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French-Style Double Chocolate Ice Cream

French style chocolate ice cream with a custard base and melted dark chocolate for a glossy, ganache-like richness. This double chocolate ice cream churns silky and fudgy, then freezes dense and deep dark.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Chilling + freezing 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 45 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: French-American
Calories: 520
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Chocolate custard base
  • 2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 0.75 cup granulated sugar
  • 5 egg yolks
  • 6 oz dark chocolate (70-72%), finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp Dutch process cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter

Equipment

  • 1 double boiler
  • 1 ice cream maker
  • 1 saucepan
  • 1 fine mesh sieve

Method
 

Melt the chocolate
  1. Melt the dark chocolate and unsalted butter over a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.
Warm the cream mixture
  1. Whisk Dutch process cocoa powder into the heavy cream and whole milk. Heat the mixture just until steaming, then remove from heat.
Temper and cook custard
  1. Beat the egg yolks and granulated sugar until smooth, then slowly whisk the steaming cream mixture into the yolks. Return everything to a saucepan and cook, stirring constantly, until it reaches 175F.
Finish the chocolate base
  1. Remove the custard from heat and immediately whisk in the melted chocolate until glossy and smooth. This should look nearly ganache-like.
Season and strain
  1. Whisk in the vanilla extract and salt, then strain through a fine mesh sieve. The mixture should be silky with no cocoa lumps.
Chill, churn, and freeze
  1. Cool the chocolate custard completely over ice, then refrigerate for 4 hours. Chill until cold and thickened-looking.
Churn
  1. Churn the chilled custard in an ice cream maker until it thickens to soft-serve consistency. Stop when it looks dense and holds grooves.
Freeze until firm
  1. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm, about 4 hours. The ice cream should scoop cleanly and feel solid.

Notes

For the smoothest texture, strain the base while it’s still warm so the final chocolate custard is lump-free. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container up to 5 days; freeze up to 2 months. For a lower-fat option, use half-and-half for part of the heavy cream (texture will be slightly softer).