Low Carb Peanut Butter Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe

Ingredients

3 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup cocoa

4 egg yolks

4 large eggs

1 cup of peanut butter

3/4 cup erythritol or similar artificial sweetener (blue agave works too!)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

pinch of kosher salt

1/4 cup plain/unsweetened almond milk

2-3 teaspoons of gelatin mixed with 3-4 tablespoons of water (optional)

2 ounces chopped extra dark chocolate (90%) without sugar or chocolate chips (optional)

4 tablespoons MCT oil or 2 tablespoons vodka or 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (all optional to reduce coldness)

Note: You may need to play around with the sweeteners and cocoa ratio a bit to appease your personal preference. However, the base of cream, milk and egg will provide the consistency. MCT oil, vodka, and xanthan gum are popular choices for reducing ice and hardness while frozen, while gelatin will also help keep ice cream smooth by adding a bit of richness and creaminess to the texture. However, if you don’t have those ingredients on hand or find them superfluous to the preparation process, then leave them out, especially if you plan on eating your ice cream sooner rather than later.

Preparation

Prepare an ice bath (ice water container). In a separate bowl (slightly smaller than the ice bath bowl), whisk together the egg yolks, eggs, sweetener, and vanilla extract.

Put the cream and cocoa in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add half of the cream mixture to the eggs to temper and mix. Reduce the heat to medium-low and pour the contents of the bowl back into the saucepan. Stir with a spoon for 10-15 seconds and remove from heat. The mixture should be thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, but if the eggs curdle, then they’re overcooked and won’t work.

Return the entire mixture to the container and place over the ice bath. Whisk together salt, almond milk, and peanut butter. This is the step where you whisk in the MCT oil, vodka or xanthan gum, and/or gelatin (plus water).

Let the mixture cool to room temperature for 1 hour.

Pour the contents into an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The shake usually takes between 30 and 60 minutes. If adding chocolate, fold it in after the ice cream mixture finishes churning.

It can be served immediately or poured into a container to freeze. Freezing will firm it up a bit, but it will need to sit for 10 to 20 minutes to soften before serving if frozen for more than a few hours.