There are some things that have truly stood the test of time, like a chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies or for an Indian – home cooking, or perhaps a well made gajar halwa or kheer. These are eternal crowd-pleasers and you can never go wrong with them.
I feel the same about chocolate ice-cream. Yes, that’s right, the humble chocolate ice-cream.
As a Culinary Consultant with Baskin Robbins India, my work involves new product & flavor development and launches for various desserts. I’ve worked on the creation & launch of round ice-cream cakes, waffles & milkshake ranges among others. While playing with flavors and techniques in the ice-cream world, you could say that I’ve become partial to ice-cream and its addictive, creamy and smooth taste experience.
Available around the globe in a myriad of traditional and offbeat avatars, it literally comes alive when paired with certain other flavors. It fits in with modern interpretations of traditional desserts and can be used in a huge variety of ways. But a rich chocolate ice-cream is just how I like it – simple, unfussy, and absolutely soul-satisfying.
How do you get the most satisfying and taste bud enhancing chocolate ice-cream?
Use the best available (or hounded out) dark chocolate couverture. 52% dark chocolate will be perfect for this recipe. Please don’t go for compounds or chocolate coatings. The mouth feel and meltability of a purely conched chocolate (couverture) that contains actual cocoa butter is something else! The chocolate you use will clearly give your ice-cream its distinctive taste.
A few recommended brands are Cococraft, Van Houten, Urban Platter. Callebaut has an amazing, explore-worthy range of single origin couverture.
Get a doorstep delivery of your choice of couverture from here.
Here is my tried and tested recipe for home-made chocolate ice-cream – do give it a go and tell me what you think.
RICH CHOCOLATE ICE-CREAM (Easy method):
Serves 6-8.
INGREDIENTS:
- 200ml cream, not whipped, chilled ( fresh or non dairy cream can be used)
- 125 – 150gm condensed milk, cold
- 50ml full-fat milk, cold
- 150gm Belgian or other dark couverture
- 75gm cream, dairy
- 2 tsp homemade caramel colour (optional)
- ½ tsp chocolate/vanilla extract
- 25gm Belgian dark chocolate chips
METHOD:
- Take chilled cream in a bowl and whip it till it reaches soft-peak consistency.
- Add condensed milk and whip till slightly firm. Add milk and blend well.
- Leave the cream mixture aside.
- Make a Belgian chocolate ganache : Heat 75gm dairy cream in a pan.
- Remove pan from flame and add Belgian chocolate. Stir the ganache vigorously to make a smooth paste. Cool and keep aside.
- Mix 200gm of this ganache into the prepared cream mixture,along with caramel colour and chocolate or vanilla extract (optional).
- Fold in 25gm Belgian chocolate chips.
- Pour the prepared ice-cream in an airtight metal or another box.
- Leave to set in the freezer for at least 12 hours
- To serve: remove ice-cream and thaw for about 6/8 minutes.
- Scoop and serve with plain or with chocolate sauce or waffles/pancakes.
Shilpa Seth Bhambri 