Last night I hosted a gluten-free dinner party.

For some people, this might conjure thoughts of deprivation or images of terrible food — perhaps a plate with a few leaves of lettuce and not much else to snack on. Others may have never even heard of gluten, let alone the term “gluten-free.”

But many people — by some estimates as many as one in 150 — have a condition called celiac disease. Their bodies react negatively to the protein found in wheat, rye or barley, and they suffer with everything from stomachaches to sinus infections to reproductive problems to flushed cheeks. “Life without bread,” someone might think, “is no life at all!”

Of course, people with celiac disease live long and delicious lives filled with fruits and vegetables, meats and cheeses, corn and rice and amaranth and quinoa and millet. It’s hard to miss bread when you are too busy enjoying quinoa fritters and Thai rice noodles.

The only time I think living gluten-free might be hard is at the end of the meal, for the dessert course. So many sweets have flour; crusts and cakes and cookies are so delicious I think it would be hard to go without.

Luckily, strawberry season has arrived.

When I was thinking through this dinner party, I was stuck on dessert, eventually settling on my favorite flourless peanut butter cookies. Then, on Sunday, I was thrilled to see basket upon basket of fat, red strawberries, studded with those tiny seeds and capped in green. I quickly changed gears, ditching the cookie idea and buying two pints of the much anticipated signs of summer. Then it came to me: I would make ice cream! Naturally gluten-free, and a true crowd-pleaser.

Is there anything more satisfying, refreshing or summery than a bowl of strawberry ice cream? Yes. Strawberry-rhubarb ice cream.

The sweet pucker of strawberries pairs so well with the puckery sweetness of rhubarb that we toss both into pies and cobblers all the time. Those who are gluten-free should get the chance to indulge in this fabulous flavor combination, too.

I first envisioned this recipe as a strawberry-rhubarb swirl ice cream, but as frequent home cooks know, sometimes the reality does not live up to the fact of what you end up with. This ice cream is very, very good, but definitely not a swirl.

When I drizzled the rhubarb puree in at the end, instead of creating a dark pink ripple through the pale pink ice cream, it all just churned together. It is not the end of the world, but next time I might reduce the puree a bit to end up with something thicker, or just use it as a dessert sauce at the end.

This ice cream recipe requires nothing more than a blender and your ice-cream maker. Since it’s not custard-based, there’s no need for egg yolks and tempering and cooling time and all that mess. You can have this refreshing summer treat in under two hours, without even breaking a sweat.

The sour cream adds a nice twist, cutting down on the sweetness and adding depth of flavor to the already sweet-and-sour components of the ingredients. And it’s naturally, deliciously gluten-free.

Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream

Adapted from David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop (known in my apartment as The Bible of All Frozen Desserts)

Prep time: 1 hour plus freezing time (according to your ice cream maker). Serves 12

Ingredients

• 1 lb strawberries
• 3 c. rhubarb, sliced (about 3 stalks)
• 1 ¾ c. sugar
• 1 c. water
• 1 c. sour cream
• 1 c. heavy cream
• Squeeze of lemon juice
• Pinch of salt

Trim the tops of the strawberries, and slice into quarters, placing them in a mixing bowl. Add ¾ cup of the sugar, stir the berries until they’re coated, and let them macerate for an hour. (Macerate is a fancy word for leave them alone while the sugar makes them all juicy and syrupy.)

In the meantime, combine the rhubarb, the rest of the sugar and the water in a small sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for about a half hour, until the rhubarb gets very soft and pink, and starts to break down a little. When it’s done, allow it to cool a little, and then transfer it to a blender and puree. Chill it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it.

When the strawberries are good and juicy, transfer them to the blender and add the sour cream, heavy cream, lemon juice and salt. Puree.

Churn the puree in your ice cream maker according to the instructions. At the end, drizzle in the rhubarb (you may need to take some of the ice cream out to make room for the puree). You can also save the rhubarb to use as a sauce, if you prefer.

It’s best just out of the churn, but if you’re not ready to eat 12 servings of ice cream, freeze the rest for a hot summer’s day.