45 ice cream topping recipes

Spirited fruit macerated in orange liqueur, lemon juice, and sugar. A boozy fruit topping for cheesecake, pound cake, ice cream, or sherbet.

Cream cheese snowflake cookies with lemon zest, topped with powdered sugar icing and edible glitter. Delicate, buttery Christmas cutout cookies that sparkle.

Iced mocha coffee shake: chilled brewed coffee blended with cocoa, sugar, and milk, topped with whipped cream and grated chocolate. The cafe drink you can make at home for half the price.

Four-ingredient cherry dump cake with a buttery yellow cake mix crust, two cans of cherry pie filling, and a nutty crumble topping. Served warm with ice cream.

Frozen coffee ice cream pie with a Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie crust and chocolate ganache topping. A no-bake freezer dessert with only four ingredients.

Frozen pudding made with vanilla ice cream, chopped walnuts, and preserved fruits, served with a creamy royal grape sauce. A vintage frozen dessert with an elegant custard topping.

Coffee soda built with chilled double-strength coffee, half and half, coffee ice cream, and a top-up of fizzy soda water. The grown-up float you'd find at a 1950s soda fountain counter.

Hot chocolate float with steaming cocoa and a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream melting on top. A 3-ingredient, 10-minute treat where hot meets cold in every sip.

Fruit salsa sundaes scoop vanilla ice cream into crisp tortilla bowls and top with peaches, strawberries, candied ginger, and lime zest. A Tex-Mex inspired summer dessert that takes 25 minutes.

Nacho chicken casserole: a 35-minute Tex-Mex weeknight dinner layered with crushed tortilla chips, diced chicken, cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, picante sauce, and a melty cheddar topping.

Peaches and cream rice salad with chicken-flavored rice pilaf, diced peaches, whipped topping, and shredded coconut. A sweet, creamy side dish or potluck dessert salad that feeds a crowd.

Creamy hearts of palm and leek soup blended silky smooth with whipping cream, topped with a fresh garnish of diced tomato, scallion, and hearts of palm.

Stuffed summer squash halves filled with scooped squash flesh mixed with diced cheese and cream, topped with buttered bread crumbs and baked until golden. Simple, seasonal comfort food.