S'mores Ice Cream

Brace yourselves, s'mores lovers. You're about to meet your dream ice cream. Loaded with rich chocolate flavor, toasted marshmallows and crushed graham crackers in every bite, this s'mores ice cream is one nostalgic treat that's perfect any time of year.

Why You Need to Make This Recipe

You know what I love about s'mores, besides the fact that they're gooey, chocolatey and utterly delicious? No matter the time of year, s'mores are always in season.

During the spring and summer months, s'mores make for the perfect camping dessert, and when the weather cools in the fall and winter, sitting around a fire with a toasty marshmallow covered in slightly melted chocolate makes my soul happy.

On top of my s'mores love, I could eat ice cream every day of my life whether the outdoor temperature is 100 degrees or 0 degrees. Naturally, it only makes sense to combine these two favorite desserts into one s'mores ice cream recipe, right?

For my s'mores ice cream recipe, I made a dark chocolate base and mixed in crushed graham crackers and toasted marshmallows. This ice cream was quite the hit in our household. Matt even said it was his favorite ice cream I've made to date. Honestly, it's hard for me to pick a favorite homemade ice cream, but I think he's on to something.

Ingredients

Before we start, let's gather our ingredients. Here's everything you need to make this s'mores ice cream.

• Heavy cream
• Whole milk
• Sugar
• Dark chocolate cocoa powder, aka Dutch process
• Egg yolks
• Vanilla extract or paste
• Graham cracker sheets, lightly crushed
• Mini marshmallows 

Eight ingredients for the tastiest ice cream of your life -- not too shabby.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Now let's walk through the steps.

Step 1: We start by whisking together heavy cream, milk, sugar and cocoa powder in a saucepan. At first, the mixture will look clumpy (photo 1), but keep whisking and it will smooth out (photo 2). We continue to cook the mixture until it reaches a simmer (photo 3) and then turn off the heat and let it cool for just a few minutes.

Step 2: While the chocolate mixture cools, we constantly whisk together a ridiculous amount of delicious egg yolks with vanilla extract or paste (photo 4). I like to do this for about three minutes, which also gives the cream mixture the necessary cooling time.

Step 3: Now let’s ladle a small scoop of the chocolate mixture into the eggs (photo 5) and stir. We continue to repeat this step until we incorporate about half the chocolate mixture into the eggs (photo 6) and then pour the eggs into the saucepan with the remaining chocolate mixture (photo 7).

Step 4: We’re now ready to fire up the stove once again and cook the custard base until it's thick enough to coat a wooden spoon (photo 8).

Step 5: Now we pour the custard base into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap directly on the custard’s surface and refrigerate overnight (photo 9).

Step 6: The next day, we're ready to churn, but let's first prepare our toasted marshmallows. For this step, we spread the marshmallows on a sheet pan (photo 10) and broil until toasted (photo 11). We then use a spatula to move the marshmallow to parchment paper to set (photo 12).

Step 7: Now we churn the chocolate mixture according to the ice cream maker manufacturer's directions. In the last few minutes of churning, we add the crushed graham crackers and toasted marshmallows to the ice cream maker (photo 13). When the ice cream finishes churning, pour half of the ice cream into an air-tight container and freeze until firm.

And just like that, we have one delicious s'mores ice cream in a few hours. Lucky us. Now we grab a spoon and dig in.

Bonus: If you love this chocolate ice cream, I bet you'll also enjoy my chocolate-amaretto ice cream!

Recipe FAQs

Expert Tips

• When cooking our milk and cream mixture, do not let it come to a boil. It can break the milk.
• Do not skip the step where we mix a scoop of warm cream into the eggs. This gently cooks the eggs and prevents the custard from turning into scrambled egg ice cream. I love eggs, but that’s a hard no for me.
• I don't recommend putting the parchment paper in the oven with the marshmallows under the broiler. Parchment paper can catch on fire in little time at that heat.
• I just want to set expectations that working with the toasted marshmallows will be a little messy. Toasted marshmallows are gooey and sticky. There's no getting around that, but you will be rewarded with the most delicious flavor. Trust me -- it's way better than untoasted marshmallows.

