6 no-churn ice creams to beat the heat

So, about that ice cream. Sure, you could go buy a pint at the store — but we all know nothing beats homemade. Ideally, sprinkled with your favorite toppings or a dollop of whipped cream.

Don’t worry: You don’t need to pull out the pots or turn on the stove to enjoy a frozen treat. In fact, you don’t even need an ice cream machine. It’s basically magic. Yes, you’ll still have to be patient. But when making ice cream is this easy, a couple of hours of inactive thumb twiddling is a small price to pay.

Here, we’ve gathered six of our simplest no-cook, no-churn ice creams guaranteed to cool you off this summer.1. Nigella Lawson’s one-step, no churn coffee ice cream

(James Ransom/Courtesy Food52)

The one that won our hearts and opened our eyes. This four-ingredient, one-step wonder needs no cooking, and no churning. And yet, this recipe makes an ice cream with an almost buttery smoothness.2. Dori Sanders’ no-churn fresh lemon ice cream

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This sweet, bright lemon ice cream comes from Dori Sanders, an 84-year-old peach farmer, novelist, and cookbook author, and might be one of the best no-churn treats we’ve tried yet.3. Peaches and sour cream ice cream

(James Ransom/Courtesy Food52)

If you’re looking for a simple, sweet summer treat, go ask Alice Medrich: «Somewhere between ice cream and sherbet, it’s neither as creamy-rich as the first nor as icy as the latter. By using sour cream in place of a custard base, you’ll get a dessert that’s colder and more refreshing in your mouth than classic ice cream, with a cleaner and tangier fruit flavor.»4. Totally homemade, ridiculously easy hot fudge sundae

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Why just make ice cream when you can have a whole dang sundae? Okay, okay — you will need your stove to make the hot fudge sauce, which is a sacrifice I’m willing to make.5. No-churn coffee-cinnamon ice cream with caramel sauce

(Courtesy Food52)

Heavily inspired by Nigella’s masterpiece, this recipe comes from Izy Hossack, who adds a dash of cinnamon. Again, the sauce needs a stove … but the ice cream is so good, it doesn’t need the sauce.6. Mrs. Owen’s unchurned ice cream cake

(Julia Gartland/Courtesy Food52)

What’s more impressive than no-churn ice cream? A no-churn ice cream cake (duh). It’s easy to make and even easier to eat. But what really impressed our testers was something else: «The part to shout from the rooftops is the use of cream cheese and crème fraîche. I think all ice cream should include cream cheese!»

This story was originally published on Food52.com: These 6 no-churn ice creams are summertime magic.