Yes I am making ice cream in the middle of December. Is that acceptable? I love ice cream any time of the year (we all know this), and the winter ain’t stopping me! I actually love putting homemade ice cream in my hot drinks and on top of warm pies and desserts, too. Because of the gelatin in this chocolate ice cream, it holds up well in the freezer without getting icy. I actually just defrosted a container I made 3 months ago and it’s still perfectly creamy and tastes just as fresh!
When I first posted this chocolate toasted almond ice cream on Instagram, so many loved the recipe, shared the recipe, and to this day (even though it’s my older photography and not the most appealing photo), it is my most saved post! I have had a few requests to put this ice cream on the blog, so it has finally earned a permanent spot.
This ice cream is a creamy dark chocolate mixed with salty toasted almonds. It’s rich, decadent, bittersweet, crunchy and addicting. Do any east-coasters remember Friendly’s chocolate almond chip ice cream? This is just like it. It brings me back to summer visits to Friendly's. Those were the days! Well, if you can’t eat, recreate it, am I right?? If you are looking for a chocolatey creamy gluten free and paleo dessert, this ice cream is for you! Best part, it's gut-friendly and gut healing as it contains gelatin! It’s also safe on a low fodmap diet.
Is this toasted almond chocolate ice cream easy to make?
Before I started making ice cream, the thought of it was always intimidating. And I don’t know why! It’s so easy and simple and rewarding. Once I broke the ice cream fear, I have been making it non-stop all during quarantine! You just need a good ice cream maker, this is the one I use. It’s great, easy and no clean up. I freeze the bowl the night before and it’s ready to go in the morning! You can also opt out to churn your ice cream mixture, it will just not be as creamy and may be harder to scoop once fully frozen. But will still taste great. This mix also tastes great before it turns to ice cream! It’s a rich chocolate pudding. Sometimes I eat half before I churn it.
What is in this toasted almond chocolate ice cream?
Coconut Milk and Coconut Cream: This is the base of your ice cream. Make sure it’s full fat and in the can
Cacao Powder or Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: I like using cacao because it’s full of antioxidants and it’s very rich. If you use cocoa, make sure it’s good quality! Dutch is always good.
Unsweetened Gelatin: This is what makes your ice cream creamy and less icy when frozen
Coconut Sugar: This is my go-to sweetener. It’s low glycemic and does not taste like coconut!
Sea Salt: Balances out the sweet in the ice cream. Also used with your almonds to give them a sweet salty toasty flavor
Almond Butter: I add this into my ice cream mix to make it extra creamy, and I also swirl it in as an add in. I love the almond flavor mixed in with the chocolate. You may also use peanut butter or omit this completely if you have a nut intolerance
Almonds: Your hero of the ice cream! But would also be great with pecans, or walnuts. If you cannot tolerate almonds, you can skip this part and add in chocolate chips instead
It is paleo, gluten free and dairy free!
And you would never know it. Since this ice cream is so chocolatey, it completely takes over any coconut milk flavor. It’s sweetened with low glycemic coconut sugar, but you can really use any sweetener you prefer here.
Ingredients:
1 can of full fat coconut milk
1 can of coconut cream (or full fat coconut milk)
1 packet of unsweetened gelatin powder (or 1 tbsp)
5 tbsp of cacao powder or a good quality unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup of coconut sugar, or sweetener of choice
2 tbsp of almond butter
Mix ins:
1/4 cup almond butter
3/4 cup almonds (chopped)*
Touch of olive oil to toast the almonds
Instructions:
First, if you are using an ice cream maker with a frozen bowl, make sure your bowl is completely frozen before making the ice cream. Mine takes an overnight in the freezer to become solid.
In a medium saucepan, mix together the coconut milk and cream. Sprinkle gelatin on top and let bloom until a skin forms, about 3-5 minutes. Then whisk this all together so gelatin dissolves in, add cacao powder, coconut sugar and 2 tbsp of almond butter, and turn on stove to medium heat. Heat the mixture until it becomes a low simmer. After 3 minutes of simmering, remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
Transfer the mixture to an airtight container and place in fridge until completely cold. Preferably overnight. It’ll gel up like pudding. (This mixture is actually amazing as a pudding if preferred!)
Toast the almonds. Chop almonds in processor/chopper in larger chunks. Place almonds in a medium pan and turn on stove to low-medium. Add a touch of olive oil and sprinkle of sea salt. Stir the almonds frequently until toasty brown. Be careful because they burn fast! When just brown, transfer to a bowl to let cool.
Once your mixture is cold, pour in your pre-frozen ice cream maker bowl and churn for 20-25 minutes. Once it becomes a thick soft serve texture, sprinkle in almonds & drizzle in the 1/4 cup of almond butter and let churn until just mixed. You could also add in chocolate chunks!
Once the ice cream is finished, enjoy as a soft serve, or transfer to an airtight container and place in freezer. It’ll firm up in the freezer, and after about an hour it will be a perfect creamy scoopable texture. Once fully frozen, it’ll take about 30 minutes on the countertop to be scoopable again.
Store in the freezer for months without it getting icy! You may also store the ice cream in ice cream pop molds for easier eating.
You can check out my Magnum Bar Recipe here, that I use this ice cream with! Or Marbled Chocolate Vanilla Bars.
Notes:
*If you cannot tolerate almonds, you can skip this part and add in chocolate chips instead. You may also skip the almond butter in this recipe too.
Make sure you use gelatin powder and not collagen.
If you are using an ice cream maker with a frozen bowl, make sure your bowl is completely frozen before making the ice cream. Mine takes an overnight in the freezer to become solid.
If you make this ice cream, leave me comments and reviews below! I’d love to hear from you and it helps others! And be sure to tag me on instagram @gutsy_baker, and use #gutsybakes so I can see your creations!
xo Stephanie