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–+ servings

Chocolate Ice Cream

Five basic ingredients and good-quality cocoa powder are all you need to churn up a batch of better-than-store-bought chocolate ice cream.
One might think that retrofitting a vanilla ice cream recipe to create chocolate ice cream would simply involve melting chocolate into the original mixture. And, indeed, that can be done.
But let's consider for a moment the anatomy of solid chocolate.
Most chocolate contains a fair mount of sugar, and we've already got enough of that. It also might contain milk, salt, or extracts, And we don't ned any of that, either.
So what it really comes down to are the two primary chocolate components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter. All we really want here are the cocoa solids, which we can get easily from good old-fashioned cocoa powder. Dutch-process or alkalized is best because it disperses in liquid easily. And its color is, well, more chocolatey.
This recipe first appeared in Season 9 of Good Eats.
Photo by Lynne Calamia
ACTIVE TIME: 20 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 9 hours
Yield: 2 quarts

Software

  • 1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 8 large egg yolks
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 3 cups half and half
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Specialized Hardware

  • Instant read digital thermometer
  • Ice cream machine
  • mesh strainer

Procedure

  • Whisk the cocoa powder, sugar, and salt in a 3-quart saucepan. Add the egg yolks and whisk thoroughly. Whisk in the cream followed by the half and half and vanilla extract then turn the heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring frequently, until the custard thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, 170-175℉. Remove from the heat.
  • Fill a large bowl with ice cubes and water to come about halfway up the sides. Place a medium bowl directly over the ice water then pour the custard mixture in. Whisk frequently until the mixture comes to room temperature.
  • Place a mesh strainer over a vessel large enough to hold about 1 1/2 quarts and pour the custard in. Cover tightly and refrigerate until the temperature drops below 40℉, at least 4 hours or overnight.
  • Pour the mixture into a prepped ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's directions. You'll know it's ready when you hear the motor begin to struggle a bit as the ice cream has become very thick, approximately 20 to 30 minutes. Serve as is for soft serve or freeze for another 3 to 4 hours to allow the ice cream to harden.