Bittersweet Chocolate Ice Cream
A dark, dense chocolate custard ice cream made with six yolks and six ounces of melted bittersweet chocolate, blended smooth before it chills.
Chocolate is America's other essential ice cream: you cannot build a banana split (our Classic Banana Split recipe) or a classic sundae without it. Philadelphia's ice cream makers sold mostly vanilla and lemon until about 1900, according to the Franklin Fountain, and the soda fountains that followed made chocolate syrup and chocolate ice cream everyday flavors. This version comes from Food Network Magazine and takes the custard route: the yolks make it dense and smooth, and real bittersweet chocolate, not just cocoa, gives it a deep, fudgy flavor. It is the chocolate scoop for the banana split and a good partner for the hot fudge sundae (our Hot Fudge Sundae recipe).
🇺🇸 This one is American
A dark, dense chocolate custard ice cream made with six yolks and six ounces of melted bittersweet chocolate, blended smooth before it chills.
🇮🇹 The original
Italian gelato is churned slowly from milk with less cream and less air than American ice cream, so it is denser and served a little warmer. See the Fior di Latte Gelato (Italian Milk Gelato) recipe.
Why it works the kitchen science
Melted chocolate, blended
Blending the hot custard with the chocolate emulsifies the cocoa butter into the base, so the ice cream is smooth, not flecked.
Cold cream last
Adding the cream cold cools the base quickly and keeps it from overcooking after it leaves the pan.
Step by step
- Step 1
Microwave the chocolate in a bowl in 40-second bursts, stirring after each, until just melted, 1 to 2 minutes total. Whisk smooth and set aside.
- Step 2
Whisk the milk, sugar and yolks in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the custard reaches 170 to 175°F and thickly coats a spoon, about 7 minutes.
- Step 3
Strain into a blender. Add the melted chocolate and blend until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Step 4
Add the cold cream and the vanilla and blend 30 seconds, just to combine.
- Step 5
Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours, or overnight.
- Step 6
Churn in an ice cream maker until thick, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Step 7
Pack into a lidded container and freeze about 2 hours, until firm.
Bittersweet Chocolate Ice Cream
Serves 8 · about 1 quart · 30 min total
Chocolate
- 6 oz bittersweet chocolate (60 to 70% cacao), roughly chopped
Custard
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 6 large egg yolks
To finish
- 1 3/4 cups heavy cream, cold
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Method
- Microwave the chocolate in a bowl in 40-second bursts, stirring after each, until just melted, 1 to 2 minutes total. Whisk smooth and set aside.
- Whisk the milk, sugar and yolks in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the custard reaches 170 to 175°F and thickly coats a spoon, about 7 minutes.
- Strain into a blender. Add the melted chocolate and blend until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Add the cold cream and the vanilla and blend 30 seconds, just to combine.
- Pour into a bowl, cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours, or overnight.
- Churn in an ice cream maker until thick, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Pack into a lidded container and freeze about 2 hours, until firm.
Adapted from Food Network Kitchen's "Bittersweet Chocolate Ice Cream" (Food Network Magazine): (6 oz bittersweet chocolate, 1 cup whole milk, 1/2 cup sugar, 6 yolks, 1 3/4 cups cold heavy cream, 2 tsp vanilla; custard cooked about 7 minutes, blended with the chocolate, chilled at least 3 hours, churned, frozen about 2 hours; about 1 quart). The source gives no custard temperature; our 170 to 175°F is added for safety and consistency. Food Network. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (2)
Tips
- Chocolate ice cream freezes harder than vanilla; let it stand 5 to 10 minutes before scooping.
- Use a bar of good chocolate you like eating; chips contain stabilizers that do not melt as smoothly.
- For a darker, less sweet version, use 70% chocolate.
- Keeps best within 1 to 2 weeks.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Chocolate ice cream needs cocoa powder. Folklore: this version uses only melted chocolate.
- Custard ice cream is "French" ice cream. Documented for labeling: 21 CFR 135.110 lets ice cream with at least 1.4% egg yolk solids be called "French ice cream" or "frozen custard".
- Vanilla and lemon came before chocolate in Philadelphia. Documented as the Franklin Fountain's account (until about 1900).
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