Chocolate Ice Cream

While the clever girl is out of school for the summer (She just finished Kindergarten!  So hard to believe!!) we decided that we would learn how to make our own ice cream.  And let me tell you, we got off to a fantastic start!  We purchased the book The Perfect Scoop, by David Lebovitz, for recipes and inspiration.  Actually, we first checked it out from the library.  But almost as soon as I opened the book, I knew it was a "cookbook" that I needed to own. 

David Lebovitz describes this chocolate ice cream as "perfect", "irresistible", "you won't be able to wait to dig in", and he is RIGHT.  Wow.  We all agreed that this is the best chocolate ice cream we have ever had, and I MADE IT!  I can do this!  The clever girl did not help with this one, as I made it over several nights as a surprise for her birthday.  With Rainbow Cake, also a surprise. 

She ate the ice cream and then ran around the house singing "I'm in love with the Ice Cream Girl", which is a song by Brady Rymer, a kids band that she enjoys.  She also informed Mr. Clever Mom that he was in love with the Ice Cream Girl as well.  Honestly, I think anyone who makes this ice cream will have people falling in love with them.  It's that good.  I know there are dishes out there called "engagement chicken" and such, that supposedly if you make for your love they will propose within days or something.  Forget the chicken.  Serve your love some of this ice cream and they will be forever yours.  I promise. 

Chocolate Ice Cream
adapted from The Perfect Scoop
makes 1 quart

Ingredients:
2 cups heavy cream
3 TB unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate (or semisweet, if you prefer), chopped
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:
Whisk 1 cup of the cream with the cocoa powder in a medium saucepan.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and allow to simmer at a very low boil for 30 seconds, whisking constantly.  Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate pieces.  Stir until smooth.  Stir in the remaining 1 cup of cream.  Pour this mixture into a large bowl.  Scrape the saucepan with a rubber spatula as well as you can, but do not rinse it out.  Set a mesh strainer over the bowl, and set the bowl in an ice bath.  Set aside.

In the same saucepan, warm the milk, sugar and salt.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks.  Once the milk is hot and steamy, use a ladle to very slowly pour it into the bowl of egg yolks, whisking constantly.  This will keep the eggs moving around so you don't end up with scrambled eggs!  Make sure the sauce pan is no longer on the heat when you do this. 

Once all of the milk is whisked into the egg yolks, scrape the mixture back into the saucepan.  Use a heat-proof rubber spatula and stir constantly over medium heat.  Make sure you are scraping the bottom of the pan as you stir.  Stir until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula.  It is done when you can run your finger down the spatula and you leave a trail that does not fill in. 

Pour the custard over the strainer (which is over the chocolate/cream mixture, which is in an ice bath), and stir until smooth.  Add the vanilla extract and stir until it is cool.

Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator, preferably overnight.  Then freeze it according to your ice cream maker's instructions.  It is generally best to freeze the ice cream in the maker, transfer it to an air-tight container, and then allow it to freeze overnight in your freezer. 

Get ready to taste the best chocolate ice cream ever!
Printable Recipe

This ice cream is amazingly creamy and SO chocolaty.  It's a deep, rich chocolate.  Mmmm.  It is very difficult to resist eating the entire batch at once.  And would that really be a bad thing?  Aren't there supposed to be tons of antioxidants and stuff in chocolate?  We'll go with that.  Yep.  Go ahead and eat as much a you want.  It is good for your soul!