I’d like to take a moment to celebrate. Even in the midst of a pandemic and a heartbroken and enraged nation, this weekend we are celebrating Juneteenth, the Summer Solstice, and Father’s Day. And to me, one of the best ways to celebrate on a summer day is with ice cream.

Ice cream is also a perfect treat to honor my dad, who is like me in so many ways: early-riser, TV-watcher, planner. Sometimes we are like two peas in a pod: always waking up before everyone else, indulging our sweet tooth when possible, devouring articles and books, relying on facts and data, patiently waiting for my mom when she is shopping, impatiently waiting for other people when they are late, preferring order and routine.

And sometimes we are on extreme ends of the spectrum: with our personalities (him: a true introvert; me: the complete opposite), our temperaments (him: reserved and in control; me: often shushed at the Amtrak silent car), our entertainment preferences (him: critically-acclaimed films; me: The Real Housewives of New York City).
But we always agree on ice cream. Together we gobbled up gelato every day when we vacationed in Italy a decade ago. Similarly, we eat ice cream to soothe sickness (him: vertigo; me: anything). And we even make the same homemade avocado ice cream (him: for my sisters; me: for me).

So to celebrate my dad, I made this Coconut Ice Cream Pie. A frozen summer pie with homemade no-churn ice cream (no ice cream maker needed) and a swe...