Roasted Cherry & Vanilla Ice Cream Pie with a Chocolate Crust

Cherries are amazing this time of year! That means it is time to make lots of delicious recipes with delicious cherries. Last summer, I posted a recipe for roasted cherry brownies, and when I made those brownies, I was introduced to the fabulous flavor of roasted cherries. Roasted cherries are the best! I actually made this ice cream pie last summer but never got around to posting the recipe, so I'm posting it now. This pie starts with an incredibly yummy homemade chocolate pie crust, then it is topped with homemade vanilla ice cream and roasted cherries. It is a wonderful summer-time treat. I can't wait to make this delicious ice cream pie again! Enjoy.

Recipe for Roasted Cherry & Vanilla Ice Cream Pie with a Chocolate Crust 

INGREDIENTS:

Chocolate crust, homemade vanilla ice cream & delicious roasted cherries.
The perfect summer-time dessert! 

For the chocolate crust
1 egg yolk
1 Tbsp. of heavy cream
3/4 tsp. of vanilla extract
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1/4 cup of Dutch processed cocoa powder
2/3 cup of powdered (confectioner's) sugar
1/4 tsp. of salt
8 Tbsp. of very cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

For the ice cream filling
Basic Vanilla Ice cream (make 1 1/2 times the recipe)

For the roasted cherry topping
3 1/2 cups of fresh cherries, pits removed and cut in half
1/4 cup of granulated sugar

DIRECTIONS:
Make the pie crust first. In a smallish bowl, mix together the yolk, heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Put the flour, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, and salt into a bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse a few times to mix ingredients together. Put the cold butter pieces on top of the flour mixture. Pulse several times until the butter and flour mixture are combined well. Turn on the food processor, and pour the yolk mixture through the feed tube. Let machine run for about 15 seconds, or until the dough comes together. Put the dough onto a piece of parchment paper and form into a 6-inch disc. Wrap dough with the parchment paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.

While the dough is chilling, make the roasted cherries. Line a baking sheet with foil. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put the cherries and sugar on the prepared baking sheet and toss. Put the cherries in the oven and cook for 10 - 12 minutes. Remove from oven and allow cherries to cool. Turn off oven.

Once dough has chilled, roll it out on a lightly floured surface. Press the dough evenly onto the bottom and on the sides of a 9-inch pie pan. Put the pan in the freezer and freeze for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Remove pie dough from freezer and cover the edges with foil or a pie crust shield . Fill the middle with pie weights (yes, pie can have many accessories)! Put the pie pan on the middle rack of the oven and cook for 15 minutes, then rotate and cook for another 15 minutes. Remove the pie crust from the oven and remove the pie weights. Put back into the oven and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and put on a wire rack so it can cool. Let it cool completely at room temperature and then put it into the freezer for at least 30 minutes.

While the pie crust is chilling in the freezer, make the ice cream. Don't forget to cool the batter in the fridge before putting it into the ice cream maker. After the ice cream is made, pour it into the cold crust and distribute evenly. Put into the freezer and let it set for at least 45 minutes before serving. Slice with a sharp knife and top each serving with the roasted cherries. Enjoy!

Chocolate crust recipe source: Annie's Eats, originally from Baking Illustrated
Roasted cherries also from Annie's Eats 

Roasted Cherry Brownies

Ever since I started my cooking blog, I've gotten emails from people that include recipes that they think would be good for me to share (especially from my mom)! My sister told me that she made these roasted cherry brownies from Annie's Eats, and she said they were really good. Well, since I love Annie's website and because I love cherries and brownies, I decided to try out the recipe. I'm sure glad that I did!

Ok, I'm going to go out on a limb here and tell you that these brownies are healthy. They don't have too much sugar (compared to other brownie recipes), and the brownies are  loaded with antioxidant-rich dark chocolate. One 9.7 oz bar of SCHARFFEN BERGER bittersweet chocolate also has 50% of your daily iron intake. And let's not forget about all the health benefits you'll get from the cherries...

I made these brownies on Saturday to bring to a cookout, but I accidentally left them at home. Who does that? After enjoying a few myself, I sent the rest of them in with Greg to take to work today. He said they disappeared from the lunchroom very quickly! Enjoy.

Recipe for Roasted Cherry Brownies

I ate one before the picture - sorry! 

INGREDIENTS:
For the roasted cherries:
2 cups fresh cherries, pitted and halved
2 Tbsp. of granulated sugar
For the brownies:
8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into quarters
7 oz. of high quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped (such as SCHARFFEN BERGER)
3 Tbsp. of cocoa powder
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. of vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour

DIRECTIONS:
For the roasted cherries:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Place the cherries on the baking sheet, flesh side up. Sprinkle the cherries evenly with the 2 Tbsp. sugar, and then toss gently to coat. Place the pan on the top rack of the oven, and roast for 10 - 12 minutes. Remove cherries from oven and cool. Turn off oven.

For the brownies:
Prepare a double boiler filled 1/4 full with water. Place it over medium heat. Place the chopped chocolate and butter in a pot. Once the boiler begins to barely simmer and steam, place the pot on top of the boiler and stir a few times until the chocolate and butter are melted and smooth. Stir in the cocoa powder and mix until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, vanilla extract, salt, and eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until well incorporated. Stir in the chocolate and butter mixture and beat on low until well combined.  Add in the flour, and stir until just incorporated. Gently fold in the roasted cherries.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9"x9" pan with foil and spray it with a little bit of baking spray. Pour brownie batter into the prepared pan, and spread evenly. Place pan in middle rack of oven. Bake for 35 minutes.

Place pan on a cooling rack and cool brownies completely, at least 2 hours. Once cooled, remove brownies out of pan by lifting up on the foil. Place brownies on a cutting board and cut into evenly-sized squares.

Store brownies in the fridge in an airtight container.

Source: Annie's Eats

This cherry pitter turned out to be very handy! 

A great tool for pitting the cherries - a cherry pitter! My mother gave me one of these to me several months ago. My husband and I had joked "what the heck do we need a cherry pitter for?" Well, it sure came through when I made the brownies. Thanks, mom!

NOTE:
Cherries are in season right now. They taste great & they are on sale - I got mine for $1.99/lb. Score!