custard base – Feasting Is Fun

Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream

Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream, perfect on it’s own or to accompany sweet, hot, fudge brownies.

Using Callebaut Dark Chocolate Belgian Chips ensures this ice cream has more than a touch of luxury to it.

Vanilla bean speckled ice cream, crammed full of dark chocolate chips is the perfect treat for those who enjoy a not-too-sweet-treat. It also is the perfect accompaniment for a sweet treat, such as my Vanilla Fudge Chocolate Brownies. Balancing out and complimenting the sweet, chocolate and vanilla fudge brownie with dark chocolate chips in a vanilla ice cream.

Ok so that’s the technical side to things, in my mind there is only one way to improve a brownie and that is by warming it slightly, 10 secs on medium, in the microwave and crowning it with one great big scoop of ice cream!!!!

The ultimate combination.

So much so, I actually created this Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream to go with Brownies. By all means serve it in a cone or bowl, but my recommendation is to serve it on top of a homemade Chocolate Macadamia Nut Brownies.

Just a quick note about the chocolate chips – I use chocolate chips that are designed for melting, that is they are not the chocolate chips you find in the baking isle with added stabilisers to make them bake stable. Alternatively use a couple of bars of good quality (70% cocoa) chocolate chopped up into chunks.

Recipe: Makes 750ml Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream

300ml/ 1/2pint Double Cream

300ml/ 1/2pint Milk – Whole or Semi Skimmed – not skimmed

1tsp Vanilla Bean Paste – I use Nielsen-Massey

4 Large Free Range Egg Yolks – freeze the whites in bags for meringues, for up to one month in the freezer.

6tbsp Caster Sugar

1tsp Corn Flour – I used certified gluten free by – Doves Farm

250g/9oz Dark Chocolate Chips – I use Callebaut

Method: Ensure the freezing compartment of your ice cream maker has been in the freezer overnight, or according to the manufacturers instructions.

For step by step photographs showing how to make the ice cream custard base please see Very Vanilla Ice Cream

Place the cream and milk together in a large, heavy bottomed saucepan, over a medium heat. Heat to scalding point – this is just before boiling and you will see a ring of bubbles appear around the rim of the liquid. Once scalding point is reached remove from the heat.
Meanwhile in a large bowl whisk together the egg yolks, vanilla bean paste, sugar and corn flour until pale and creamy.
With the whisk running on slow, gradually add the hot cream mixture to the egg mixture in the bowl.
Once combined pour the custard base back into the saucepan and place over a medium heat.
Stir constantly with a wooden spoon, until the custard is thickened and coats the back of the spoon.
Pour the cooked custard, through a sieve, into a clean bowl.
Cover the top of the custard base with cling film, so that it is in direct contact with the liquid, this prevents a skin from forming.
Allow the liquid to cool on the work top, I place the bowl on a trivet to aid air circulation.

When the liquid is just warm place the bowl into the fridge until chilled.
Set up your ice cream maker according to the manufacturers instructions.
With my Andrew James ice cream maker the machine must be churning as the liquid is poured in. If it is easier, transfer the custard base to a jug for pouring.
Pour the liquid into the ice cream machine and churn until you have a soft set ice cream.
Stop the machine, remove any paddle and scoop the contents into a freezer proof, sealable container.
Add most of the dark chocolate chips to the soft ice cream and swirl through using the handle of a wooden spoon.
Sprinkle the remaining dark chocolate chips on to the surface of the ice cream. Clamp on the lid and place in the deep freeze until fully frozen.

To serve, remove the Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream from the freezer 10-20 minutes before needed, so that it can soften and be easily scooped. One of the fantastic advantages of making your own ice cream at home, is, that no preservatives or additives are present. Yes this means waiting for the ice cream to soften a little prior to scooping. For me I’m willing to wait!

The contrast between the clattering, crunchy chocolate chips and the smooth, velvety, vanilla ice cream simply creates one of the best ice creams I have tasted so far. Trust me, that says a lot.

I have made plenty of ice creams this year with my beloved Which Best Buy Andrew James Ice Cream Maker, some haven’t made it on to the blog yet as they either haven’t delivered on taste and texture, or simply need tweaking. I really am tough on the recipes that I’m willing to post. They have to be excellent, not just ok!

Trust me this Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream is excellent.

If you have enjoyed this recipe for Dark Chocolate Chip Vanilla Ice Cream then you may also like these:

Strawberry Ripple Ice Cream

FF Dark Chocolate Chip Ice Cream — **Strawberry Ripple Ice Cream**

Chocolate Orange Ice Cream

Lemon Ripple Ice Cream

Making ice cream at home is so simple, the range of flavours are limitless and the cost of the ice cream maker justified by the quality of ice cream you can make at home.

