I love anything chocolate, but who doesn’t?! My favorite ice cream growing up was chocolate and raspberry, my two favorite flavors! Well, my kids love chocolate ice cream too! Last week, I made the ice cream base, and since it needs to chill for 6 hours to a day, I let it sit for a day while I was contemplating as to what flavor to make. I had a couple of exotic flavors in mind, which my family vetoed! They wanted me to go with a chocolate flavor. So chocolate it was! đ
I made a hazelnut praline, which is essentially toasted hazelnuts in melted and boiled sugar and left to set for 30 minutes to form a crunchy topping! I used half of the hazelnut praline and blended it in the food processor to make a hazelnut praline paste which is mind blowingly delicious! I just wish I could eat it like peanut butter and spread it on everything possible! đ
I made a chocolate ganache base with the most delicious Ghirardelli chocolate chips and cocoa powder! I added the hazelnut praline paste to it, to make a smooth mixture. To that a bit of cayenne pepper for that extra punch to this mixture. The ice cream base was mixed with chocolate ganache! Now the ice cream base was added to the chilled ice cream maker.
Once the ice cream was done, I gently mixed 1/3 of the remaining broken hazelnut praline into the ice cream and left the remaining praline to add as a topping on the ice cream! Let me tell you, this ice cream is one of the best, silky, smooth, delicious flavored ice cream I have eaten in a longgg time! It is seriously addictive, and one scoop is just NOT enough!
Please try this recipe! If you do, please do not forget to tag me with #thejamlab on Instagram and/or leave a comment on this blog post!
Cheers!
xo
Amisha
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup hazelnut praline paste
- 3/4 semi sweet Ghirardelli chocolate chips
- 3 tablespoons Ghirardelli cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Hazelnut Praline:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup toasted hazelnuts(with skin removed)
Instructions
- Hazelnut Praline:
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a dry heavy saucepan cook sugar over moderate heat, stirring with a fork, until melted and cook, without stirring, swirling pan, just until a golden caramel. Add hazelnuts, stirring until coated well. Immediately pour mixture onto baking sheet and cool completely, about 30 minutes. Chop the praline into pieces with a sharp knife.
- Hazelnut Praline Paste: In a food processor, add in half of the hazelnut praline and blend till a smooth paste is formed to make the hazelnut praline paste!
- Ice cream:
- Recipe adapted from Cook's Illustrated
- Set a strainer over a medium bowl set in a larger bowl containing ice and 2 cups water. Heat the milk, cocoa powder, cream, 1/2 cup sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, , until steam appears and the milk is warm (about 175 degrees), about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk the yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a medium bowl until combined and pale yellow, whisk it vigorously. Whisk half the warm milk mixture into the beaten yolks, 1/2 cup at a time, until combined.
- Whisk the milk-yolk mixture into the warm milk in the saucepan; set the saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until steam appears, foam subsides, and the mixture is slightly thickened or an instant-read thermometer registers 180 to 185 degrees. (Do not boil the mixture, or the eggs will curdle.)
- Immediately strain the custard into the bowl set in the ice bath; cool the custard to room temperature, stirring it occasionally to help it cool. Once cooled, add in the vanilla extract and stir. Cover and refrigerate for atleast 6 hours or up to 24 hours.
- For the Chocolate Mixture:
- In a small double boiler, melt the chocolate chips and whole milk, until its a smooth mixture. Gently whisk in the hazelnut praline paste and cayenne pepper until well incorporated. Slowly add about 1/2 cup of the custard into the chocolate mixture and whisk. Add another 1/2 cup and whisk till smooth. Now gently add this mixture to the ice cream base custard and whisk until well incorporated.
- Once, the custard is ready, pour the custard into the ice cream machine and churn, following the manufacturerâs instructions, until the mixture resembles soft-serve ice cream for 25 minutes. Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container, sprinkle 1/3 of the remaining hazelnut praline into the mixture of the ice cream, press plastic wrap flush against the surface, cover the container, and freeze the ice cream until firm, at least 2 hours.
- When serving, add the hazelnut praline as a topping on the ice cream. Delicious! đ
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