8 recipes to please any ice cream lover: boozy or fruity, no-churn and vegan

Ice cream makes me happy. When asked as a precocious tot why my dad had to work, I answered: “Make money, buy ice cream.” Priorities!

[How to create the ice cream of your dreams]

I will eat ice cream just about any way you can think of — at an ice cream shop, out of a grocery store pint, carefully portioned from a batch I made. The last option, however, is probably what brings me the most joy.

If you’ve been letting your ice cream machine collect dust for way too long, now is the time to bust it out, thanks to these variations from our Recipe Finder. (Don’t worry, there are some no-churn options here, too.)

(Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post)

Kahlua Ice Cream With Dulce de Leche and Espresso Beans. If a coffee shop drink swung by your local watering hole, you might get something like this slightly boozy flavor I concocted last year. You can also use the related Sweet Cream Ice Cream Base as a backdrop for your own custom flavor.

[Ice cream with no machine: Quarantine Cooking Show]

(Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post)

Peach Ice Cream With Amaretti and Ginger. I doubled up on peach flavor — fresh fruit plus freeze-dried — to capture the best of this summer staple.

[Browse our Recipe Finder for more than 9,000 Post-tested recipes at washingtonpost.com/recipes]

(Stacy Zarin Goldberg for The Washington Post; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post)

Peach Ice Cream. You don’t need a machine for this no-churn option made with sweetened condensed milk.

[Ice creams and frozen desserts to make when you can’t spring for an ice cream machine]

(Goran Kosanovic for The Washington Post; food styling by Bonnie S. Benwick/The Washington Post)

No-Churn Bourbon Brown Sugar Ice Cream. Here’s another possibility for those without an ice cream maker, from cookbook author and Serious Eats contributor Stella Parks.

(Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post)

S’mores Ice Cream. I don’t find myself sitting in front of campfires that often, so instead I added butter-toasted graham crackers and Marshmallow Fluff to chocolate ice cream. It may be blasphemy to say this, but I may prefer it to the real thing. Here’s the Chocolate Ice Cream Base for your consideration as well.

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(Tom McCorkle for The Washington Post; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post)

Vegan Chai Ice Cream. A favorite beverage also inspired me to create this nondairy flavor, the backbone of which is canned coconut milk. Here’s the Vegan Coconut Ice Cream Base that you can riff on.

[Ice pops are a quintessential summer treat. Here’s how to make your own.]

(Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post)

Fresh Cheese Ice Cream With Blackberries. If you tend to find some ice cream too sweet, have a look at this tangy, tart recipe that takes inspiration from Mexico. And from the same cookbook is this Tres Leches Ice Cream.

(Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post)

Rocky Road Nice Cream. This recipe employs the popular strategy of using bananas as a smooth base.

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