2000s Recipes + Menus

Frozen Lemon Gingersnap Pie

Serves8 to 10
  • Active time:40 min
  • Start to finish: 6 hr (includes freezing)
June 2003
This dessert was inspired by the time-honored tradition of serving gingerbread with lemon sauce—the tang of lemon cuts the richness of molasses.

For crust

  • 1 1/2 cups finely crushed gingersnap cookies (6 oz)
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 tablespoons sugar

For ice cream

  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 4 teaspoons finely grated fresh lemon zest
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
  • Special equipment:

    an instant-read thermometer; an ice cream maker
  • Garnish:

    lemon slices

Make crust:

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Toss together all crust ingredients with a fork until crumbs are moistened. Press evenly onto bottom and up side of a 10-inch glass or ceramic pie plate (6-cup capacity). Bake crust in middle of oven 7 minutes, then cool on a rack.

Make ice cream:

  • Bring cream, milk, sugar, zest, and salt to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Whisk yolks in a bowl until blended, then add hot cream mixture in a slow stream, whisking. Transfer custard back to saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat back of spoon and registers 175 to 180°F on thermometer, 3 to 5 minutes (do not let boil).
  • Immediately pour through a fine-mesh sieve into cleaned bowl, then stir in lemon juice. Cool custard to room temperature, stirring occasionally, then chill, its surface covered with a round of wax paper, until cold, about 3 hours. Freeze custard in ice cream maker.
  • Spread ice cream evenly in crust and wrap pie plate in wax or parchment paper, then in plastic wrap. Freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.
  • About 20 minutes before serving, put pie in refrigerator to soften.
Cooks’ notes:
  • Ice cream can be made 2 days ahead of assembling pie. Soften in refrigerator about 30 minutes before spreading in crust.
  • Assembled pie can be frozen up to 3 days.
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