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Lemon Meringue Ice Cream is a delicious ice cream that tastes just like lemon meringue pie! Light and lemony this ice cream is easy to make.
Why You’ll Love This Ice Cream
The idea for this ice cream came from a bag of vanilla meringue cookies I had bought for my husband. They were delicious and I knew they would be the perfect meringue in my lemon meringue ice cream.
This ice cream has all the flavor and texture of a lemon meringue pie thanks to the addition of graham crackers and meringue cookies.
Ingredients Needed:
- Milk. I use a combination of whole milk, whipping cream and half and half. If half and half is unavailable where you live, replace it with half whipping cream and half whole milk. If you have it available where you live, I strongly encourage using it.
- Sugar. Granulated sugar
- Extracts. Use a combination of vanilla and lemon extract for amazing flavor. The combination of extracts will give you a better flavor than using lemon juice.
- Meringue cookies. I bought my meringue cookies at Trader Joes. If you can’t find any, you can leave them out or add in some mini marshmallows.
- Graham Crackers. You can also use vanilla wafer cookies.
- Please Note: There are NO eggs in this recipe.
How to Make Lemon Meringue Ice Cream
- Whisk together milk, whipping cream and half and half in a large bowl.
- Add in sugar, vanilla extract, lemon extract and pinch of salt. Stir to dissolve sugar.
- Pour mixture into ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s directions.
- As it nears the end of churning, add in the crushed up meringue and graham crackers. Let it churn a few more times to mix in everything. The reason you add the cookies in at the end is so they don’t get dissolved into the ice cream as it churns. I love biting into a little piece of cookie or meringue in the creamy ice cream.
- After the ice cream has processed, put it into an insulated ice cream container or some kind of air tight container and place in freezer to harden up.
- Serve after it has hardened up, may take 4-5 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is half and half?
I get asked this question a lot. I guess half and half is an American product. It is half heavy whipping cream and half whole milk. If you can not find half and half, use equal amounts of milk and whipping cream to replace it. After experimenting with not using half and half but adding in more milk and whipping cream, I found you don’t get quite the same result but it is still delicious. If you can find half and half I recommend using it
What kind of ice cream maker do you use?
For years I used a 2 qt. tabletop Cuisinart ice cream maker and loved it. I recently upgraded to this Breville ice cream compressor and it is amazing but expensive. If you are serious about your ice cream making, this one is it!!
Can I make this without an ice cream maker?
This recipe is designed to be used in an ice cream maker.
Tips for Better Ice Cream
- Add in your meringue cookies and graham crackers at the very end, after the ice cream has processed. After adding them in, let it process for just a minute or long enough to incorporate in the cookies. If you do it too long, the cookies will dissolve into the ice cream and I like to bite into little chunks of cookie.
- Make the lemon meringue ice cream several hours before you want to serve it to allow it to harden up in the freezer. Overnight is best.
- As a variation, you could drizzle lemon curd over the ice cream as you layer it with the meringue cookies for more lemon flavor.
Next time you are in the mood for pie and ice cream why not combine the two with lemon meringue ice cream!
If you love lemon, try these other delicious meringue based desserts:
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Lemon Meringue Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 Tbsp vanilla
- 2 tsp lemon extract
- 2 cups whipping cream
- 1 1/2 cups half and half
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup meringue cookies broken into pieces
- 1 cup graham crackers broken into pieces
Instructions
- Mix together milks and sugar.
- Add in extracts and salt.
- Process in ice cream maker
- A few minutes before it is done mix in the cookies
- Freeze until firm
Tips & Notes:
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Nutrition Facts:
Jen says
This sounds delicious! Wondering if I could use baked pie crust instead of the vanilla wafers? Also if I could sub lemon juice for extract? Thanks!
Leigh Anne says
Give it a try and let me know how it works!
Marilyn says
I can’t stop drooling! mmmmmm You’re being featured at the Project Stash tonight! 🙂
Leigh Anne says
Marilyn – thanks so much for the feature!
Mallory says
This is so creative! I am in love with anything lemon right now! And its finally warm enough for ice cream.
Leigh Anne says
Thanks Mallory! Lemon is my favorite!
Michelle says
What a fun idea! Your presentation is absolutely adorable and clever, Leigh Anne.
Thank you so much for sharing!
Leigh Anne says
Thanks Michelle – loved putting it together.
L says
So sad I just saw the posts about the buy one get one free. I have been busy the past couple days and just got to checking a few websites including yours. Is there anyway I could get a bottle free if I put in a order now?
Leigh Anne says
Sorry but the offer ended last night/the end of the month Watch for other upcoming specials though!