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The Secret to the Most Amazing Dark Chocolate Ice Cream Ever

dark chocolate ice cream 735x 1102

Sometimes I don’t even read the ingredients.

That’s right, you heard me.

I love ice cream soooo much, that it’s one of the few things I don’t even care about when it comes to eating real food.

That’s not to say that I don’t appreciate ice cream with proper ingredients more than junky stuff, but sometimes, the gloves (er, reading glasses?) just come off.

Ice cream has been my ultimate favorite dessert for decades, by a long shot.

Dark chocolate, however, has been making a run for it the last few years, and it’s probably neck and neck right up there.

Which is why dark chocolate ice cream is just about perfect. Smile

Don’t Make Me Chew My Ice Cream

I’m sure some would say that I could put dark chocolate into my ice cream.

But PUH-LEASE!

Ugh.

I am firmly standing with two feet in the “ice cream should be smooth and creamy” camp.

Do NOT ask me to enjoy ice cream which I have to chew.

Nuts. Chocolate chunks. Anything that interrupts my enjoyment of allowing something cold to simply melt on my tongue and burst with creamy flavor?

Get it out of there.

I don’t want to crunch my ice cream.

Most Amazing Dark Chocolate Ice Cream Ever

Don’t Make Me Cook My Ice Cream

If you’ve ever made your own ice cream (or perused ice cream recipes), you’ll know that many of them include an element of cooking, then chilling overnight, before you can actually make the ice cream.

I read those recipes too, and I desperately want to eat them, but try as I might, I’m just terrible at planning ahead for dessert. It’s all I can do to make sure the ice cream maker insert is frozen in time for me to want to make ice cream for after dinner.

So give me an ice cream recipe that is super simple, quick to make, doesn’t include anything crunchy, and ideally, is chocolate.

Better yet, don’t make any dishes that can’t pop right into the dishwasher like this jar:

How to Make Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

Actually, I’ll give you that recipe.

Sound like a plan?

Print
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Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 3 reviews
  • Author: Katie Kimball
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 25 mins
  • Total Time: 30 mins
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Category: Dessert

Ingredients

Units Scale


ship kroger


Instructions

  1. Couldn’t be simpler: Measure the milk and/or cream in a quart jar.
  2. Add all the other ingredients.
  3. Shake it up until well mixed. The cocoa (use the code STEWARDSHIP for 10% off at that site!) might stick to the lid and not mix in, so stirring is sometimes necessary. You gotta do what you gotta do to get your ice cream, but hopefully that’s not too much work.
  4. Pour into your ice cream machine (or try one of the no-machine methods available online like this one from David Lebowitz).
  5. That’s it! You might have to turn your ice cream machine on, but if you chose wisely, that’s no big deal. (If you own the Donvier I used to own and despised, you’ll have to turn the handle every 3 minutes. Not a peaceful dinnertime!)

Notes

* Cream, of course, makes real ice cream. I never buy cream, but I just pour off the top of our raw milk jars without shaking and hope for the best. Surprisingly, with my headstrong opinions about ice cream, I don’t really mind if it’s more like “ice milk,” which might be called “gelato” in fancier circles.

* You can use other sweeteners, but I like the touch of maple that comes through with the syrup (it’s incredibly subtle). I think honey would overpower the almond, and also honey is harder to mix in without dirtying the blender. And you know how I feel about dishes.

* The secret ingredient that makes it the best ever!?? It’s the almond extract. Don’t skip it.

* You can taste the mix before making it into ice cream to test the balance of the sweet vs. cocoa. More cocoa would NOT be a bad thing and would just make it “darker” chocolate (and delicious).

* Feel free to add shredded coconut (use the code STEWARDSHIP for 10% off at that site!) on top, although I admit I really only did it to look cool in the photos. I suppose you could add almonds (use the code STEWARDSHIP for 10% off at that site!), but that’s verging on sacrilegious.

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Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

The ice cream is simple enough to make kids go ga-ga but with the almond extract, it’s also sophisticated enough to be something special for the adults.

I should mention that the reason I’m so head over heels about this ice cream is partly because I can make it more often. (I may not care about ice cream ingredients all the time, but when I can give my kiddos a dessert they cheer about that keeps them out of the candy stash, I’m a happy mom.)

I got a new ice cream maker and it is SO much better than the old one!

Pour.

Turn on.

Ignore noise for 25 minutes.

Done!

How to Make Dark Chocolate Ice Cream


What wins for you – ice cream or dark chocolate? There isn’t anything else…is there?
Unless otherwise credited, photos are owned by the author or used with a license from Canva or Deposit Photos.

16 thoughts on “The Secret to the Most Amazing Dark Chocolate Ice Cream Ever”

  1. Just cause I have to write it down somewhere ;). Here’s the “vanilla ice cream” I made today – my kids loved it:

    3½ c. milk
    2 Tbs maple syrup
    3 tsp vanilla extract (I don’t have homemade 🙁 )

  2. I made this once as written and the kids liked it. Then they requested vanilla ice cream, so I used the same recipe, but increased the vanilla extract and left out the cocoa and almond. Even simpler, they love it, and I’m playing with reducing the amount of maple syrup ;).






