Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

Here is the dark chocolate ice cream you want to have ready to be served in the freezer for summer. This one will be added to our huge ice cream collection. Not an afterthought—a quiet, velvety promise waiting behind the freezer door. Learn the best technique from a pro French Glacier: deep in chocolate flavor, unctuous and well balanced. No icy shards, no cloying sweetness—just a spoon that glides through pure, cold richness as if cutting into frozen silk. As it goes with any recipe, savory or sweet, it begins with the best ingredients. A single-origin dark chocolate (70% minimum), farm-fresh egg yolks, high-fat milk from pastured cows and so on. The French don’t rush la glace; they coax it, churn it slowly, and age the base overnight to marry texture and taste. So before the July sun climbs high, we begin. Let’s get started.

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Here is the dark chocolate ice cream you want to have ready to be served in the freezer for summer...

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Preview the recipe

Freeze the container you will use to store ice cream. Quickly toast cocoa nibs over medium heat, be aware it burns fast. Let cool and keep frozen.

Chocolate Ice Cream

In a bowl or deli container, combine the sugar, dextrose, and ice cream stabilizer; set aside. Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie. Avoid overheating it, and remove it from the heat as soon as the chocolate is melted.
In a saucepan, warm the milk and heavy cream to 85°F (30°C) on medium-low heat. Whisk in the powdered milk or use an immersion blender for quick incorporation.
At 104°F (40°C), add the sugar-stabilizer mixture and egg yolks; blend well.
Finally, at 140°F (60°C), add the melted chocolate.
Blend and cook the chocolate custard until it reaches 185ºF (85°C). Cool the chocolate mixture in an ice water bath, then refrigerate overnight.

Churning

Churn the chilled chocolate custard according to the manufacturer's directions. This should take about 45 minutes.
Then incorporate the toasted and frozen cocoa nibs.
Transfer the chocolate ice cream to the previously frozen container, then freeze for an hour or two before attempting to form ice cream quenelles.

Storage

Chocolate ice cream can be kept frozen for up to 8 months. Before serving, if the ice cream is too firm, place it in the refrigerator for an hour. Alternatively, the frozen ice cream may be microwaved for 15–20 seconds. Enjoy!