Chocolate Ice Cream Sauce (Printable Version)

Creamy chocolate frozen treat topped with warm, smooth chocolate sauce for ultimate indulgence.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Ice Cream

01 - 2 cups heavy cream
02 - 1 cup whole milk
03 - 3/4 cup granulated sugar
04 - 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
05 - 4 large egg yolks
06 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
07 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

→ Chocolate Sauce

08 - 1/2 cup heavy cream
09 - 3.5 ounces dark chocolate (60–70% cocoa), chopped
10 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
11 - 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
12 - 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
13 - Pinch of salt

# Directions:

01 - Combine heavy cream, whole milk, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium saucepan. Warm over medium heat, whisking until sugar and cocoa dissolve and mixture steams without boiling.
02 - In a bowl, whisk egg yolks. Gradually add about 1 cup of hot cream mixture to yolks while whisking constantly to temper.
03 - Return yolk mixture to saucepan with remaining cream mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring with wooden spoon until custard thickens and coats the back of the spoon (approximately 170–175°F).
04 - Remove from heat, stir in vanilla extract, then strain custard through fine mesh sieve into clean bowl. Cool to room temperature, cover, and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
05 - Process chilled custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to container, cover, and freeze until firm, minimum 2 hours.
06 - Heat heavy cream and sugar in small saucepan over medium heat until just simmering. Remove from heat, add chopped chocolate and butter, let sit 1 minute, then stir until smooth. Stir in vanilla extract and a pinch of salt.
07 - Scoop chocolate ice cream into serving bowls and drizzle generously with warm chocolate sauce.

# Top Tips:

01 -
  • This tastes nothing like the stuff in supermarket freezers—it's silky, intensely chocolatey, and feels like an actual treat.
  • The warm sauce creates this beautiful contrast against the cold ice cream that somehow makes both taste better.
  • Once you master the custard base, you can adapt it endlessly with different chocolates or mix-ins.
02 -
  • Tempering the eggs properly is non-negotiable; if you rush and pour hot cream directly into yolks, you'll have scrambled eggs, not custard.
  • Chilling the base for hours matters—it lets flavors meld and gives you a better freeze, resulting in smoother ice cream with less ice crystal formation.
  • The sauce needs to be warm when it hits cold ice cream; if it cools too much, it hardens instead of staying pourable and saucy.
03 -
  • Don't skip the fine mesh sieve—it catches any bits of accidentally cooked egg and gives you silky, smooth ice cream every time.
  • If you don't have an ice cream maker, you can freeze the custard in a shallow container, stirring vigorously every 30 minutes for 3–4 hours, but a maker really does transform the texture.
  • Warm the bowls before scooping ice cream into them so you get clean, pretty scoops instead of a struggle.

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