There’s an ongoing dispute in my house about dessert.  Some people believe that dessert is BAD and the main cause of weight gain.  For my part, I believe that we all deserve dessert and that it is one of life’s  happiest pleasures as well as a fitting reward for giving up bread and butter and eating strange vegetables.  The good news is that it doesn’t have to be a fat filled, sugar loaded dietary disaster.  This past week I managed not to slave over a hot stove and opted instead for salads, sandwiches and even a couple of chilled soups.  So,  I was looking for something sweet and light and summery to finish off the meal.  Years ago a neighbor of mine showed me a great low budget dessert idea that is quick and perfect for those hot summer evenings.  The added benefit is that it’s non-dairy.

Now almost everyone has a can of some kind of fruit in the pantry, or even a bag of frozen fruit in the freezer.  (This is so easy it’s almost embarrassing.)

What You Need

Take a can of fruit such as peaches or pears or cherries (preferably packed in a light syrup or water) and put it in the freezer for a couple of hours.

Canned Fruit

When it’s frozen, open the can, put the fruit and the liquid into the food processor or blender.  Distribute the chunks evenly and puree.  If you’re using frozen fruit add a little water for a smooth consistency.

Once the fruit is pureed, I blend in a couple of large dollops of non-dairy topping to make it creamier.  You could leave it out if you like your dessert more sorbet like, or if you have a strong bias against whipped topping, you could also use whipped cream, but then it wouldn’t be low budget or low calorie.

Blend until everything’s smooth and creamy. The result will be something similar to soft serve or sorbet.

Frozen fruit puree and whipped topping

Put it into an ice cream dish and serve immediately,

Fruit dessert

or place the mixture into a covered container and put in the freezer to harden for later.  I promise it’s delicious and you didn’t even add any sugar.  And…this the best part, it counts as a serving of fruit.

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