Creamy homemade coconut ice cream, made from a rich custard of egg yolks, milk, cream and vanilla bean, with toasted coconut flakes and chopped dark chocolate.
You might also love these recipes for the best vanilla bean ice cream, double Dutch dark chocolate ice cream, and fresh strawberry ice cream.
This site contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that I may make a small commission if you purchase a product using those links. This in no way affects my opinion of those products and services. All opinions expressed on this site are my own.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Tastes Like a Coconut Candy Bar. With the combination of sweet chewy coconut and crunchy bits of chocolate, this toasted coconut ice cream has all the flavor of a Mounds candy bar.
Customizable. Make this ice cream with or without the chocolate, although I love chocolate with coconut. You can also strain the custard to remove the bits of coconut for a perfectly smooth texture, or leave them in.
Easy to Make. While making homemade frozen custard takes a bit of time and planning (cooking and chilling the custard, churning the ice cream, then waiting for it to harden in the freezer), most of the time spent is completely hands off. You’ll only be spending a few minutes prepping the ingredients, and the hardest part is just waiting until your homemade ice cream is ready to eat!
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Coconut. I use unsweetened “natural” coconut flakes, rather than sweetened shredded coconut for most of my recipes. It tastes so much better, with a clean, lightly sweet coconut flavor and crunchy texture. Once it’s soaked in the custard overnight, it will add a chewy texture in the ice cream.
- Egg Yolks. To make the custard, you’ll only be using the yolks, not the whites. You can freeze the leftover whites for another recipe.
- Sugar. The sugar not only sweetens the ice cream, but keeps it soft, creamy and scoopable.
- Spices. A pinch of salt and ground cardamom adds more depth, while a whole vanilla bean adds the best vanilla flavor. If you don’t have vanilla beans, you can use vanilla bean paste instead.
- Milk + Cream. You need the high fat content of whole milk and heavy whipping cream for a smooth, creamy ice cream.
- Chocolate. The chopped chocolate is optional, but so delicious. I chopped up a bar of 70% Lindt dark chocolate.
Instructions
- Measure the coconut into a saucepan. Over medium heat, toast the coconut, stirring it frequently and watching it constantly so it doesn’t burn, until it starts to turn a light golden brown. This should take 4-5 minutes.
- Add the egg yolks, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt and cardamom. Whisk in the milk and 1 cup of the cream. Add the vanilla bean seeds that you scraped from the vanilla bean, and add the whole vanilla bean pod, too.
- Heat the custard over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it begins to steam and just bubble slightly around the edges. Do not let it boil. Note that it will be very thin, and will not thicken at all.
- Remove the custard from the heat. Cover with plastic wrap resting against the surface of the custard, and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 4-6 hours, but preferably overnight to let more flavor develop.
- When you’re ready to churn your custard, remove the vanilla bean pod. Note that you can leave the coconut in, and your ice cream will have chewy bits of coconut all throughout, which I prefer. But for the coconut flavor with no texture, pour the custard through a strainer to remove the coconut flakes.
- Use an electric mixer to whip the remaining 1 cup of cream until soft peaks form. Gently whisk the whipped cream into the chilled custard.
- Pour the custard into your ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions. During the last minute of churning, add the chopped chocolate and the vodka.
- Transfer the churned ice cream to a lidded 2-quart container, and freeze until firm enough to scoop, at least 8 hours.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
Alcohol lowers the freezing point of the ice cream, which prevents ice crystals from forming as the ice cream freezes. The vodka is optional, but the alcohol helps to maintain a smooth, creamy texture.
Homemade ice cream is best eaten within about 2 weeks.
In testing recipes for coconut ice cream, I have not loved the texture of the ice cream when made with coconut milk and coconut cream, so I do not recommend this substitution.
You Might Also Like
Please check out my Amazon Shop for a curated collection of some of my favorite cake pans from trusted brands, baking tools, ingredients, pretty things and fashion finds. I recommend products that I buy and use every day!
Did you love today’s recipe? Please rate the recipe and let me know in the comments what you thought! Also, be sure to follow Curly Girl Kitchen on Instagram, and tag me when you try one of my recipes so I can see all your delicious creations!
Toasted Coconut Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream (Frozen Custard)
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Ice Cream Maker
Ingredients
- ¾ cup natural unsweetened coconut flakes
- 5 large egg yolks
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp light brown sugar
- ⅛ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups cold heavy whipping cream, divided
- 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (or 1 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste)
- 3 oz good quality dark chocolate, finely chopped (or mini chocolate chips)
- 2 tsp vodka, optional
Instructions
- Measure the coconut into a saucepan. Over medium heat, toast the coconut, stirring it frequently and watching it constantly so it doesn't burn, until it starts to turn a light golden brown. This should take 4-5 minutes.
- Add the egg yolks, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt and cardamom. Whisk in the milk and 1 cup of the cream. Add the vanilla bean seeds that you scraped from the vanilla bean, and add the whole vanilla bean pod, too.
- Heat the custard over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it begins to steam and just bubble slightly around the edges. Do not let it boil. Note that it will be very thin, and will not thicken at all.
- Remove the custard from the heat. Cover with plastic wrap resting against the surface of the custard, and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 4-6 hours, but preferably overnight to let more flavor develop.
- When you're ready to churn your custard, remove the vanilla bean pod. Note that you can leave the coconut in, and your ice cream will have chewy bits of coconut all throughout, which I prefer. But for the coconut flavor with no texture, pour the custard through a strainer to remove the coconut flakes.
- Use an electric mixer to whip the remaining 1 cup of cream until soft peaks form. Gently whisk the whipped cream into the chilled custard.
- Pour the custard into your ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer's instructions. During the last minute of churning, add the chopped chocolate and the vodka.
- Transfer the churned ice cream to a lidded 2-quart container, and freeze until firm enough to scoop, at least 8 hours.
Notes
- The vodka is optional, but the alcohol helps to maintain a smooth, creamy texture.
- Homemade ice cream is best eaten within about 2 weeks.
Leave a Reply