Hollowed Out Fruits Make The Best Ice Cream Bowls For Summer Treats

In 2023, Costco's Island Way Sorbets were the dessert of the summer. In videos with over one million views, TikTokers scooped creamy, colorful sorbets out of hollowed-out frozen fruit halves like mangoes, lemons, and coconuts. There are a few reasons these treats popped off as much as they did: They're bright, cute, and make for less dirty dishes. Plus, the little bowls come pre-portioned and are an easy snack to grab out of your freezer and shovel into your mouth on a hot day.

But you don't have to stop at sorbet, or at these Costco goodies. Hollowed-out cups also make the perfect vehicle for scoops of ice cream, where you can enjoy a plethora of creamy-fruity flavor combos. While the Costco bowls aren't edible, making your own at home also opens up the possibility of a little fruity flavor seeping through to your ice cream. You can fill and freeze them ahead of time, à la the boxed sorbets, or you can stock a bunch of peels in your freezer for when you feel the ice cream craving coming on.

Before you get to scooping, you'll want to start with a sturdy, (mostly) spherical fruit. In addition to the previously mentioned types, oranges, passion fruits, and dragon fruits all work well here, as do mini watermelons, pineapples, and even limes if you're serving smaller scoops. The key is to find something that will hold up when its flesh has been removed, which is why you'll want to stay away from thinner-skinned fruit like peaches and nectarines. To make the cups, scrape out your fruits' guts, ideally removing most of the pith but without piercing the skin. Instead of tossing out the flesh, save it to make another refreshing recipe (like this Watermelon Lime Agua Fresca, for example). Then, stick your peels in the freezer on a lined baking sheet. This will make them firmer, but you don't have to follow this step if you're going to use them right away.

Finally, it's time to fill. Pair chocolate or chocolate-banana scoops with orange, dragon fruit, and coconut shells; vanilla, caramel, or coconut with mango, lime, or pineapple bowls; or a No-Churn Mint Julep Ice Cream with hollowed-out mini watermelons. And if you want a fully fruity combo, insert spoonfuls of No-Churn Pomegranate Ice Cream into lemon shells. Throw toppings like graham cracker crumbs on your vanilla-filled limes for a dessert reminiscent of key lime pie, or a drizzle of honey and lime juice over your creamy mint watermelon bowls.