Decadent Homemade Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream: The Ultimate Indulgence
As the warmth of summer slowly transitions, there’s always time for one more glorious frozen treat, especially when it’s as exceptional as this decadent homemade chocolate hazelnut ice cream. Forget those fleeting summer days; this isn’t just a seasonal delight. Its rich, comforting flavors make it an exquisite dessert any time of year. This recipe isn’t about simply adding a few hazelnuts to vanilla ice cream; it’s a deep dive into the true essence of hazelnut, complemented by luscious dark chocolate.
What makes this ice cream truly stand out? The secret lies in a generous infusion of homemade hazelnut butter, ensuring every spoonful is bursting with authentic, nutty goodness. And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, we fold in exquisite dark chocolate flecks at the very end of churning, creating irresistible pockets of melty, semi-sweet joy throughout. This isn’t just an ice cream recipe; it’s a culinary experience that promises to elevate your dessert game and leave a lasting impression.
This post is brought to you by Safest Choice eggs.
The Secret to Unforgettable Flavor: Homemade Hazelnut Butter
The foundation of this extraordinary chocolate hazelnut ice cream is undoubtedly the homemade hazelnut butter. While store-bought nut butters are convenient, crafting your own from scratch ensures unparalleled freshness, intensity of flavor, and control over the texture. It’s a game-changer that truly distinguishes this recipe from any other hazelnut ice cream you’ve tasted. This isn’t a mere suggestion; it’s the core component that infuses the entire ice cream base with that deep, earthy, and sweet hazelnut essence we all crave.
Making your own hazelnut butter is an incredibly rewarding process, and it might just become your new favorite use for a food processor. Imagine a butter so pure, so intensely nutty, it transforms a simple ice cream into a gourmet delight. While it requires a little extra attention, the resulting flavor profile is absolutely worth every minute of effort. This commitment to homemade quality is what makes this dessert a truly special occasion treat.
Taming the Hazelnuts: The Art of Skinning
Most raw hazelnuts are sold with their skins on, which, while indicating quality and freshness, introduces a slight challenge. Hazelnut skins carry a somewhat bitter flavor that can detract from the nut’s inherent sweetness and delicate aroma. For the purest and most delightful hazelnut butter, removing these skins is a crucial step. It’s an extra step in the process, yes, but it’s a non-negotiable one for achieving that smooth, unadulterated hazelnut taste that makes this ice cream so special.
The traditional method for skinning hazelnuts involves toasting them in the oven until fragrant, then immediately transferring them to a clean kitchen towel. By wrapping the hot nuts in the towel and rubbing them vigorously, the friction helps loosen and remove the bitter skins. This process demands a bit of patience and arm strength, and you might even find yourself muttering a few choice words halfway through. However, trust the process! The difference in flavor and texture of the resulting hazelnut butter is absolutely phenomenal, making every bit of effort genuinely worthwhile.
While other methods exist, such as blanching, I’ve found that the toasting and rubbing method yields a superior hazelnut butter for this particular recipe. Blanching can sometimes alter the texture of the hazelnuts, which in turn affects the creaminess and consistency of the butter. For the ultimate smooth and intensely flavored base for your chocolate hazelnut ice cream, sticking to the old-fashioned, tried-and-true method is highly recommended.
Crafting the Silky-Smooth Custard Base
Once your exquisite homemade hazelnut butter is ready, the rest of the ice cream comes together with surprising ease. The heart of any truly luxurious ice cream is a rich, creamy custard base, and this recipe delivers just that. Our base, inspired by culinary experts like Serious Eats, leverages the emulsifying power of egg yolks to create an incredibly smooth, velvety texture that is unmatched by egg-free versions. The yolks contribute not only to the richness but also to the stability of the ice cream, preventing it from becoming icy.
The combination of whole milk and heavy cream provides the perfect fat content for a luscious mouthfeel, while a touch of vanilla extract and a pinch of salt enhance all the flavors, balancing the sweetness and bringing out the depth of the hazelnut. Unlike many traditional custard recipes that require tempering eggs, this simplified method makes it accessible for home cooks while still achieving professional-grade results.
For me, as a passionate home cook and recipe tester, food safety is paramount, especially when working with raw egg applications. That’s why I always reach for Davidson’s Safest Choice pasteurized eggs. These eggs undergo an all-natural pasteurization process that eliminates the risk of salmonella, providing complete peace of mind. This means you can confidently taste and adjust your ice cream base as much as you like, even before it’s cooked, ensuring the flavors are perfectly calibrated to your preference. It’s an invaluable benefit that enhances both safety and culinary freedom in your kitchen.
Beyond safety, Davidson’s Safest Choice eggs are hormone and antibiotic-free, and they carry the Seal of Approval from the American Culinary Federation, reflecting their high quality. Using them allows you to focus purely on the art of flavor creation, knowing that the foundation of your dessert is both delicious and safe.