  3. Hi there. I do not have a Ice Cream Machine. I do have a Food Processor, Liquidizer and a Juice Extractor. Maybe I can use my Food Processor and make the recipe that Vicki Rice made with her Black Cherry Vanilla? I have never made Ice Cream before and can’t wait to try it minus the machine if possible.
    Regards, Frances from Sunny South Africa






    1. Hi Frances!
      A food processor won’t help you with ice cream- there are a couple ways to do it without a machine, including a plastic bag inside another plastic bag containing ice and rock salt, and freezing in a casserole dish and mixing intermittently. Google it and you’ll find good directions; I think David Lebowitz has a post on the second technique. 🙂 Katie

      1. you can freeze it in ice cube trays and use the food processor before serving. Just put the ice cubes in and blend.

  4. If you aren’t super careful about your measurements this will easily overflow a quart jar (ask me how I know)! I ended up using a half gallon jar which also allowed for more vigorous shaking. I still had to break out the stick blender since my cocoa was really clumpy but it was still very fast and yummy. My 5 yr old is inspired to try new flavors and I’m happy to use my ice cream machine which never sees the light of day! Thanks for the recipe!

  5. Yummy! My fave is black cherry vanilla, easy and quick, freezes well. I buy frozen sweet black cherries and keep in the freezer. Take out a cup, chop them and let them thaw before starting. One can condensed sweetened milk, 1 pint whipping cream, 1 qt half & half, 1 cup sugar, 1 1/2 tbsp vanilla. You can use less sugar, but we like the sweetness of this amount. Mix it together, add the thawed cherries and pour into 2 quart ice cream freezer container. Add milk (I use 2%) to full line on your container. Freeze and enjoy! It will be softer initially, but firms up beautifully in the freezer. I like the cherries chopped pretty small as I also don’t like big chunks of anything spoiling my ice cream deliciousness.

  6. oh please share more easy ice cream recipes like this!!! Sometimes the ice cream fix needs to happen FAST!

  7. Oh, my mouth is watering and I haven’t even had breakfast yet! Ice cream for breakfast? I don’t think Kitchen Stewardship would approve 🙂 Too bad I’m allergic to chocolate… But I think I’ll be making homemade ice cream soon!

  8. Thanks, Katie! I quartered the recipe tonight and it made one generous, very yummy serving! I really like how easy it is, although that could prove to be very dangerous! 🙂 Definitely a keeper!






  9. OH! I’m so glad I’m not the only one who hates to “chew” their ice cream, or to wait on cooking it! I totally agree and can’t wait to get the ingredients to try this. Thanks for all your great recipes…and give-aways. I want this one. 🙂

  10. Haha! Ice cream…you are speaking my language! I got the Cuisinart 1 1/2 quart years ago, and it was truly the best thing I have ever gotten. I have since upgraded to the 2 quart which I LOVE, because it seems as though if I made ice cream with any additions (fruit, etc.), it would almost overflow.

    You really really really need to check out the Ben and Jerry’s book-the recipes are all no-cook and easy (and yes, even with eggs they are no cook although they could easily be adapted if someone wanted to cook it first). In fact, I make ice cream so often that I have it down to a science and can do it all in one bowl which I then pour right into the churn. Plus, they have 3 (yes 3!!) different versions of chocolate ice cream :-). Of course, if you make it with real chocolate (that you have to melt), that has to be chilled before churning, but there is one in there with cocoa powder.

    And I am right there with ya on chocolate chunks and nuts in ice cream-I never liked that the chocolate gets frozen hard (it has no flavor at that point). However, I will say that I completely shocked myself when I broke down and made buttered pecan (yes, aka Ben and Jerry’s buttered pecan) and LOVED it. I mean, lick the bowl slap your mama loved it, and think it might actually be the best I have ever made and is the first time I have EVER liked nuts in ice cream (you cook the pecans in the butter with salt until all buttery and crispy and then then browned butter gets mixed into the base, so so so so good).

    Also, I totally get you on the easy, no cook thing, and most of the time when I make ice cream I don’t bother, but I have found (through my own experience and doing a little research on the subject) that what cooking (i.e. making a custard first) does for ice cream is that it ultimately makes it smoother and creamier and it lasts longer in the freezer without developing ice crystals. Which is something that may not matter if you are devouring the whole batch after dinner with several people, but even out of the churn, it is creamier. So in case you ever get in the mood for something completely amazing, it really is worth the extra steps. Another thing that affects creaminess is the type of sweetener which is why I use sugar, as that helps to keep it creamy. I love maple syrup, but I have noticed that it does get icy faster. I used honey once which was good at first, but it got icy/ice crystals pretty quickly in the freezer, so probably best to use that only if you’re not going to store very long.

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