Hands up who loves ice cream?

Creamy chocolate ice cream is one of the best things in the world! And today, we're going to show you how to churn ice cream at home. Don't worry, the whole process is really simple and only takes about 5 minutes to make - you will need to resist the urge to dive into the tub of ice cream for about 6 hours while it freezes, but if you do that, you'll end up with some of the best homemade chocolate ice cream you've ever tasted!

The Best Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe Ever!

Just before we jump into this amazingly tasty chocolate ice cream recipe, we wanted to let you know that we were greatly inspired by The Cooking Foodie and their easy homemade ice cream recipe. It's only three ingredients and so simple to make - we've added a seriously rich chocolate flavour by using Cocoba chocolate instead of cocoa powder - to make this amazing recipe even more irresistible. So, thanks for the inspiration The Cooking Foodie, now, let's find out how to make the best homemade chocolate ice cream in the world, shall we?

Chocolate Ice Cream Ingredients

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 480ml double cream (cold) (can use whipped cream to skip some whisking if you like)
• (100g)  Cocoba chocolate drinking flakes
• 50g  Cocoba's salted caramel milk chocolate buttons

Equipment needed

• A Large mixing bowl
• An electric whisk (can use a hand whisk too, but will take some elbow grease)
• A metal cake tin
• Cling film
• Ice cream scoop
• Serving bowls

Recipe

Right, now you have the ingredients and all the equipment you'll need, it's time to find out how to make chocolate ice cream. As we said, the process is nice and simple, and there are loads of ways of customising it to suit your tastes (we'll get onto these in just a moment). It's also healthier than most ice cream recipes as there's no added granulated sugar. So let's find out how to make mouth-watering fudgy chocolate ice cream, shall we?

1. Add the double cream to the large mixing bowl, grab your electric whisk and whisk until you get stiff peaks
2. Melt your chocolate flakes. We prefer to do this over a double boiler on the hob, but you can do it in the microwave if you're in a bit of a rush.
3. Leave the chocolate to cool down slightly but it should be runny to ensure mixing is easier
4. Add the sweetened condensed milk and the melted chocolate to the whipped cream
5. Blend everything together on a low speed until completely mixed together.
6. Halfway through mixing, take a break, cut up some chocolate buttons and throw those in for the most decadent treat you've had all year!
7. You should be left with thick, creamy chocolate ice cream with bits of buttons floating around. This decadent, delicious, delight is now ready for the freezer. Add this into your cake tin (a metal bowl will work too), wrap it with cling film and wait (this is the difficult bit) for 6 hours at least.

You've just made no churn ice cream and it's now ready to enjoy! A few scoops of this ice cream base with some of our salted caramel chocolate buttons on top will be a firm family favourite for years to come!

Oh, and if you store it in an airtight container it will last up to three months!

If you're loving the summer desserts right now, don't forget to check out the best chocolate summer desserts blog post! It is a tantalising take on tasty treats fit for any summer birthday party, garden party or BBQ!

Your Chocolate Ice Cream Options

Now, before we move on to more ice cream recipes, we thought we'd take a look at the many, many options you have for making ice cream at home. Whether you're using an ice cream machine, an electric whisk or doing it by hand, you have so many exciting options for what flavours to use, here are just some!

Strawberries and cream ice cream - use our white chocolate drinking flakes to create a creamy, smooth and sweet ice cream using the same recipe as above and top it with strawberry sauce and a few strawberry halves for a touch of sweetness that hits the spot just right.

Dark chocolate ice cream - Our dark chocolate flakes are perfect for a touch of bitterness and an ultra-glossy ice cream that anyone who loves semisweet chocolate ice cream will love! This ice cream has a deeper chocolate flavour, but this can be pulled back a bit by using a teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Salted caramel chocolate ice cream - Using our salted caramel chocolate flakes to make ice cream may just be the best decision you make this year! Don't forget, you can chop up some buttons and add this to the mixture as you mix everything together! That makes this ice cream really special and as tasty as you think it will be! You could top this with chocolate chips if you like, use our salted caramel buttons or our amazing chocolate covered honeycomb for an even more delicious and sweet taste.

Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe

It's so easy to make the ice cream recipe above vegan. as there's no egg yolks or whole milk to replace. Just replace the sweetened condensed milk with a vegan option (sweetened condensed coconut milk is the perfect alternative as it will provide the best mouth-feel of all the alternatives). Swap the cream for a good quality vegan alternative and use our signature chocolate drinking flakes. They are vegan and super, super tasty!

We won't bore you by repeating the recipe for this ice cream. Instead, we're going to look at how to make chocolate ice cream the fast way!

Quick Homemade Ice Cream Recipes

Whether you've forgotten dessert for a dinner party, or need something to keep the kids quiet for a while, these recipes are designed for you! They are fast, efficient ways of making homemade chocolate ice cream that is just as tasty as the recipe above!

Make Shop-bought Ice Cream Fancy!

This is for the folks who are hurrying to deliver some extra special ice cream to the table. Grab your favourite creamy ice cream from the freezer. Now, you could just melt some Cocoba chocolate drinking flakes, pour the melted chocolate over the top of the ice cream and call it a day. That will give you a melt in the mouth, elegant dream of a dessert, but there are ways of making it even more special.

Let your ice cream cool just a little bit (leave it out for about half an hour), to make it easier to stir. Now you have options, you can melt some white chocolate, dark chocolate, or whichever chocolate is your guest's favourite. Pour it into the ice cream and then add some small pieces of chocolate bar or some buttons in the ice cream and stir everything together.

This will create a deep chocolate flavour no matter what ice cream base you use. You'll need to pop this back in the freezer to set for a while (half an hour at least), but the finished ice cream can be served with chocolate chips, crushed chocolate bars or nuts. The choice is yours! You'll have instantly made an ice cream mixture that everyone will love!

Using an Ice Cream Maker

If you have an ice cream maker, there is no reason why you can't add all of the ingredients above into that and make this ice cream in the machine! It will take less time and still be extremely tasty! Just make sure to melt your chocolate mixture thoroughly, and maybe avoid using chocolate bits so you don't damage any ice cream makers in the process.

So, there is a way to make chocolate ice cream at home, pretty easy right? These ice cream recipes are really just the tip of a very tasty iceberg, so explore the Cocoba shop and the possibilities to discover which chocolate ice cream your family and friends will love the most.

We hope you enjoy making your Cocoba chocolate ice cream, and please make sure to share your creations on our Instagram or Facebook pages - we can't wait to see them!