Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
on Oct 23, 2024
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Rich chocolate and creamy peanut butter come together to create this delicious chocolate peanut butter ice cream. The ice cream maker takes all the stress out of making this cream so you can sit back, relax, and enjoy your homemade ice cream.
Who doesn’t love peanut butter and chocolate?? It is such a timeless flavor combination. This easy-to-make ice cream recipe uses two different kinds of chocolate that pair perfectly with the creamy peanut butter. The unsweetened chocolate adds a sharp flavor that goes great with the richness of the cocoa powder.
Using an ice cream maker takes all the thinking out of this recipe. All you have to do is whisk together your ice cream mixture and let it cool before you put it in your machine. We love our Cuisinart ice cream maker since you just have to freeze the canister and don’t have to worry about using ice or salt.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Chocolate and peanut butter is always a great flavor combination!
- The ice cream maker does all the hard work, so you can sit back and relax.
- Storing this ice cream for long periods of time is a breeze!
Equipment You’ll Need
You’ll want to make sure you have a good ice cream maker for this recipe. The Cuisinart 1.5 quart ice cream maker is a great option and is the perfect size for how much ice cream this recipe makes. If you have a different model then that is okay too, just make sure you follow the directions that come with the machine when it comes to churning the ice cream.
Recipe Ingredients
- Cocoa Powder—Feel free to use whatever cocoa powder you have on hand.
- Sugar—Granulated.
- Milk—Whole milk works best.
- Heavy Cream—To help give your ice cream a rich, creamy texture.
- Unsweetened Chocolate—Chopped into small pieces.
- Vanilla
- Peanut Butter—Creamy peanut butter works best for this recipe.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Step #1. Combine the sugar and cocoa powder in a small pot. Whisk in the heavy cream and milk over medium heat until the mixture starts to steam. Stir in the chopped chocolate until it melts.
Step #2. Remove the pot from the burner and stir in the vanilla and peanut butter until fully incorporated.
Step #3. Let the mixture cool completely and then add it to your ice cream maker. Process the ice cream according to your ice cream maker’s directions.
Step #4. Let the ice cream freeze for a few hours before serving to make sure it has set.
Recipe FAQs
Make sure you check your ice cream machines instruction manual because different machines might have different times on them. A good rule of thumb is to let your ice cream mix until it is the consistency of a Wendy’s Frosty or soft serve ice cream. At that point you can either serve it right away or let it set a little more in the freezer.
It is really up to you. Because we are using two different kinds of chocolate you don’t have to worry about the chocolate flavor being overpowered by the peanut butter. Dutch process cocoa powder is a little more expensive, but it has a strong, rich, decadent flavor that goes great with the slight saltiness of the peanut butter.
Chopped peanuts are a great way to add both flavor and texture to this ice cream. In addition to peanuts, you can add mini marshmallows, almonds, and hot fudge sauce. Each of this ingredients pairs perfectly with the rich, sweet flavor of the ice cream and can take your dessert game to the next level!
How to Store Your Ice Cream
Storing this ice cream could not be easier! You will want to scoop it all out of the ice cream maker and transfer it to an airtight container. Make sure you don’t fill the container up too much so that you can easily take the lid off. As long as you keep your ice cream airtight, it can be stored for up to 2 months. When you are ready to serve your ice cream you will want to let it sit on the counter for a few minutes to soften.
Expert Tips
- When served straight from the ice cream maker, this ice cream is the consistency of soft serve. When you let it freeze for a few hours then it has the consistency of store-bought ice cream.
- Creamy peanut butter works best for this recipe. However, if you want to add some texture to your ice cream then you can add ½ cup of chopped peanuts. Simply throw them into the ice cream maker along with the milk mixture.
- For a fun treat, try sandwiching a scoop of this ice cream between two homemade chocolate chip cookies.
- If you want to add a little bit of sweetness to your ice cream then you can use semi-sweet or milk chocolate bars instead of unsweetened chocolate. We like the dark, rich flavor of the unsweetened chocolate pieces.
We all scream for ice cream. Here are a few of my favorites: Homemade Dark Chocolate Ice Cream, Cheesecake Ice Cream Recipe and Fresh Peach Ice Cream are total hits.
More Ice Cream Recipes To Consider
Ice Cream
Pistachio Gelato
Ice Cream
Fresh Peach Ice Cream
Dessert Recipes
Strawberry Milkshakes
Ice Cream
Chocolate Ice Cream
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Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 cups milk, whole is best
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, I like Ghiradelli, cut into small pieces
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
Instructions
- In a medium pan whisk together the cocoa powder and sugar. While whisking add the milk and the cream. Whisk together well combined. Place the pan over medium to medium-high heat. When the milk mixture starts to steam (but isn’t boiling) add the chocolate and whisk until the chocolate melts. Remove from the head and add the vanilla and peanut butter and stir until well combined. Place the ice cream mixture in a container, cover, and refrigerate until cool (about 4 hours or overnight).
- Pour the ice cream mixture in your ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s instructions.
- I use a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker that you just freeze the canister the ice cream is made in. It takes about 15 minutes to make ice cream with no salt and ice to mess with. I love it! If you like a harder ice cream, put the ice cream in a freezer container and cover. Let it freeze for at least 2 hours before serving. The ice cream straight out of the maker is just like soft-serve. Out of the freezer it is like store-bought.
I haven’t made this yet, but was thinking of adding banana to it. Do you have any advice on how to do that?
Like chopped or blended up? It sounds good!
One of those. lol I am making it right now using Apriva instead of sugar. I am going to freeze and chop up some banana’s to add to it as I use the ice cream maker. Also, sorry for not answering me. I didn’t even know you replied until I was scrolling down.
Hi there!
I made this batter last night and settled on this recipe because it said ’30 minutes’…however you have to wait for the batter to set. Which is fine! But I do think the overall time should be adjusted. It was misleading to an ice cream maker newbie like me.
It tastes delicious though! Glad I found this 7 years after you created the recipe! 🙂
Yeah, I just made it today and the mixture is grainy. I haven’t put it into the ice cream maker yet because I’m thinking it will be a waste of time.
What kind of peanut butter did you use? Was it grainy going into the machine or smooth before you put it in and grainy coming out? That’s so odd, I make this one a lot and haven’t had the issue but you aren’t the first person that has. I’d love to trouble shoot.
How many quarts does this make. My ice cream make makes 6 quarts and I need to know how to adjust the recipe.
It only makes about a quart, I bet you could do it 4 times this much and it’ll fit, that’s a HUGE ice cream machine, I need one!
This ice cream…oh my! I’m addicted! So chocolatey and so peanut buttery (yes, those are both legit words!) Delicious! Thank you!
Literally, Gary just fixed himself a bowl of chocolate ice cream with a huge spoonful of peanut butter! He would love this! Now, I’m in need of an ice cream maker!
We just tried making this recipe and ran into a problem. After combining all the ingredients and adding to the ice cream maker, we let our mixer run for awhile. I think the mixture was still too hot and melted the cooling element in the mixing bowl. Did you let the mixture cool before adding to the ice cream maker or did you add it straight from the stove top?
Oh no! I hate to hear that. Yes, you should refrigerate your mixture for 4 or more hours before adding it to the machine. Hopefully it will work better for you next time!