chocolate molasses ice cream NOT malted milk chocolate ice cream: recipe no. 4

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Finally I have a recipe in my Cookbook Challenge that includes gluten! Finally I get to flex my gluten-free baking muscles! Finally I get to prove that you don't need gluten to make something delicious!

Weeeelllll.... not quite. Yes, recipe no. 4 in Johnny Iuzzini's "Sugar Rush" does call for gluten, specifically barley malt syrup. And, yes, the recipe did allow me to flex my gluten-free baking muscles. Buuut, I didn't totally succeed in recreating Iuzzini's recipe. I still made something delicious, but it was most definitely not malted milk chocolate ice cream.

Do I consider this a failure? Ehhhh, yes, because part of me is a perfectionist in the kitchen and is annoyed that I couldn't recreate the taste of malted milk without gluten. But, when I look at the challenge more objectively, I feel like maybe I could never succeed. That is, the gluten included in this recipe is in there for flavor only. The barley malt syrup is not responsible for the frozen treat's creaminess or its over-the-top decadence (12 egg yolks!). It is only there for flavor. So, of course, I can't recreate the taste of barley malt with an ingredient that is not barley malt.

I tried. Oh, I tried. I googled all sorts of substitutes and finally came down to various proportions of molasses and/or brown rice syrup. I had both by my side while crafting this recipe. Ultimately, I thought brown rice syrup was too sweet and had none of the dark notes that molasses imparts. So, I hit the molasses hard.... and ended up not with malted milk chocolate ice cream, but instead with chocolate molasses ice cream.

I've never seen Chocolate Molasses Ice Cream at any small-batch creameries or fancy restaurants, and definitely never at tried-and-true 31 Flavors. So-- hear ye, hear ye--I'm claiming that I actually invented something entirely new. And, something delicious to boot. If you like molasses in your Fall and Winter recipes, you will love this ice cream. Pair it with a ginger spice cake... you have a winner dessert on your hands.

Chocolate Molasses Ice Cream NOT Malted Milk Chocolate Ice Cream, (approx. 2 pints)

  • 3 cups whole milk
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 12 large egg yolks
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 4.5-5 TBSP molasses
  • 1 TBSP brown rice syrup
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 6 oz milk chocolate chips (Guittard is my recommended brand!)
  • Hershey's chocolate syrup to taste

Begin by separating out your dozen eggs because it's a lot and it takes awhile. Refrigerate the egg whites-- make yourself some egg white omelets to offset the ice cream indulgence you're about to enjoy. (For the record, I really am not a fan of egg white omelets. Blech. But, I digress.)

In a large pot, heat the milk and cream over medium-low heat until mixture is steaming, but not boiling. This should take approx. 4-minutes or so. Whisk the 12 egg yolks, sugar, molasses and salt in a large bowl until your whisk drags a trail behind it. Your arm should be tired.

Temper the egg mixture by pouring about half of the warm milk/cream mixture into the egg bowl. Off heat, stir and pour all of the contents of the bowl back into the saucepan so that all the egg mixture is combined with all the milk/cream mixture. Return your pot to medium-low heat and stir with a rubber spatula.

Quickly prepare an ice bath in a large bowl. Return to your ice cream base, stirring until it is hot to the touch and the custard is thick enough on your spatula that it does not run when you drag your finger across the rubber part of the spatula.

Place approx. 3.5 oz of chocolate chips into a medium-sized bowl. Strain the hot custard through a fine-mesh strainer into the bowl of chocolate chips. Stir until chocolate has melted into the warm custard and place bowl in ice bath to cool completely.

Cover custard with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. After the base has sat in the fridge for close to a day, melt the remaining 3 oz. or so of chocolate chips. Add ice cream base to your ice cream maker. While the base is spinning, drizzle the melted chocolate into the ice cream maker. This will create flecks of chocolate that are especially delicious. To boost the chocolate flavor, drizzle an additional squeeze or two of Hershey's milk chocolate syrup into the ice cream base as it spins in the ice cream maker. I think the more chocolate syrup you add, the closer you might get to a malted milk flavor, maybe... if you stretch your imagination a wee bit.

When you're happy with the flavor and the ice cream has firmed up in the mixer, transfer base to an air-tight ice cream canister and freeze for at least 4 hours before enjoying. And, then, by all means, ENJOY.

SURVEY SAYS...

MALTED MILK CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM -- Recipe No. 4
LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY: easy, if you can eat gluten/ impossible, if you can't. If you're a gluten eater, go out and enjoy a box of Whoppers or fancy-pants Jacque Torres Malted Milk Balls. If you cannot eat gluten, adapt this recipe like I did and enjoy a unique and delicious new ice cream flavor-- Chocolate Molasses Ice Cream.
WOW FACTOR: not bad! I'll loosely quote from Dr. Seuss' "Horton Hatches the Egg:"

"And the people came shouting, 'What's all this about...?' They looked! And they stared with their eyes popping out! Then they cheered and they cheered and they CHEERED more and more. They'd never (tasted) anything like it before!' 'My goodness! My gracious!' they shouted. 'MY WORD! It's something brand new! IT'S CHOCOLATE MOLASSES ICE CREAM!!"