Spicy Chipotle Chocolate S’mores Ice Cream

Noticed I haven’t been cooking much? Well it’s not because of a shortage of recipes, it’s just Summer. During this time of year I like to spend as much time outdoors as possible and if its hot out I definitely don’t want to be in the kitchen. If you’ve been reading my last few posts you’ll know how much I’ve complained about all the heat and humidity in the past months. Definitely haven’t wanted to turn on stove or oven! Well this past week has actually been very nice around here. Temps have been in the 80s with low humidity and it’s just perfect for cooking so you may start seeing some solid foods on here soon! 🙂 Until then here’s a cool, creamy, spicy chipotle chocolate s’mores ice cream treat to hold you over.

When you’re making chocolate ice cream, the most important thing is to use a good quality chocolate. The smoother and creamier your chocolate, the smoother your ice cream. I used a wonderful handcrafted chocolate bar that a friend picked up for me while traveling to North Carolina. Escazu Artisan Chocolates makes small batch chocolates from cocoa beans which they get from various countries. Knowing this just makes you appreciate the chocolate more since you know someone took special care in making it. I had the chipotle chili and vanilla chocolate bar and used about half to make the ice cream. The recipe also called for cocoa powder so I used a good quality cocoa powder and spiked that one up with a little cayenne pepper as well.

Chop the chocolate into fine pieces so it’ll dissolve easier when you’re melting it down.

Once your ice cream is made you can enjoy it however you like but I chose to make things a bit more interesting.

I crumbled graham crackers, chopped up chocolate and added mini marshmallows to mine for a crunchy, chewy and spicy chocolatey treat. S’mores are usually messy and the crackers always break when you bite down into it so you’re left with melted chocolate all over the place and bits of crackers everywhere. I wanted the flavors of s’mores but without the mess and a campfire.  A fun idea for events or parties is to set up an ice cream bar and let everyone get creative with toppings.

The ice cream came out silky smooth and the spice built up nicely. This will definitely be a summer tradition going forward in my household!

Spicy Chocolate Ice Cream

1/2 c sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/8 tsp chili powder
1/8 tsp nutmeg, optional
3 tbsp chipotle chile chocolate, chopped
1 c milk
1 c heavy cream
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla

S’mores Mix-Ins

1 c mini marshmallows
chocolate, chopped
graham crackers, crumbled

1. Mix half the sugar, cocoa powder, chili, nutmeg in a sauce pan. Over medium heat pour in the milk and stir well. When the milk mixture heats up add the chocolate a little at a time, stirring constantly so it all melts. Let mixture come to boil and remove from heat. 

2. In a separate bowl, beat the remaining sugar with the eggs with an electric mixer until mixture light and airy. Stir in the hot mixture very slowly and continue stirring with spoon until all is well combined.

3. Stir in heavy cream slowly and the vanilla. Refrigerate the chocolate mixture for at least 4 hours or overnight.

4. Make the ice cream per your ice cream maker’s instructions.

5. Once you have your ice cream, mix in the marshmallows, crackers and chopped chocolate.

Love ice cream? Here’s a delicious Coconut Ginger ice cream you should try!