I have put this Andrew James Ice Cream Maker, which has been awarded a Which Best Buy, through rigorous testing and I thoroughly recommend it.

Have fun, making, creating and baking in your kitchens.

Sammie xx

Andrew James provided me with the ice cream maker for the purposes of a review. All opinions, views, recipes, content and photographs are my own. please see my Disclosure Policy.

Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream

Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream. Silky, chocolate ice cream packed full of chocolate/caramel Rolos.

The idea for this recipe came from my friend and amazing fellow blogger Jane from Jane’s Patisserie. While creating the most wonderful recipes, she also has just got a new puppy called Rolo. So you see I had to create something to celebrate the new puppy Rolo coming home. Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream seemed the perfect solution.

This Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream recipe is so versatile. Once you have made the chocolate ice cream base you can add whatever you like. I rather like the idea of a Mars Bar version, with big chunks swirled through the ice cream.

I am loving my Andrew James Which Best Buy Ice Cream Maker. In fact I now have a second bowl, which I can pop in the freezer. This means I can either make one big double batch of the same ice cream or split it into two different flavours.

Making ice cream at home is easy, inexpensive, you have control over what goes in AND you are only limited by your imagination as to how many flavours you come up with! Someone asked me today why they’d never had Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream before, my answer was I’d only just invented it!!

Recipe: Makes 750ml Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream

300ml Double Cream

300ml Whole or Semi Skimmed Milk

4 Large Free Range Egg Yolks – freeze the whites in a bag for up to one month

1tsp Vanilla Bean Paste/Vanilla Extract – I use Nielsen-Massey

1tsp Corn Flour – I use Doves Farm as it is certified gluten free

5tbsp Caster Sugar

100g Dark Chocolate 70% Cocoa

4 Packets of Rolos

Method: Ensure the frozen bowl part of the ice cream maker has been in the freezer for at least 8 hours, or according to manufacturers instructions.

Note – for step by step photographs of how to make the custard base please see Very Vanilla Ice Cream

Making The Chocolate Ice Cream Base

Pour the milk and cream into a heavy based saucepan over a medium heat.
Heat until the milk is scalded – little bubbles will appear around the rim of the liquid just before it boils. Once it has reached this point remove from the heat.
In a large heat proof bowl add the egg yolks, vanilla paste, corn flour and sugar.
Whisk until pale and creamy.
With the whisk still running on low, slowly pour the hot cream mixture into the bowl – this creates the custard base.
Pour the custard base back into the saucepan, over a low-medium heat, stirring continuously.
When the custard has thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon remove the pan from the heat.
Chop up the dark chocolate and place into a clean bowl – I quickly rinse out the original bowl used.
Place a sieve over the bowl and pour the hot custard through the sieve on to the chocolate.
Stir the custard with a wooden spoon and the chocolate will melt into it.

FF Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream — Chocolate melting into the custard ice cream base.

Cover the chocolate custard base with cling film, so the film lays directly on the surface of the custard. This will stop a skin from forming.
Once cooled to warm on the work top place the bowl in the fridge to chill.
As soon as the base is chilled it is ready to be churned.

Churning The Ice Cream

Set up your ice cream maker as per the manufacturers instructions.
Mine has to be churning, prior to adding any liquid.
Pour the chocolate custard into the churning machine through the opening and leave to churn until frozen – for me that is when the ice cream is turning as one clump with the beater.
Switch the machine off and remove the top part of the ice cream maker.

Remove the beater, scraping off as much of the ice cream as you can. Then lick off the rest of the ice cream 😉
Decant the chocolate ice cream into a freezer proof tub.
Unwrap 3 packets of Rolos and cut each one in half.
Add to the ice cream and swirl through using the handle of a wooden spoon.
Unwrap the fourth packet and place the Rolos directly on top of the ice cream.

Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream ready for the freezer.

Pop on a tight fitting lid and place the Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream into the freezer for at least 4 hours, or until fully frozen.
To serve, remove the ice cream from the freezer 15-20 before scooping. As our delicious Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream doesn’t have any artificial softener, preservatives or additives added to it, it’ll need a few minutes to soften up.

Serve in cones, bowls or these fun cups I found.

Why not have a go at making your own ice cream at home. It really is so much fun.

If you have enjoyed this Chocolate Rolo Ice Cream Recipe here are a few more you may like:

Lemon Ripple Ice Cream

Chocolate Honeycomb Ice Cream

Blackberry Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

I hope these recipes have inspired you to make your own ice cream at home? It tastes so much better than most of the ice creams you can buy and you can create your own ice cream sundaes like my Raspberry Chocolate Ice Cream Sundae.

Whatever you are making, baking and creating in your kitchens this very warm weekend, here in the South East of England, have fun feasting with family and friends.

Sammie xx

No part of this post may be reproduced or duplicated without the written permission of the owner. Please see my Disclosure Policy.

Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream

So this this summer I’m having lots of fun making different flavoured ice creams. Yet would I be able to turn a Mr Sherick’s Hint of Mint shake into one? Well, you know me, always up for a challenge. This one is not good, not great, but, awesome. A delicious creamy Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream!

I do apologise for the poor lighting in the photographs. Once this ice cream was made, chilled, churned, frozen and served the light levels were low. If I’d have waited another day I would have had a riot at home. Everyone was desparate to see how the milkshake had turned into an ice cream!

When most people are given a milkshake or two, they tend to drink them. Oh no, not me. My brain starts whirring as to what can I make with them. I knew I wanted to try an ice cream recipe.

All of Mr Sherick’s shakes are thick, creamy and very luxurious, so I was pretty confident the ‘Hint of Mint’ shake would work well.

What I was not prepared for was just how good the ice cream would turn out. Unbelievably creamy and smooth, with just the right ‘Hint of Mint’ against a light chocolate background. This Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream is seriously good. A massive hit with the whole family giving it a very firm 10/10.

As many of you who read this blog regularly will know, anything above an 8.5 is very hard to attain from our youngest daughter, so Mr Sherick’s you should be very pleased with a top score.

Whilst making the ice cream I resisted the urge to add some extra chunks of minty chocolate. I am so glad that I did. This ice cream is so smooth and dreamily creamy. Yes there is a place for mint chocolate chips in ice cream, but not in this recipe.

Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream smooth and refreshing.

Recipe: Makes 750ml Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream

1 x 250ml Hint of Mint Milkshake by Mr Sherick’s

300mls Double Cream

50ml Whole Milk

4 Large Free Range Egg Yolks

5tbsp Caster Sugar

1tsp Corn Flour – I use Waitrose

Method: For photographic step by step instructions see Very Vanilla Ice Cream.

Note: Ensure the frozen bowl part of your ice cream maker has been in the freezer for 8 hours or according to manufacturers instructions.

Pour the milkshake, milk and cream into a heavy based saucepan over a medium heat.
Bring to scalding point – a rim of small bubbles will form, just before the liquid boils.
As soon as the liquid has reached scalding point remove from the heat.
Into a large bowl add the egg yolks, sugar and corn flour.
Whisk until pale and creamy.
With the whisk on slow gently pour in the scalded cream/milkshake mixture.
Once combined pour the contents of the bowl back into the saucepan on a low/medium heat (custard base). Stirring continuously.
When the custard base has thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon remove the saucepan from the heat.
Pour the custard base through a sieve into a clean bowl.

Place cling film directly on top of the custard base to stop a skin forming.
Leave to cool and when just warm place in the fridge to chill until cold.
Once cold the custard base is ready to be churned into ice cream.
Set up your ice cream maker according to the instructions given by the manufacturer.
Switch the machine on so that it is churning and carefully pour in the custard base.
Churn until the ice cream is softly frozen. Stop the ice cream maker.

Remove the paddle from the ice cream maker and scoop all of the ice cream off into a freezer proof tub. Use a silicone spatula to scoop the remaining ice cream out and into the tub.

Pop a lid on the tub a place in the freezer until frozen solid, ideally overnight but you can check after 4 hours.
To serve your Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream, remove the tub from the freezer 15 minutes before serving.
I scooped balls of the delicious ice cream into premade (not by me!) brandy snap baskets and garnished with a little fresh mint.

One bottle of ‘Hint of Mint’ milkshake makes a smooth, elegant dessert for 4-6 people, depending on how generous your portions are. In our house it was split between 5 people.

I am utterly thrilled that I was not only able to turn a shake into ice cream, more so that it was a very, very good ice cream. The hint of mint was still there and this proved to be a very smooth and refreshing ice cream. Perfect after a spicey meal, or in a cone in the garden whilst enjoying the sun.

Why don’t you churn your Mr Sherick’s shakes into ice cream?

If you have enjoyed the recipe for this Mint Chocolate Milkshake Ice Cream here are some others you may like to try:

Chocolate Honeycomb Ice Cream

Lemon Ripple Ice Cream

Chocolate Orange Ice Cream

Creating new flavours using my new Andrew James Ice Cream Maker is so much fun. Using milkshakes from Mr Sherick’s to successfully create delicious ice cream is a creative achievement for me.

If you’ve been inspired to churn your shakes into ice cream please let me know? I love reading your comments and seeing your photos on Twitter and Instagram. Talking of which, keep your eyes open for a Mr Sherick’s giveaway coming very soon.

Have fun making, baking and creating in your kitchens and remember food always tastes better when it’s shared.

Sammie xx

Mr Sherick’s sent me some of their shakes to try. All opinions, views, content and photographs are my own. Please see my Disclosure Policy.