The July Fourth celebrations have passed and summer’s relaxing rhythm is in full force, beach and pool days, picnics and, as the saying goes, the lazy days of summer have arrived.
I find something inherently relaxing about a porch or deck, where you can chill out with friends, family, or on your own and watch the world go by while sipping a cool drink, nibbling on delicious snacks or enjoying a frozen treat such as ice cream or gelato.
Do you know the difference between the two? Simple: Gelato is made with more milk than cream, allowing the flavor to not be dominated by butterfat, and has less air than ice cream, making it denser. Ice cream is made with more cream, has more air and is served colder, making it firmer than gelato. If you have tried gelato, I think you will agree it has a pudding-like and smooth consistency.
National Ice Cream Month is celebrated in July, and National Ice Cream Day this year is July 20. To celebrate and to have some fun, especially for kids, host a tasting party featuring small scoops of a variety of flavors, and don’t forget lots of colorful and gooey toppings. Take it up a notch and experiment making ice cream floats. Adults, what about preparing a float with your favorite sparkling wine?
Regions throughout the country have their favorite scoop shops. Where I live in Connecticut, Ashley’s, Rich Farm and Arethusa are popular and beloved.
When travelling to the Lake George region of New York, Martha’s Dandee Crème is a must. I am told that Ava’s, Zwahlen’s, Frosty Falls, Weckerly’s, Franklin Fountain and Bassetts, supposedly the oldest ice cream shop in the U.S., are some of Greater Philadelphia’s favorites. They are on my list for my ice cream adventures.

Of course, there are those who enjoy making ice cream at home, whether it be a no-churn style or using an ice cream machine. Just off the press is “Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream” by Nicholas Morgenstern (2025, Alfred A. Knopf, $40). In an article in The Wall Street Journal, Morgenstern is called the Ice Cream Maestro.
“Each ice cream is made with the flavor profile in mind first,” he said. “‘Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream’ is my chance to express my love of quintessential American indulgence. I have been dreaming of these flavors, this style, and this place for years.”
Two shops, one in Manhattan in New York and one in Brooklyn, N.Y., serve up innovative flavors such as croissant caramel, cinnamon honey animal crackers, cardamom lemon jam and black licorice. The ice cream cakes are as beautiful as they are delicious. Can’t make it to the Big Apple? They deliver nationwide. With a copy of the book, you can make many of the shop’s flavors at home.
It was interesting to learn Morgenstern’s ice cream philosophy: “In making ice cream, the bottom line is this: eggs are cheaper than cream, sugar is cheaper than eggs, and air is cheaper than anything. Most ice cream companies are driven by profit margins, so they use eggs, cream, and air to control costs. At Morgenstern’s, the number one goal is to get the ice cream to taste like the flavor, which means no eggs, low sugar and less air. It’s not that I don’t like making money, I just like making great ice cream more.”
Get out the ice cream maker and enjoy some of Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream at home.

For recipes for Avocado Ice Cream and Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream, visit stephenfries.com/recipes.


