Fifty Licks in Portland), I’m a maximalist all the way. I love a crunch, ripple, or chew in my ice cream. Basically, give me all the mix-ins for maximum texture and flavor!
My favorite ice cream flavor has been coffee for as long as I can remember and this one ticks all the boxes for me in terms of texture and flavor. It combines a creamy coffee base with lots of toasty chopped almonds and a rich, almost chewy fudge ripple. It’s so good and you better believe I hoarded this in my freezer all for myself.
Notes:
Chill out. While you can chill your base completely and then churn it immediately, I like to give it a rest in the refrigerator overnight before churning. I think it has better flavor this way and also a more smooth result.
Be prepared! Have all your mix-ins prepped and cooled before starting the layering process. You don’t want pockets of melted ice cream, they will mess with the texture and contribute iciness to your lovingly churned ice cream.
Deep freeze. The most affordable ice cream makers have a canister that needs to be frozen for churning (I have this Cuisinart model). There are ones with compressors that freeze on their own, but they are expensive. Make sure you freeze this for at least 24 hours before churning. It needs to be really cold to properly freeze your ice cream base. If you have space, store it in the freezer so it’s always ready to churn.
Coffee Almond Fudge Ice Cream
Prep time
15 mins
Total time
15 mins
Creamy coffee ice cream with ripples of fudge and toasty almonds.
Author: Cindy
Serves: about 1 quart
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1¼ cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons golden syrup or corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup prepared fudge sauce
- ½ cup chopped toasted almonds
- Fudge Sauce
- 1, 14 oz, can sweetened condensed milk (397g)
- 6 ounces dark chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk 1 tablespoon of the milk with the cornstarch and set to the side. In a 3-quart saucepan, combine the remaining milk, heavy cream, espresso powder, sugar, syrup, vanilla extract, and salt, whisk to combine. Heat over medium-high, stirring frequently until the mixture comes to a low boil. Quickly stir in the milk and cornstarch mixture and continue to boil, while stirring, for 1-2 minutes, or until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon so that when you run a finger across it a defined track is left. Remove from the heat and cool over an ice bath until completely cooled to the touch. You can also cool the ice cream base over an ice bath until room temperature, then pour it into a bowl, cover with plastic, and chill overnight. Process the cooled mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Layer the ⅓ of the processed ice cream in a container with ⅓ of the fudge sauce and almonds, repeat with remaining ice cream, fudge, and almonds. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and freeze for several hours until firm (at least 6 hours).
- For the fudge sauce: Add the condensed milk to a saucepan and heat over medium-low, stirring to prevent burning, until the mixture begins to bubble. Stir in the chocolate to melt. Once the chocolate has melted and combined, stir in butter and salt. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature before layering with the ice cream. Store any leftovers in a microwave safe container in the refrigerator, reheat in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval until softened.
Notes
Ice cream base adapted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home.