smoked Mexican chocolate ice cream

lightly smoked and spiced chocolate ice cream

Smoked ice cream has fast become my favourite dessert. It’s amazing how well the smoke mixes with the cream and how that mix pushes along the flavour of the final product.

Chocolate often finds it’s way into our smoked ice creams, no explanation needed there. At our cafe here in Perth, Donnie Taco, our barista makes a Mexican hot chocolate packed with cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne and cloves. It’s super tasty especially with a shot of coffee thrown in.

As always with ice cream there is plenty of room to experiment so you can mix up the spices, change the chocolate or even throw in a little coffee.

ingredients

for the smoked cream

• 1 litre heavy/thickened cream

for the ice cream

• 1.5 cups heavy/thickened cream
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 6 egg yolks
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup smoked honey
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 200g dark choc chips, melted

directions

for the smoked cream

1. A cold smoker is ideal however if you only have a hot smoker then set up your smoker for indirect cooking using only a small amount of fuel aiming for an ambient temperature of around 160f/71c. Add one chunk of fruit wood*
2. Use a large baking dish (35cm/14in x 25cm/10in) and place a disposable aluminium pan (30cm/12in x 20cm/8in) inside it and fill the disposable pan with the cream. The dimensions of the pans don’t have to be exact, close enough will do. Add ice all around the disposable tray and add to the smoker. If you can fit a larger baking dish in your smoker then great, less replenishing of the ice.
3. Smoke for around an hour replenishing the ice whenever the temperature of the cream nears the 60f/15c mark. Expect to top up the ice at least twice. Keep in mind you will have to dilute the smoked cream after so don’t be too concerned about over smoking.
4. Using a fine mesh strainer pour the cream into an airtight container and allow to cool, around 2 hours.

*If you’re using a charcoal cooker use 5 or 6 lit briquettes to get the wood smoking. You can use a nut wood if you like however I find the subtlety of fruitwood works better.

for the ice cream

1. Dilute the smoked cream with the fresh cream aiming for a total volume of 2 cups. Start with a half cup of each adding more of each to taste until you reach a nice balance. You will have more than enough to make another batch of ice cream and a chance to mix up the flavours.
2. Whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, honey and condensed milk then add to a medium sized saucepan with the spices, vanilla and diluted cream over a medium-low heat.
3. Stir continuously until the temperature of the mixture reaches 170f/77c.
4. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into an airtight container, stir in salt and allow to chill in the fridge until cold.
5. Churn the mixture in your ice cream maker adding the melted chocolate towards the end of the process, just as the mixture really thickens up and started to harden.
6. Pour into an airtight container and into the freezer overnight.
7. Enjoy your smoked Mexican chocolate ice cream!

For our other smoked ice cream recipes click here.