Coconut Espresso
The headnote says: “This was one of the first vegan flavors we made. For me, American ice cream does not exist without dairy; however, the demand for nondairy ice cream is strong in a place like New York City, where alternative diets have taken over. There are all kinds of challenges with making ice cream without dairy. It is impossible to replicate the smooth creamy texture of butterfat. Typically, this is attempted using nut or coconut milk with the addition of stabilizers and/or starch. In the best versions, this usually results in a smoother, but still icy and slightly gummy product not worth serving.
“When we started testing, we used nut milks and combined them with some coco-nut cream or coconut milk, but the milks available in the market are high in water with the lowest amount of nut possible. This yielded an icy product. So, we started to use just coconut cream or coconut milk to create flavors. Coconut products are great for creating a smooth texture, with fat content similar to that of dairy. The challenge, though, is the unmistakably strong flavor of coconut. If we were going to use coconut milk, it would be the predominant flavor, so we’d need to use bold ingredients that could stand up to it. Espresso was a natural fit, with lots of clear acidity to balance the natural coconut alkalinity. This flavor is delicious on its own, but outstanding as an affogato with a sprinkle of salt on top.”
Makes approximately 1 quart
Ingredients:
2 ¼ cups coconut cream
1 1/3 cups coconut milk
½ cup agave syrup
2 tablespoons glucose syrup
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup espresso
Directions:
Put the coconut cream, coconut milk, agave, glucose syrup, sugar and salt in a 4-quart saucepan and heat the mixture over medium heat until it reaches 180 degrees, stirring constantly.
Remove from the heat and immediately strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean container.
Fill a large bowl with ice and cold water to make an ice bath.
Put the container into the ice bath and let the base cool to 38 degrees, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the espresso and freeze in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Grasshopper Sundae
The headnote says: “To me a grasshopper sundae is a hybrid mint chip/cookies ’n’ cream creation. I love it with fudge, Oreo cookie crumbs, brownie bits, chocolate chunks, and, of course, mint ice cream.”
Makes 1 sundae (Serves 2)
Ingredients:
Brownies, about one third of a pan, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 to 4 tablespoons hot fudge sauce
2 tablespoons Oreo cookie crumbs
1 cup Schoolyard Mint Chip ice cream (recipe below)
Whipped cream (in a piping bag with a star tip)
2 tablespoons dark chocolate chunks (58% cocoa)
Mint Leaf for garnish (optional)
2 to 3 large pieces chocolate lace (recipe follows) for garnish (optional)
Directions:
This sundae should be made on a special sundae dish. The style we use at the shop is vintage and was probably an old candy dish. If you don’t have one of those hanging around, it should be made on a plate or a bowl with a very wide flat bottom.
In a glass sundae dish, start by placing the brownie bites spaced out with room to fit a scoop of ice cream in between them.
Drizzle the hot fudge over the brownie bites and on the bottom of the glass dish.
Sprinkle the Oreo cookie crumbs over the fudge in between the brownies.
Place one large 5-ounce scoop of Schoolyard Mint Chip in the middle, followed by two smaller scoops directly on top.
Pipe a ribbon of whipped cream from the top of the brownie up to the middle of the top scoop of ice cream. Scoop the chocolate chunks over the top.
Using a spoon or ladle, pour a small amount of fudge from the top down the whipped cream.
Place a mint leaf at the top, if using, and add the chocolate lace if you made it.
Chocolate Lace
The headnote says: “This is made with tempered chocolate, which can be a challenge. For the Grasshopper Sundae, it adds the flourish and wow factor, but is not required if this step seems like too much work. Any dark chocolate will work, but I prefer 64% cocoa.Although there are lots of methods for tempering chocolate, which are involved and complex, for this application, I think the seeding method works best.”
Makes approximately 6 to 8 large pieces
Ingredients:
1 cup chopped dark chocolate, plus more as needed
Directions:
Simmer 2 cups of water in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat.
Making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water, melt ¾ cup of chopped dark chocolate in a medium bowl over the simmering water, stirring constantly, with a rubber spatula or spoon.
Once the chocolate reaches 115 degrees, turn off the heat and remove the bowl from the saucepan of simmering water.
Stir in the remaining ¼ cup of chopped dark chocolate. Stir constantly until the chocolate reaches 88 degrees. Add more chocolate if the chocolate is too warm. Any unmelted chocolate pieces should be removed before piping.
Fill a piping bag with the tempered chocolate, cut a small hole in the tip and pipe the chocolate in tight circles on a piece of parchment paper.
Allow the chocolate to solidify, then break off large pieces.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days.


Schoolyard Mint Chip
The headnote says: “One of the most popular — and perfect — ice cream flavors of all time; both Baskin-Robbins and Howard Johnson’s had mint chip on the menu from the be-ginning and it has gained popularity to find its way to the top 10 most-consumed flavors so far this century. Unfortunately, most of them are made with artificial flavor, and if the color matches your grandmother’s bathroom, that’s artificial, too. There are two factors that separate our mint chip from the rest. Number one, the mint is always fresh and green. Number two, we use two different mints, peppermint and Vietnamese mint.”
Makes approximately 1 quart
Ingredients:
½ cup peppermint leaves, fresh, stems removed
½ cup Vietnamese mint leaves, fresh, stems removed
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 2/3 cups whole milk
1 ½ cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon glucose syrup
¼ cup whole milk powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup dark chocolate chunks (58% cocoa)
Directions:
Rinse the peppermint and Vietnamese mint leaves in cold water. Dry thoroughly with paper towels, try not to bruise the leaves. Grind the mint and the sugar in a food processor until the leaves are completely incorporated and the sugar is bright green.
Heat the milk, cream, and glucose syrup in a 4-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon to keep it from burning, until small bubbles appear around the edges and the temperature reaches 180 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together the mint sugar, milk powder, and salt.
Slowly pour the hot cream mixture into the bowl, stirring constantly.
Pour the mixture back into the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it returns to 180 degrees.
Remove from the heat and immediately strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean container.
Fill a large bowl with ice and cold water to make an ice bath. Put the container into the ice bath and let the base cool to 38 degrees, stirring occasionally.
Freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Add the chocolate chunks just before scooping.
Recipes from “Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream” by Nicholas Morgenstern. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Stephen Fries is professor emeritus and former coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College in New Haven, Conn. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 17 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven, and three-day culinary adventures around the U.S. He is a board member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Email him at Stephen@stephenfries.com. For more, go to stephenfries.com.