French Style Double Chocolate Ice Cream

The ultimate chocolate ice cream relies on a custard for the creamiest result, and is easier to make at home than you might think!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups heavy cream divided
• 3 tbsp. Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 5 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate finely chopped
• 1 cup whole milk
• ¾ cup sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 5 large egg yolks
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Chilling Time

8 hrs

Total Time

8 hrs 30 mins

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup of the cream with the cocoa powder over medium-high heat, whisking to dissolve the cocoa. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until smooth, then stir in the remaining 1 cup cream. Transfer this mixture to a medium-large mixing bowl, and set a large fine mesh strainer over the top.
2. In the same saucepan, combine the milk, sugar, and salt over medium-high heat. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. When the milk mixture is warm, slowly pour it into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. (This is tempering the eggs.) Then, pour the egg-milk mixture back into the saucepan.
3. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you go, until it thickens into a custard and coats the spatula. If you have an instant-read thermometer, it should read 170-175° F at this point.
4. Pour the custard through the strainer into the chocolate-cream mixture that you previously set aside. Add vanilla extract and stir until smooth.
5. Cover with plastic wrap and chill thoroughly in the refrigerator (see recipe note 1). When cold, freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Store in an airtight container and freeze until ready to serve.

Notes

• I usually allow the chocolate-cream mixture to chill in the refrigerator overnight before churning it into ice cream. If you want to chill it faster, an alternative is to place the bowl over an ice bath and stir frequently. 
• If, after chilling, the chocolate-cream mixture is too thick to pour easily into your ice cream maker, whisk vigorously to thin it out.
• This recipe yields about 1 quart of ice cream; exact amounts will vary based on your ice cream maker and length of time churning. Nutrition data is only an estimate and is based on servings of approximately 1/2 cup by volume.

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