Chocolate ice cream with chocolate mint chips

Sometimes an ill fated dish ends up turning into a stroke of brilliance! Kitchen mistakes happen to us all, the Kitchen Witch is no exception!! The other night I made a batch of chocolate pudding however I didn't do it right. I realized that I was running low on cornstarch and didn't use as much as I should have.

No problem, the Witch thinks, I'll just add a few egg yolks - that ought to thicken it right up, like a custard. Great idea in theory, however in this practice it just didn't happen. It was still too thin and NOT pudding like in consistency.

No problem, the Witch thinks again, it needs to cool off anyway and it will thicken up as it cools, right? The husband and I each ate a mug full and agreed it was good but not thick enough to be a pudding. It was more like melted ice cream.

Thats when it hit me. Ice cream. That's just milk, egg yolks, sugar, flavors and cream. This thin pudding was pretty much that, minus the cream. What it lacked in cream (richness and thickness) was mostly made up for by the cornstarch and cooking. This failed pudding was really just a chocolate ice cream base waiting to be frozen. It might even be a lower calorie, certainly lower in fat, than traditional store bought ice cream. How can that be bad?


Lucky for this Kitchen Witch I have a fully equipped kitchen including a counter top ice cream maker. I scored this thing off QVC years ago for next to nothing. I keep the frozen cylinder in my deep freeze so its ready to make a batch of ice cream anytime I am. If you don't have a table top ice cream machine you can use an old fashioned ice cream churn, with ice and rock salt. Sorry, I've got nothin' better to offer :-(

The recipe is proving slightly difficult to pin down because when I made this it was supposed to be pudding. And 2 of the 6 cups got consumed as such. So I'll post the recipe based on 6 cups of ice cream base, however most ice cream machines can handle about 4 cups max. The nutritional info is based on the full recipe being frozen and dished out into 1/2 cup portions.

Chocolate mint chocolate chip ice cream
makes 12 1/2 (half) cup servings
6 1/2 c milk
3/4 c sugar
1/2 c cocoa powder
1 t vanilla
3 T corn starch
2 egg yolks
1 c mint and dark chocolate chips, melted (these were a limited time holiday thing, if you don't have them you can use plain chocolate chips & add 1 t peppermint extract to the ice cream base before freezing)

Mix the cocoa powder, sugar and corn starch together in a large heavy bottom pan. Add the milk. Whisk well to incorporate, it will be very foamy but that will subside as it heats up.

Cook over medium heat until it boils, stirring well to avoid scorching. Bring to a full rolling boil and cook for 2 minutes.

Whisk the egg yolks. Add 1/2 c of the hot chocolate mixture, whisk well. Slowly drizzle the egg chocolate mixture into the ice cream base, whisking very well. Cook 2 minutes longer.

Remove from heat and add vanilla. Pour into a large bowl and place plastic wrap over the top to prevent a skin from forming. Allow to cool fully before putting into the ice cream machine.

Once ice cream base is fully chilled pour into an ice cream machine. Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave, using 30 second bursts and stirring very well between heatings.



Once ice cream is thick and frozen remove from frozen cylinder and put into a medium sized bowl. Drizzle 1/2 the melted chocolate over the ice cream, stir it well to break up the chocolate, causing 'chips'. Repeat this until the melted chocolate is fully incorporated into the ice cream.



Freeze ice cream a minimum of 2 hours before serving. Lasts up to 7 days in the freezer well covered, however chances are good it won't last more than 2 nights in the Kitchen Witches household.



Nutrition Facts
12 Servings
Amount Per Serving 1/2 cup
Calories 176.1
Total Fat 6.8 g
Saturated Fat 4.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat 2.3 g
Cholesterol 32.1 mg
Sodium 36.8 mg
Potassium 108.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 28.2 g
Dietary Fiber 2.0 g
Sugars 24.4 g
Protein 4.3 g