Homemade Cookie Dough Ice Cream
Homemade Cookie Dough Ice Cream is sooo worth the effort. Molasses in the brown sugar makes the ice cream soft and luscious. Clumps of buttery, edible cookie dough are folded into the ice cream.
Ice Cream recipes are generally very simple with a fairly short list of ingredients. I mean, basically, it’s just frozen cream.
But of course there’s plenty of chemistry working behind the scenes in every ice cream recipe. If you’re a geek like me and enjoy the science behind a recipe, you should visit this post about making Homemade Ice Cream.
Why Homemade Cookie Dough Ice Cream is better than store bought:
First there is the ice cream itself. Store bought cookie dough ice cream is usually made with a base of vanilla ice cream. Sure, it’s delicious, but this recipe begins with luscious Brown Sugar Ice Cream.
If you love the butterscotchy flavor of cookie dough, the brown sugar ice cream doubles up on that wonderful flavor.
The homemade cookie dough is also super buttery. Using mini chips gives you more chips per bite.
Is it safe to eat homemade cookie dough ice cream? Yes, here’s why:
- Eating raw cookie dough can be a problem not only because of the possibility of salmonella in the eggs, but raw flour can also harbor harmful bacteria.
- First we eliminate the eggs from the cookie dough. Since the dough is not baked, there is no need for the structure provided by the eggs.
- We add just a little milk to replace the moisture provided by the eggs.
- To make the flour safe to eat, we microwave it long enough to bring it above 165°F. Any bacteria that may have been living in the flour will be killed off at that temperature.
Scroll through the process photos to see how to make your own Cookie Dough Ice Cream:
When you make your own ice cream, the possibilities are endless.
I like to swap in different dairy products to make things interesting. You can use cream cheese to make Cheesecake Ice Cream, Buttermilk Ice Cream has a wonderful tangy flavor and Creme Fraiche Ice Cream is a sophisticated flavor fit for the fanciest dinner party.
You can add cocoa and malted milk powder to make Malted Chocolate Ice Cream, steep fresh mint in the milk mix for the best Chocolate Chip Mint Ice Cream ever, stir in some roasted peaches for an amazing Peach Ice Cream and use freeze dried strawberries for an intensely flavored Strawberry Ice Cream.
You could also skip the ice cream and just make a bowl of Edible Cookie Dough for snacking.
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Cookie Dough Ice Cream Recipe
Ingredients
Brown Sugar Ice Cream
- 12 oz whole milk (1 ½ cups)
- 12 oz heavy cream (1 ½ cups)
- 8 oz brown sugar (1 cup)
- 5 large egg yolks
- 1/8 teaspoon table salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Edible Cookie Dough
- 2 ½ oz all-purpose flour (½ cup)
- 2 oz unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1 oz granulated sugar (2 tablespoons)
- 2 oz brown sugar (¼ cup)
- ¼ teaspoon table salt
- 2 teaspoons whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 ½ oz mini chocolate chips (¾ cup, divided)
Instructions
Make the Ice Cream Base:
- Combine 12 oz whole milk, 12 oz heavy cream and 8 oz brown sugar in a small saucepan. Heat the milk mixture over medium high heat until scalding hot.
- While the milk heats up, whisk together 5 large egg yolks, 1/8 teaspoon table salt and 1 tablespoon vanilla extract in a small bowl.
- Once the milk mixture is scalding hot. Begin whisking the yolks, continue whisking while you pour the milk into the the yolks.
- Return the entire mixture to the saucepan and heat over medium low heat, stirring constantly. Cook the custard until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spatula or wooden spoon. Do not allow it to come to a full boil. Remove from the heat and strain into a bowl. Cover the bowl and chill until very cold. At least 4-5 hours or over night.
Make the Cookie Dough:
- Place 2 ½ oz all-purpose flour in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave the flour for 30 seconds. Check the temperature of the flour. It should be at least 165°F. If not, microwave for 10 second increments until the temp is reached. Sift the flour into a small bowl to remove lumps and set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Cream 2 oz unsalted butter, 1 oz granulated sugar, 2 oz brown sugar and ¼ teaspoon table salt until light and aerated. Add 2 teaspoons whole milk and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and mix until combined. Add the cooled flour and mix to combine. Fold in 1/4 cup of the mini chocolate chips. Use a half-teaspoon to scoop the dough into 1/4" balls. Set the cookie-dough balls onto a sheet pan and chill while the ice cream is churning.
Churn the Ice Cream:
- Churn the brown sugar ice cream according to the directions for your ice cream machine.
- Add the last 1/2 cup of mini chips to the ice cream before removing it from the machine. Scoop 1/4 of the ice cream into a container. Drop 1/3 of the cookie balls over the ice cream, leaving at least 1" between them. Continue layering the ice cream and cookie dough, ending with a layer of ice cream. Smooth the top and lay a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the ice cream. Cover tightly and freeze until firm.
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