big scoop of ice cream, so it’s fitting that July is National Ice Cream Month, and this Sunday, July 21st, is National Ice Cream Day.
Yes, you read that right; there is a month and a day dedicated to celebrating ice cream. President Ronald Regan proclaimed July National Ice Cream Month, and the third Sunday of July National Ice Cream Day in 1984 to recognize the popular sweet treat and its positive economic impact on the United States economy. He asked Americans to celebrate the month and day with “appropriate ceremonies and activities,” so a scoop or two of your favorite store-bought or homemade ice cream is in order.
The amount and variety of packaged ice cream in the frozen food aisle is overwhelming, so we rounded up our favorite ice creams, yogurts, and sorbets that are tasty, healthy, and available around the country. (Two words for you: Mango Sorbet.) Our mouths are watering just looking at the pictures!
If DIY is more your thing, here are 5 healthy homemade ice cream recipes. Their unique flavors are light, refreshing, and full of calcium.
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homemade-peach-ice-cream This recipe combines two summer specialties: ice cream and fresh fruit. Using calorie-free sweetener and fat-free milk cuts calories, without cutting any of the sweet taste. Plus, the almond extract adds a nutty flavor that goes perfectly with the tangy peaches. It’s great served alone, or with an almond biscotti. Ingredients: Fat-free evaporated milk, fat-free milk, calorie-free sweetener, egg substitute, almond extract, chopped fresh or frozen peachesCalories: 58
Homemade Peach Ice Cream
Ingredients: evaporated fat-free milk, fat-free milk, calorie-free sweetener, egg substitute, almond extract, fresh or frozen peaches (about 2 medium peaches)
Calories: 58 per 1/2 cup
Try this recipe: Homemade Peach Ice Cream
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warm-oranges-sake-cream This gourmet dessert will impress your friends both in taste and appearance. Sake lends sweetness to the cream, plus a subtle nutty top note that complements the brittle. The oranges bring vitamin C and the sesame seeds are a good source of iron and zinc. Though the ice cream is fat-free, the rich sake cream creates a completely sinful flavor. Ingredients: Cooking spray, granulated sugar, water, sesame seeds, sake, butter, brown sugar, salt, heavy cream, orange sections, vanilla fat-free ice creamCalories: 239
Warm Oranges in Sake Cream with Sesame Brittle
Ingredients: sugar, sesame seeds, sake, butter, brown sugar, heavy cream, orange sections (about 6 oranges), vanilla fat-free ice cream
Calories: 239 for a 1/2 cup sake cream, 1/2 cup ice cream, and 1/2 ounce brittle
Try this recipe: Warm Oranges in Sake Cream with Sesame Brittle
These recipes look gourmet and feel totally indulgent (without the extra calories and guilt!). If you can’t pass up on a trip to Ben & Jerry’s, Cold Stone Creamery, or Baskin-Robbins, opt for a small size and order a sorbet or frozen yogurt with fruit or nuts.
Happy National Ice Cream Day!
- Taste Test: 7 Healthy Ice Creams and Frozen Desserts
- 5 Slim Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Foodie Friday: We All Scream for (Guilt-Free) Ice Cream!