Chocolate ice cream needs no introduction, especially for those who, like me, are fond of it and eat it even in winter. This is a recipe made without eggs and without the aid of an ice cream maker. The original recipe is by the talented blogger Nunzia Bellomo, from the site “Miele di lavanda,” and you can find it here. I have made a series of modifications to suit my needs, developing my own method and still achieving a sensational result, just like the original recipe, which is a soft ice cream that doesn’t become hard, simply by using a small trick that makes the preparation of milk-based ice creams much easier, faster, and simpler. You’ll get chocolate ice cream with a full flavor and a soft texture, just like those from ice cream shops. If you want to try making it, you’ll only need a glass (or steel) container with a lid, suitable for the freezer to store the ice cream.
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Rest time: 1 Day
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 6
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole fresh milk
- 1 1/4 cups fresh liquid cream
- 4 1/4 oz granulated sugar
- 2 3/4 oz dark chocolate
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla paste
Steps
1) Place the ice cream container in the freezer. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add the sugar, sifted cocoa, vanilla, and, while stirring with a whisk, slowly add the milk to avoid lumps. Lastly, add the coarsely chopped dark chocolate and place the saucepan on the smallest burner.
Heat everything over very low heat, stirring continuously; the dark chocolate and sugar must dissolve completely and the mixture must not boil.
2) As soon as the chocolate and sugar have completely dissolved, turn off and allow to cool (it can take all day or overnight if necessary). When the cream is cold, gently add the cold liquid cream from the fridge, not whipped, mix and blend the mixture with an immersion blender or blender for about 1 minute, to incorporate as much air as possible.
3) Now transfer the mixture into the container, cover it, and place it in the freezer. It will no longer be necessary to retrieve it every three hours to break the ice crystals that would have made it too hard. With this method, i.e., adding the liquid cream, the ice cream is placed in the freezer and no longer needs to be retrieved.
4) Then let the egg-free and no-ice-cream-maker chocolate ice cream rest for 12-24 hours. Both ice creams and sorbets must rest and mature in the freezer for at least 12 hours before they can be fully enjoyed.
Depending on the season and room temperature, the ice cream should be taken out of the freezer at least 15 minutes before serving if you like it creamy; otherwise 10 minutes before if you want it firmer (in summer).
You can accompany the chocolate ice cream with an orange, coffee, pistachio, or liqueur sauce, etc., and decorate it as you prefer.
