Strawberries Romanoff Ice Cream Parfait

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This Strawberries Romanoff ice cream parfait is as tasty as it is beautiful! An elegant summer dessert made with fresh strawberries, vanilla cookies, vanilla ice cream and maple whipped cream – plus a few splashes of Grand Marnier and Cointreau.

Strawberry season is officially in full swing and my garden has more berries than I know what to do with! Pair that with HOT weather, and I decided it was time to make a refreshing strawberry dessert. The layers of cold ice cream, crunchy vanilla cookies and flavorful fresh strawberries are pretty irresistible if I don’t say so myself.

This strawberry ice cream parfait can be as fancy or a simple as you want. I made it with my bourbon vanilla ice cream because I had some in the freezer, but you could also use store-bought ice cream. I also used my maple-vanilla whipped cream recipe for an extra boost of flavor, but you can use whipped cream from a can too. The cookie layer is made with crushed cookies and any variety will do. I recommend Nillas or shortbread cookies with a touch of sparkly sugar on top. See? Easy!

Is this Strawberries Romanoff?

This recipe is essentially a riff on Strawberries Romanoff, which is a super simple dessert made by pairing fresh strawberries with whipped cream, sugar and orange liqueur. I prefer a crunchy layer of cookies in desserts like this and I also wanted the extra coolness of ice cream. So I added crushed vanilla cookies and vanilla ice cream to the classic Strawberries Romanoff recipe.

What is Strawberries Romanoff?

Strawberries Romanoff is a dessert that dates back to Tzar Nicolas I. It is thought that chef Marie Antoine Careme created this dessert for the Romanoff family as a light dessert to follow a heavy meal. So when you eat this dessert, you really are treating yourself like royalty. In fact, I’d say you’re giving yourself the extra royal treatment because we’re adding cookies and ice cream to the mix. You deserve it boo.

How to Make this Strawberries Romanoff Ice Cream Parfait

Ready to make this refreshing riff on an old-fashioned Strawberries Romanoff recipe? Here’s how to do it:

Prep your tools. Place your stand mixer bowl in the freeze or fridge to chill.

Soften the ice cream. Take the ice cream out of the freezer and let it sit on the counter for about 30 minutes to soften a bit.

Prep the strawberries. Wash the berries and remove the tops. Chop them into pieces and sprinkle the sugar over them. Roughly mash them with a potato masher. Just enough to break them down a bit. You still want there to be visible strawberries pieces. Add the Grand Marnier. Give everything a stir and set aside.

Juice a lemon. Squeeze the juice of one lemon into a small bowl and set aside.

Make the whipped cream. In the chilled bowl of your mixer, make the maple vanilla whipped cream. Add all the ingredients to the bowl, add the whisk attachment, then beat on high until the cream holds a stiff peak. Transfer the whipped cream to a medium bowl and set aside.

• Want to skip this step? You can use whipped cream from a can instead. Just squirt the whipped cream into a measuring cup. (And this is why British people call whipped cream squirty cream.)

Clean the mixer bowl. Wipe down the stand mixer bowl with a damp cloth and dry it with a dry cloth. Rinse off the whisk attachment and dry it.

Make the ice cream mixture. In the dried stand mixer bowl with the cleaned whisk attachment, add the ice cream and lightly beat it to soften it. Add the lemon juice and Cointreau. Beat again for about 15 seconds.

Fold in the whipped cream. With a spatula, fold the whipped cream into the ice cream mixture.

Serve. Layer the parfait, alternating between the ice cream mixture, crushed vanilla wafer cookies, and strawberry mixture in tall glasses. For distinct layers, place the cookie layers between the ice cream layers, otherwise the cookies will soak up the strawberry juice. Top with fresh strawberry slices and serve with long stemmed spoons. You can also add a dollop of whipped cream on top for extra prettiness and another layer of goodness.

Tips & Variation Ideas

This strawberry dessert is pretty easy, but it never hurts to have a few tips of your sleeve:

• Ice Cream – As I mentioned above, you don’t need to use bourbon vanilla ice cream. Not only could you use store-bought vanilla ice cream but you can also experiment with other flavors like lemon, coconut or even strawberry ice cream.
• Fruit – It won’t be a Strawberries Romanoff parfait if you use a different fruit, but that’s ok! Other fruits to try would be raspberries, blackberries or finely diced fresh peaches.
• Cookies – Golden Oreos or vanilla sandwich cookies would be tasty cookie variations to try. You could also use crushed graham crackers or pound cake cut into cubes (which would technically turn this dessert into a trifle).

Cointreau vs Grand Marnier

Cointreau and Grand Marnier are both orange liqueurs, however, their flavor profiles are a bit different:

• Cointreau is slightly sweet with a spicy aroma and a clean, smooth finish. Cointreau is a mid-priced liqueur with 40% ABV (Alcohol By Volume)
• Grand Marnier is a mixture of Triple Sec and Cognac that tastes like orange flavored brandy. It has notes of vanilla and oak, and is considered a top-shelf (more expensive) liqueur. It is also 40% ABV.

This Strawberries Romanoff recipe uses both Cointreau and Grand Marnier, but if you want to make things easier you can just use one or the other. I would personally choose the top-shelf liqueur if going this route, but with the ice cream and other ingredients in this parfait you could really go either way.

About Those Layers

My biggest tip for this recipe is to make sure you that you alternate the layers. Not only does it look beautiful, but this allows you to get more flavors in every bite. I also recommend separating the cookie layer from the strawberry layer. The cookies will absorb the strawberry juices and loose some of their crunch if they are layered right next to the strawberry mixture.

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More Strawberry Desserts to Try

• Fresas Con Crema (Mexican Strawberries and Cream)
• Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars
• Strawberry Shortcake in a Mug