Fudge Brownie Ice Cream

⭐ Why You’ll Love This Recipe 

If you’ve been lucky enough to try homemade ice cream before, then you know just how easy it is to make and how much fresher it tastes compared to store bought. Plus, it’s so much fun to add all kinds of fillings! 

This Fudge Brownie Ice Cream is a breeze to make at home with an ice cream maker. It begins with a rich and creamy base before it’s speckled with homemade brownie crumbles and chocolate fudge. The ice cream maker does most of the work for you; all you have to do is sit back and wait for the ice cream to freeze.

My version is a little different from your average homemade brownie ice cream recipe because:

• It’s made from a base of cream, milk, and sugar. No egg yolks are necessary.
• The finished result is chocolatey but isn’t made with chocolate ice cream.

This way, the fudgy brownies and fudge swirl aren’t overwhelmed by any additional chocolate or heavy eggs. Rather, they shine through in every bite of the rich chocolate ice cream. 

Possibly the best thing about homemade ice cream is how much control you have over the flavors. You can enhance this dessert with anything you love, like vanilla extract, chocolate cookie pieces, or even salted caramel sauce. You’ll find a number of possible variations included here, as well as everything you need to know about making brownie ice cream at home!

🍴Ingredients

You only need 7 simple ingredients to put this homemade ice cream together that you can find at your local grocery stores. They are: 

• Heavy cream - You need heavy cream to produce a thick, creamy, and rich churned ice cream.
• Whole milk - No substitutions here. The fat in whole milk always produces a lavish and indulgent homemade ice cream.
• Sugar - White sugar is best, although another granulated sugar, like cane sugar, should also work well.
• Brownie chunks and crumbles - Make your own brownies! Whip up a batch of my Triple Chocolate Gourmet Brownies ahead of time, crumble them up, and toss them into the ice cream as it’s churning. You can even keep the crumbles of homemade brownies in the freezer when you don’t have time to make a fresh batch. Or, grab some store-bought brownies at the store to make things extra easy!
• Chocolate fudge - Make the hot fudge yourself or buy some from the store.
• Salt - Both table salt and flaky sea salt are needed to bring out the distinct chocolatey flavors.

⏲️ Substitutions & Variations

Like I said, homemade ice cream is easy to control and leaves plenty of room for variations. These are a few of my favorite ways to experiment with and spruce up this treat:

• Replace the brownies or fudge. Make this ice cream with chocolate cookie pieces, Oreo pieces, leftover pieces of chocolate or vanilla cake, or edible cookie dough.
• Enhance the ice cream. Enhance the creamy chocolate ice cream base with 2 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract, or add 1 cup of cocoa powder to make chocolate brownie ice cream instead. I'm always a fan of increasing the chocolate flavor! Too much chocolate? Impossible. 
• Add more fillings. Add in peanuts, candy-coated chocolate, toffee bits, caramel sauce, or candied nuts when the ice cream has just finished churning. Then top with whipped cream to serve!

📖 Step by Step Instructions

Step 1: Heat the base. Add the cream, milk, sugar, and salt to a saucepan. Heat on the stove until the sugar dissolves and it starts to simmer. Transfer the mixture to a container and let it cool in the fridge.

Step 2: Churn the ice cream. Once the milk and cream mixture is cool, pour it into your ice cream maker. Churn according to the manufacturer's directions. (You just made your own ice cream!)

Step 3: Add the brownies and fudge. When the ice cream is just about churning, add the pieces of fudge brownies and fudge. Churn until they’re well incorporated.

Step 4: Freeze, then serve. Transfer the brownie ice cream to an airtight container and let it freeze overnight. Top with a pinch of flaky salt and more brownies and fudge the next day!

👩🏻‍🍳 Expert Tips

• Always keep the base of your ice cream maker in the freezer. The bowl needs to be cold in order for the ice cream to churn properly and produce a rich texture.
• Keep a batch of crumbled brownies in the freezer. This way, you can make brownie ice cream right away instead of waiting for fresh brownies to bake.
• Leave it on the counter before serving. Letting the ice cream sit on the counter for 10 to 15 minutes will soften it up. In other words, you won’t have to struggle for a scoop!

💭 Recipe FAQs

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