Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
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This No Churn Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream is the perfect dessert if it’s hot or not outside. Here in San Diego it has been a little more than a heat wave. We are melting! And I for one am oh so grateful that we put solar panels on the house. It’s been almost three years now and I literally get to run my air conditioning guilt free. I mean I feel bad for those who don’t have it, but the sun is paying the bill over at my house.
So I thought – no churn ice cream time!
Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
It’s a definite do ahead recipe as you need to place 2 cans of coconut cream in the refrigerator to chill overnight. Although it was my experience that maybe just a few hours could have done the trick. You see, you need the water to separate from the solids and chilling makes that happen. It’s the coconut cream milk solids you need to whip this up, mix it with a date paste and for whatever chemical reason, the dates just don’t freeze solid. What you have is an amazing, creamy, rich and decadent dessert without the fear of over indulgence. This fluffy no-churn ice cream is a great base to play with added goodies, it’s really easy to scoop and has no refined sugar. Plus, it’s a vegan, gluten-free dessert.
Place a large mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes. Take the cans of coconut cream or milk you refrigerated overnight out and set aside.
Add the moist, pitted dates to your food processor and process until fairly processed. Add hot water a little at a time until it forms a thick paste. Set aside.
I opened the cans of coconut cream, although you can use coconut milk as well. I decided on the cream as it just seemed like it would be richer in fat content to hold as a ice cream. I’m definitely trying this one again, albeit with other spices and the like and see the texture.
The coconut milk solids did form at the top, although it was like I was working with gooey melting wax with a hard circular inch thick piece of coconut plastic on top. This was HARD and as the recipe said, I was to whip it. I found it needed a little time to soften before that would happen. So I scooped out the coconut cream solids that had risen to the top of the cans and hardened, reserving the clear liquid for a smoothie the next morning. Next, place in the chilled mixing bowl.
NOTE: By allowing the coconut cream or milk to almost come to room temperature after removing from can and clear liquid, it will soften the hardened coconut cream slightly to whip.
Feel free to use beaters, but I used my mixer, and whipped until creamy and smooth for 2 minutes. I still had little nuggets of hardened coconut cream pieces, but was happy with the result.
I even liked that with the finished product the little bits of still harden coconut cream gave the impression they were nuts added. At least Dave thought they were nuts and I had to agree.
Another addition I wanted to make to this was to make it a peanut butter chocolate combination. I had recently got some powdered peanut butter and wanted to play around with it. A cookie recipe I read kept mentioning PB2 and so I Googled it. Powdered peanut butter, how cool! So I incorporated that in the mix although I would be happy using regular peanut butter, too but I was having fun tinkering in the kitchen with new ingredients!
Carefully add the cocoa powder, vanilla, almond milk, date paste and peanut butter (or PB2). Whip until fully incorporated.
Transfer to a parchment-lined freezer-safe container (I used a meatloaf pan) and cover loosely with plastic wrap, then foil to help freeze.
A few hours will make a chilled mousse-like ice cream. Freezing overnight makes for a firmer ice cream.
Doesn’t this stuff look delicious? I could scoop right now for an amazing mousse type dessert, but will be patient and freeze it.
Set the frozen No Churn Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream out for at least 15 minutes prior to scooping.
This stuff will keep in the freezer for up to one week, if it lasts that long!
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Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream (No Churn)
Ingredients
- 2 14- ounce cans coconut cream OR full fat coconut milk chilled overnight in the fridge
- 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa or cacao powder
- 1/3 cup PB2 powdered peanut butter or regular
- 16 oz pitted dates soak in warm water and drain if dried
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
Instructions
- Place a large mixing bowl and beaters in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes. Take the cans of coconut cream or milk you refrigerated overnight out and set aside.
- Add the moist, pitted dates to your food processor and process until fairly processed. Add hot water a little at a time until it forms a thick paste. Set aside.
- Scoop out the coconut cream or milk that has risen to the top of the cans and hardened, reserving the clear liquid for other uses. Place in the chilled mixing bowl. NOTE: By allowing the coconut cream or milk to almost come to room temperature will soften the hardened coconut cream.
- Using a mixer, whip until creamy and smooth for 2 minutes. Add cocoa powder, vanilla, almond milk, date paste, and peanut butter (or PB2). Whip until fully incorporated.
- Transfer to a parchment-lined freezer-safe container (I used a meatloaf pan) and cover loosely with plastic wrap, then foil to help freeze. A few hours will make a chilled mousse-like ice cream. Freezing overnight makes for a firmer ice cream.
- Set out for at least 20 minutes prior to scooping. Will keep in the freezer for up to one week, if it lasts that long.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Kevin it must be fate that I clicked on FBSA this morning and found your link. I make homemade ice cream all the time and like trying new no-churn recipes. I love the idea of the dates, no one will know they are in the ice cream and they will be eating a ‘healthier’ treat. I can’t wait for the weekend to be over so I can get back to my normal routine and make this. Thanks so much for sharing your recipe.
You bet Joanne, this is a fantastic, rich and creamy ice cream. Let me know what you think. Have a wonderful weekend.