Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

Adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home and Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream Desserts by Jeni Britton Bauer

There are lots of good books on making your own ice cream, but I recommend three as essential. The first two books are Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home and Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream Desserts, both by Jeni Britton Bauer. 

Jeni Britton Bauer developed her technique for making ice cream using cream cheese as the stabilizer, which is uniquely practical for the home cook. 

The third book is Hello, My Name is Ice Cream by Dana Cree. This book explains the science of ice cream in basic understandable language. It is endlessly usable, thorough, and interesting.  

Container I Chill Ice Cream Base In

Makes 1 quart

Chocolate Base

75g cocoa powder (I use Guittard Rouge Cocoa Powder)

2/3 cup strong brewed coffee

100g sugar (I use Domino Golden Sugar)

2 ounces chopped chocolate (I use Guittard 70% chocolate)

Mix the cocoa, coffee, and sugar in a small saucepan, bring to a boil over medium heat, and boil for 30 seconds. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chopped chocolate, let stand for 5 minutes so the chocolate can melt, and stir.

Sweet Cream Base Specifically for Chocolate Ice Cream

600g whole milk

336g heavy cream

132g granulated sugar (I use Domino Golden Sugar)

3 tablespoons Lyle's Golden Syrup 

14g Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour (what I use) or cornstarch

56g cream cheese

1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

Weigh the tapioca flour or cornstarch into a tiny bowl - the kind you use when prepping and doing a mise en place. 

Weigh out the 56 grams of cream cheese onto a small flat plate and add the 1/8 teaspoon of fine sea salt and press it into the cream cheese with the times of a fork. You are going to add the chocolate base to this in a while, so for now put it into a container you will later be able to add heated milk to. If you have an immersion blender, it will work well here. I have a container that came with my immersion blender so that's what I put it in.

Measure the Lyle's Golden Syrup into a small glass - I use a 5-ounce measuring glass. If you like, you can heat this a little in the microwave (for about 30 seconds) so it's easier to pour. 

Put the milk into the pan you are using on the stove, then take a small amount of that milk and put it into the little prep bowl holding the tapioca starch or cornstarch and whisk it well, eliminating any lumps. I have a tiny whisk I use for this. Set this aside. 

Add the heavy cream to the pan with the milk, then add the sugar and the Lyle's, stir, and bring to a low boil. Boil this mixture for 4 minutes, stirring the whole time. Turn off the heat and stir the mixture in the pan well, then stir the tapioca starch/milk mixture (or cornstarch/milk mixture) you have set aside to make sure it's still smooth, and add it to the pan on the stove. Stirring constantly, bring it back to a boil, and boil for ONE MINUTE, NO MORE. Push the pan off the heat. 

You now want to mix the chocolate base with the cream cheese you have already put in a container. An immersion blender does this well. Otherwise, stir it to combine well. 

Add this mixture into the pan with the sweet cream base and stir to thoroughly mix the chocolate in. Strain this mixture through a sieve. I strain it through a rounded sieve into an 8-cup Pyrex measuring cup, which holds it all and is easy to pour from. I pour the already strained mixture through another conical sieve into a tallish glass container with a lid and chill in an ice bath. For the ice bath I use a deep stainless steel bowl. I put the container with the mixture in it into the bowl, add enough cold water to the bowl to cover the mixture (without letting it get into the mixture), and use reusable ice packs to chill it, which are easier to use than ice cubes. Once it has cooled down enough, I put it in the refrigerator, and keep it there long enough for it to get very cold. I usually leave it overnight to cure it.

When it is cold, spin the mixture in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. I pack it into two pint cardboard ice cream containers and place in the freezer. (I cut a small circle of parchment to sit on top before I put the top of the container on. I keep 6-inch parchment circles on hand to use for this.) 

It's best if it sits in the freezer for 8 hours before eating so leaving it in the refrigerator overnight to cure and spinning it in the morning is great so it's ready in time for dessert after dinner.