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Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Chocolate peanut butter ice cream made with a cooked custard base for a deep, scoopable texture and thick peanut butter ribbons. You’ll swirl warm peanut butter through the churned chocolate ice cream for dramatic, Reese-like swirls in every scoop.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
chilling + freezing 4 hours 24 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 59 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 640
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Ice cream custard base
  • 2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 0.75 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.5 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 4 oz dark chocolate, chopped
  • 5 egg yolks
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 0.25 tsp salt
Peanut butter swirl
  • 0.75 cup creamy peanut butter, warmed until pourable

Equipment

  • 1 ice cream maker
  • 1 saucepan

Method
 

Make the chocolate custard
  1. Whisk the cocoa into the heavy cream and whole milk until smooth, then heat the mixture until steaming.
  2. Add the chopped dark chocolate and whisk until fully melted and glossy.
  3. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar until pale.
  4. Slowly whisk the hot chocolate cream into the egg yolks to temper, then return the mixture to a saucepan.
  5. Cook, stirring constantly, until the custard reaches 175F.
  6. Strain the custard, then whisk in the vanilla and salt and cool completely.
Chill, churn, and swirl
  1. Refrigerate the cooled custard at least 4 hours.
  2. Churn in an ice cream maker until thick and the texture resembles soft-serve.
  3. Layer the churned ice cream into a container, drizzling warm peanut butter between each layer.
  4. Swirl the layers with a knife to create thick peanut-butter ribbons throughout.
  5. Freeze at least 2 hours until firm before serving.

Notes

Pro tip: strain the custard for a smoother base so the peanut-butter ribbons look clean in each scoop. Refrigerate the custard up to 24 hours before churning; freeze the finished ice cream for up to 2 months (best texture within 1 month). For a dairy-light option, use half-and-half plus lactose-free milk, but expect a slightly softer churn and less rich chocolate flavor.