Dairy-Free Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

5 from 6 votes

Dairy-Free Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

This Baskin Robbins Chocolate Chip Ice Cream CopyCat recipe is dairy-free but still creamy and full of chocolate goodness!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 20

Total Time 35

Servings servings

Calories 421kcal

Author Marlynn Schotland

Ingredients

2 cans (14-ounces each) full-fat coconut milk
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons cornstarch or: tapioca starch, arrowroot powder, or xantham gum
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
4 ounces dairy-free chocolate bar chopped or peeled into chocolate shavings

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Instructions

Pour ¼ cup of the coconut milk into a small bowl and set aside. Combine the remaining coconut milk, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Warm, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has fully dissolved, about 2 minutes.
Whisk the cornstarch into the bowl of reserved coconut milk until completely dissolved.
Stir the cornstarch mixture into the warm coconut milk base on the stove and cook over medium heat to thicken, about 6 to 8 minutes. The mixture should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Watch the mixture carefully to be sure it doesn't come to a boil.
Remove the mixture from heat and stir in the vanilla.
Pour mixture into a shallow container, such as a loaf pan, and allow it to cool at room temperature for about 15 to 20 minutes. Then cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
Once this base mixture is completely chilled, you're ready to churn the ice cream. Pour the mixture into your ice cream machine and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions (usually about 15 minutes).
Once the mixture has thickened to the consistency of custard, and before it's fully reached peak consistency, add in the chopped chocolate and churn for another minute, just until the chocolate is well-combined.
Use a rubber spatula to transfer the ice cream into a loaf pan or other freezer-safe container, and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Freeze for at least 3 hours, until the ice cream is fully frozen.
When you're ready to serve, take the ice cream out of the freezer and allow it to sit on the counter at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes to soften just enough to scoop.

Notes

Important prep step: The day before you want to make ice cream, place the freezer bowl of your ice cream maker into the freezer.

Dairy-Free Milk Options: I prefer to use full-fat coconut milk because it creates a creamier ice cream. You could also use almond milk, soy milk, or cashew milk, depending on your taste preference; however, because these dairy-free options tend to have lower fat content, the ice cream may turn out icy instead of creamy. You could do a combination of full-fat coconut milk with one of the other lower fat dairy-free options to add some creaminess to the texture.

Thickeners: I use cornstarch, or arrowroot powder. This helps create a creamier consistency when making dairy-free ice cream. You can also use tapioca starch or xantham gum.

Chocolate: if you don't have a dairy-free chocolate bar that you can chop, you can use the same amount of dairy-free chocolate chips instead.

Nutrition