Perfect Pairing

You can't go wrong with a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout with this s'mores ice cream. The residual sweetness makes barrel-aged beers delicious with desserts, and I love how the slight char from the bourbon barrels pairs with the toasted marshmallows. Goose Island Bourbon County Stout is an incredible option, and I'm sure you can find other delicious ones from your local breweries.

When wine calls, reach for a tawny port. The caramel-like nutty notes of tawny port are the perfect match to the graham cracker crumbles and the toasty marshmallows.

For those times you're craving a new twist on one of the most classic desserts, I hope you try this s'mores ice cream recipe. It will be your new favorite ice cream and a guaranteed crowd pleaser.

Cheers!

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📖 Recipe

S'mores Ice Cream

Brace yourselves, s'mores lovers. You're about to meet your dream ice cream. Loaded with rich chocolate flavor, toasted marshmallows and crushed graham crackers in every bite, this s'mores ice cream is one nostalgic treat that's perfect any time of year.

4.97 from 32 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Desserts

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Chilling Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 35 minutes

Servings: 6 servings

Calories: 550kcal

Author: Amanda McGrory-Dixon

Equipment

• ▢
  Medium saucepan
• ▢
  Mixing bowl
• ▢
  Plastic wrap
• ▢
  Ice cream maker
• ▢
  Large baking sheet

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 cups heavy cream
• ▢ 2 cups whole milk
• ▢ 1 cup sugar
• ▢ ½ cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
• ▢ 7 egg yolks
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
• ▢ 7 graham cracker sheets lightly crushed
• ▢ 2 ½ cups mini marshmallows

Instructions

• Whisk together the heavy cream, milk, sugar and cocoa powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Continue to whisk periodically to help dissolve the sugar and incorporate the cocoa powder. Once it simmers, turn off heat. Do not bring to a boil as this can cause the milk to separate.
• Whisk egg yolks and vanilla until pale, about three minutes. Temper about ¼ to ½ cup of warm cream mixture into egg mixture, whisking constantly. Repeat this step a few times. 
• Add tempered egg-cream mixture back to the pot. Whisk constantly over medium heat and bring back to a simmer. Again, do not boil. Cook until mixture thickens and covers the back of a wooden spoon. Turn off heat.
• Pour into a large mixing bowl, and then directly cover the top of the custard's surface with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least four hours to ensure proper churning, though I like to chill overnight to really make sure it's cold.
• Spread mini marshmallows on a broiler-safe sheet. Broil a few inches from the heating unit until the marshmallows are brown and toasty. Keep a close eye on this. It won't take long for the marshmallows to toast. Use a spatula and move the toasted marshmallows to parchment paper to set. This will get a little sticky, and the marshmallows won't hold their shape -- that's totally fine (see blog for a photo).
• Pour custard in an ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer's directions. In the last five minutes of churning, add the crushed graham crackers and globs of toasted marshmallows to the ice cream maker. The marshmallows will be a bit sticky.
• Pour the churned ice cream into an airtight container. Freeze for several hours before serving. Enjoy!

Notes

• Prep time does not include chilling or churning as that can vary based on manufacturer.
• When cooking our milk and cream mixture, do not let it come to a boil. It can break the milk.
• Do not skip the step where we mix a scoop of warm cream into the eggs. This gently cooks the eggs and prevents the custard from turning into scrambled egg ice cream. I love eggs, but that’s a hard no for me.
• I don't recommend putting the parchment paper in the oven with the broiler. Parchment paper can catch on fire in little time at that heat.
• I just want to set expectations that working with the toasted marshmallows will be a little messy. Toasted marshmallows are gooey and sticky. There's no getting around that, but you will be rewarded with the most delicious flavor. Trust me -- it's way better than untoasted marshmallows.
• Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5cup | Calories: 550kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 31g | Cholesterol: 239mg | Sodium: 309mg | Sugar: 45g

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Recipe originally published in September 2018 and republished in March 2020.