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This chocolate peanut butter ice cream recipe is made with rich and decadent homemade chocolate ice cream and loaded with salted peanut butter chunks.
Most people love chocolate right? Most people love peanut butter? It seems everyone loves the combination of chocolate and peanut butter!
Just think about all the different candies that has that well-known combination. Well today is about homemade chocolate peanut butter ice cream.
And not just boring chocolate ice cream with peanut butter mixed throughout, it is chocolate ice cream with peanut butter chunks. Just think of it like cookie dough!
So if you want something a little different, this ice cream is the way to go. When I make homemade ice cream these days, it is at the top of the list as well as graham cracker ice cream, chocolate chip ice cream and malted cookie dough ice cream.
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Ingredient Notes
- Heavy cream and milk - the 2:1 ratio of heavy cream to milk gives you the right fat content to create that creamy texture you except with ice cream.
- Peanut butter - when frozen with the honey, they turn into little pops of salty, sweet and nutty flavor bombs.
- Xanthan gum - my go-to for reducing ice crystals after the ice cream freezes, but you can omit if you prefer.
Ingredient Swaps
As with any recipe, you can switch things up if needed. Some variations include:
- Whole milk and heavy cream are my go-tos, but you can also use any skim milk and half-and-half if needed. It just won't be as creamy.
- I usually use granulated sugar for homemade ice cream, but light brown sugar works as well.
- While it peanut butter is what I use for the frozen cubes, you can use alternatives like almond butter, pecan butter or sunflower seed butter.
Step-by-Step Photos
Mix together the sugar, cocoa powder, salt and xanthan gum in a bowl and set aside. Now make the base by heating the milk, cream and corn syrup in a medium pot over medium heat.
Whisk in the sugar mixture until no clumps. Cook for 2-3 minutes and remove from heat. Pour through a fine mesh strainer and cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or over night. While cooling, mix together the peanut butter, honey and salt in a bowl.
Spread the peanut butter on a parchment-lined baking sheet until it is ½" thick. Freeze until solid, about 1 hour. Cut into ½ cubes and place in the freezer to be used later. Mix in the vanilla extract in the ice cream and then churn for 20 minutes or until done.
Once done, fold in the peanut butter cubes and place in a container in the freezer for 4 hours before serving.
FAQs
It may be the cheapest one available, but the 1.5 quart Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker is super simple to use and makes the best ice cream at home.
So this was actually something new I learned by watching the Tasty video. Xanthan gum helps stabilize the ice cream and prevents ice crystals from forming. The usual problem with homemade ice cream is it will only lasts a couple of days before ice crystals form. But the xanthan gum helps battle this.
You can although I highly recommend trying to use whole milk and heavy cream as the high fat content creates the creamy texture when the ice cream is cooled.
Nearly any type of milk will work, and you can substitute half-and-half for the cream. But just keep in mind, it won’t be as creamy and could get icy.
Almond or cashew butter works just as well. Or if you are just feeling lazy, use some Reese's peanut butter cups.
Homemade Ice Cream Tips
- Use the Best Ingredients – when making ice cream you want to use the best ingredients possible so use free-range eggs and organic milk and cream. Also use high quality products when it comes to added flavorings like vanilla or chocolate. Never use imitation vanilla.
- Don’t Cut the Fat and Calories – ice cream is not the dessert that you should be cutting the fat. It depends on the high-fat content to create a creamy texture. If you go lower fat, it will cause an icy ice cream. If you’re on a diet, just have a smaller scoop!
- Add Extract at Right Time – if you add an extract or alcohol while the custard is too hot, you won’t get the actual flavor as it will cook out slightly. Just wait until right before you pour the custard into the ice cream maker to add it.
- Chill the Custard – you don’t necessarily need to chill the custard overnight, but you want to chill until it is as cold as possible.
- Use Frozen Bowl – make sure your ice cream bowl has been frozen for at least 24 hours, otherwise you aren’t giving the ice cream a great chance of freeze.
- Start Ice Cream Motor First – do not pour the custard in the frozen bowl before starting the ice cream maker. It will start freezing upon contact. You want the motor running and slowly pour the custard in.
- Add Peanut Butter Cubes at the End – never add your peanut butter cubes at the beginning of the process. You want to add them when it looks like there is about a minute left in the churning process.
- Don’t Overchurn – always error on the side of caution when it comes to churning your chocolate peanut butter ice cream. You do not want it to be hard. Remember it will continue to freeze once you place in the freezer.
- Keep It Creamy – homemade ice cream can turn hard as we don’t add preservatives, however xanthan gum or a couple tbsp of vodka will help keep it creamy.
Other Ice Cream Recipes
If you’ve tried this chocolate peanut butter ice cream recipe or any other recipe on Chisel & Fork, please let me know how it turned out in the comments below! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube to see more tasty meals and anything else I'm up to.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Chunks
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3 tbsp honey
- ½ tsp sea salt
Chocolate Ice Cream
- ½ cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp xanthan gum
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 2 tbsp corn syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Peanut Butter Chunks
- In a medium bowl, mix together the peanut butter, honey and salt.
- Spread the peanut butter evenly in a parchment-lined baking dish until the dough is ½" thick. Freeze until solid, about 1 hour. Cut peanut butter into ½" cubes and freeze to be used later.
Chocolate Ice Cream
- In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cocoa powder, salt and xanthan gum.
- Heat a medium pot over medium heat and add the milk, cream and corn syrup, whisking to combine. Whisk in the sugar mixture until there are no lumps. Cook until the sugar is dissolved, about 2-3 minutes. Remove the pot from heat.
- Pour mixture through fine mesh strainer to remove any remaining clumps from the cocoa powder. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Stir in vanilla extract and whisk to combine.
- Pour the mixture into an ice cream machine and churn for about 20 minutes (follow your ice cream maker directions). Once done, fold in the peanut butter cubes.
- Cover with plastic wrap and store in freezer for 4 hours before serving. Ice cream will last up to 6 months.
Notes
- Use the Best Ingredients – when making ice cream you want to use the best ingredients possible so use free-range eggs and organic milk and cream. Also use high quality products when it comes to added flavorings like vanilla or chocolate. Never use imitation vanilla.
- Don’t Cut the Fat and Calories – ice cream is not the dessert that you should be cutting the fat. It depends on the high-fat content to create a creamy texture. If you go lower fat, it will cause an icy ice cream. If you’re on a diet, just have a smaller scoop!
- Add Extract at Right Time – if you add an extract or alcohol while the custard is too hot, you won’t get the actual flavor as it will cook out slightly. Just wait until right before you pour the custard into the ice cream maker to add it.
- Chill the Custard – you don’t necessarily need to chill the custard overnight, but you want to chill until it is as cold as possible.
- Use Frozen Bowl – make sure your ice cream bowl has been frozen for at least 24 hours, otherwise you aren’t giving the ice cream a great chance of freeze.
- Start Ice Cream Motor First – do not pour the custard in the frozen bowl before starting the ice cream maker. It will start freezing upon contact. You want the motor running and slowly pour the custard in.
- Add Peanut Butter Cubes at the End – never add your peanut butter cubes at the beginning of the process. You want to add them when it looks like there is about a minute left in the churning process.
- Don’t Overchurn – always error on the side of caution when it comes to churning your chocolate peanut butter ice cream. You do not want it to be hard. Remember it will continue to freeze once you place in the freezer.
- Keep It Creamy – homemade ice cream can turn hard as we don’t add preservatives, however xanthan gum or a couple tbsp of vodka will help keep it creamy.
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