The Grand Finale: Chocolate Flecks for a Divine Crunch
The magic of this chocolate hazelnut ice cream is completed with the addition of exquisite chocolate flecks. These aren’t just ordinary chocolate chips; the method of incorporating them creates a unique texture and intense chocolate burst in every bite. Just as your ice cream reaches its perfect, soft-serve consistency in the churner, we introduce a stream of melted semi-sweet chocolate and butter. This ingenious technique ensures that the chocolate solidifies into delicate, irregular shards and flecks, rather than large, hard chunks. These thin pieces of chocolate melt beautifully on your tongue, adding an extra layer of decadence and a delightful textural contrast.
The choice of semi-sweet chocolate is deliberate; its balanced bitterness perfectly complements the rich sweetness of the hazelnut ice cream, preventing it from becoming overly cloying. Each spoonful becomes a harmonious blend of creamy hazelnut and a satisfying chocolatey snap, making this dessert truly unforgettable. It’s a moment of culinary artistry that is simple to execute but yields profoundly delicious results, transforming your homemade ice cream into a gourmet masterpiece.
More Than Just a Summer Treat: Enjoy Year-Round
While ice cream is often synonymous with scorching summer days, this chocolate hazelnut ice cream transcends seasonal boundaries. Its profound, warming flavors of roasted hazelnuts and rich dark chocolate make it an equally perfect indulgence during the crisp days of autumn or even the frosty chill of winter. Imagine cozying up by a fireplace with a scoop of this velvety dessert; it’s an experience that’s just as comforting as it is refreshing. It serves as a sophisticated finale to a holiday meal or a delightful pick-me-up on any ordinary evening, proving that true culinary pleasure knows no season.
Whether you’re celebrating a special occasion, looking for a luxurious homemade dessert, or simply craving something extraordinary, this decadent chocolate hazelnut ice cream is sure to impress. It’s a testament to the fact that sometimes, the best things in life require a little extra effort, and the unparalleled flavor and creamy texture of this homemade treat are a magnificent reward.
Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream
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Equipment
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KitchenAid 5 Qt. Artisan Stand Mixer
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KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment
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Magimix Food Processor
Ingredients
Homemade Hazelnut Butter
- 1 cup (roughly 5¼ oz) raw hazelnuts, skin-on
Ice Cream Base
- 6 Safest Choice pasteurized egg yolks
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1½ cups (360 mL) whole milk
- 1½ cups (360 mL) heavy cream 350 mL heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- small pinch of kosher salt
- batch of homemade hazelnut butter see recipe above
- 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate broken into small pieces
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) unsalted butter
Instructions
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Prepare the Homemade Hazelnut Butter: Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C). Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Place the raw hazelnuts on the pan, and toast for 10 to 15 minutes, or until fragrant and the skins are just beginning to crack.
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Transfer the hot hazelnuts to the center of clean, large kitchen towel. Grab ends of towel to close and allow hazelnuts to cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Use your hands to roll and rub hazelnuts within the towel to remove their skins. If necessary, toast any stubborn hazelnuts in the oven for an additional 3 to 5 minutes to help loosen their skins.
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Transfer the hazelnuts to bowl of large food processor. Process for 3 to 5 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl with spatula every few minutes, or until a very creamy and smooth butter forms. It will be dry, thick, and crumbly in the first few minutes of processing. As oil from the hazelnuts is released, it will transform into a loose nut butter. Set aside as you prepare the ice cream base.
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Prepare the Ice Cream Base: Whisk together egg yolks and granulated sugar in medium mixing bowl until thick and pale yellow in color. Whisk in the whole milk and heavy cream. Transfer the mixture to a medium saucepan. Place over medium-low heat, stirring frequently with wooden spoon and adjusting the heat as necessary, until mixture has thickened. The mixture is ready when it coats the back of the spoon and holds when swiped with a finger. Immediately transfer the ice cream mixture to large mixing bowl. Add vanilla extract, salt, and hazelnut butter and whisk until well combined. Allow to cool to room temperature. Strain mixture through fine-meshed sieve into a large, refrigerator-safe container. Cover and refrigerate until very chilled, ideally 12 hours.
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Churn the ice cream mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Once the ice cream has almost finished churning, combine the chocolate and butter in small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 15 second increments, stirring between each one, until the chocolate and butter have melted completely and the mixture is smooth. Scrape the chocolate into small plastic bag and seal, squeezing out any excess air. The chocolate should be warm (if necessary, place the closed bag in a bowl of warm water as the ice cream finishes churning) throughout this process.
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In the last minutes of churning, snip a very small hole from the bottom corner of the plastic bag and drizzle the chocolate in thin stream into ice cream as it is churning. Transfer ice cream to airtight container and cover the surface of ice cream with parchment paper or plastic wrap. Freeze ice cream for a minimum of 4 to 6 hours, or until firm enough to scoop.
Tips for Success:
- For additional texture in every bite, feel free to reserve a few whole, skinned hazelnuts. Finely chop and add them to the ice cream in the last few minutes of churning!
This post was created in partnership with Safest Choice eggs. I am a proud member of Safest Choice Eggs’ Darling Dozen. Thank you for your continued support!