Ben and Jerry's Ben's Chocolate Ice Cream (with No raw eggs) plus Hot Fudge Sauce

"Mum, I think I'm a junk food addict!" said my son out of the blue.

"Geez! Who taught you that???" I reacted with a worried face.

"Diary of a Wimpy Kid!"

"Hmmm..."

Once on our way to meet my husband for lunch, my son listed all the food that he likes ...
... fish and chips, harsh brown, potato chips, ice cream, ice popsicle, cakes, cookies, chocolate, macarons and blah blah blah... He knows that these are mostly food that are high in fats, sugars and calories but he still choose to love them.

Kids being kids... or also humans being humans? I can't blame or deny the fact that food that is creamy, sugary and salty are always the ones with indulging flavours and texture. Having said that, I still like to advocate strongly for healthy foods. Or otherwise, I like to educate my child to enjoy his "junk food" with good amount of portion control and also moderation.

To satisfy my son's addiction to Ben and Jerry's ice cream, I have bought the book, Ben and Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream and Dessert Book, hoping to make a slightly healthier version of Ben and Jerry's ice cream at home.

"Mum, please don't make low fat and low sugar ice cream for me." pleaded my son when I told him that the Ben and Jerry's ice cream are not like the chocolate milk ice cream that I usually made with no cream and eggs.

"Mum, please make Ben's chocolate ice cream for me because it is the richer version!" said with a charming and convincing look.

Alright! Mums being mums. I admit defeated... but not entirely defeated! To preserve the texture and taste of the ice cream, I have used 75% of the recommended amount of sugar in both Ben's chocolate ice cream and its complimentary hot fudge sauce recipes and nice to know that the cut back wasn't detectable. Shhhhh!!!! Please don't tell my son that I did this!!!

To minimise the risk of food contamination due to the use of raw eggs to make this ice cream, I have used shelf stable Farm Pride powdered whole eggs which have been pasteurised before use. After enjoying the extremely smooth and velvety texture of Ben's ice cream, I would strongly recommend the addition of eggs (preferably the powdered ones) in this recipe as the presence of the eggs can really make a huge difference.

To enjoy this ice cream to the fullest, don't forget to eat it with its complimentary hot fudge sauce. And of course, the sauce is always the BEST if you make it your own. Unlike the commercial chocolate sauces, this is made with real and good quality chocolate and contains no preservative and not sweetened with the evil-fructose kind of corn syrup.

Oh well! This is our "junk food" with good amount of moderation...

The richer Ben and Jerry's chocolate ice cream plus homemade hot fudge sauce

I have used powdered eggs to make this ice cream to minimise the risk of food contamination.

I'm using a double boiler to melt and mix the chocolate.

See! The eggs are not cooked!!! Good that I'm using the pasteurised egg powders.

Combine both chocolate and cream mixture.

Dark chocolate freckles appear at ice cream churning but the texture will be smooth when ice cream is made.

Now, I'm making the hot fudge sauce.

Making the sauce can be time consuming but worthwhile.

The sauce is so smooth and yummy!

So as the ice cream!

Here are the recipes that are mostly adapted from the book, Ben and Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream and Dessert Book

Ben's Chocolate Ice Cream

Make 1 quart or about 1 liter
120g (4 ounces) unsweetened chocolate (mine is Callebaut dark chocolate callets with 70% cocoa)
1 cup milk
2 large eggs or 3 tbsp whole egg powder plus 5 tbsp water
1 cup sugar (reduced to 150g and the ice cream is still sweet)*
1 cup heavy cream (35% fat)
1 tsp vanilla extract / 1/4 tsp vanilla paste
1 pinch salt - It is a must as it helps to maximize the chocolate flavour.

* Reducing too much sugar in ice cream can also change the smoothness and texture of ice cream but this amount of reduction is just right for us.

Melt the unsweetened chocolate in the top of a double boiler, over hot, not boiling, water. Gradually whisk in the milk and heat, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Whisk the eggs (plus water if you are using egg powder) in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1-2 mins. Whisk in sugar until completely blended, about 1 min more. Add the cream, vanilla and salt and whisk to blend.

Pour the chocolate mixture into the cream mixture and blend. Cover and refrigerate until cold about 1-3 hrs, depending on your refrigerator and also the weather of the day.

Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions.

Hot Fudge Sauce (Half of the original amount)

Makes 1/2 quart or about 500ml
60g (2 ounces) unsweetened chocolate (mine is Callebaut dark chocolate callets with 70% cocoa)
50g (1/2 stick) butter
35g (1 /4 cup plus 2 tbsp) cocoa powder (mine is Dutch processed cocoa powder, Valrhona)
1 cup sugar (reduced to 150g and the sauce is still sweet)
1/4 cup (60 ml) milk
1/4 cup (60 ml) cream (35% fat)

Melt the chocolate and butter, stirring frequently, in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Add the cocoa and whisk until dissolved.

Using a spoon, stir in the sugar. The mixture should be the consistency of wet sand (grainy look). Cook, stirring occasionally, over simmering water for 20-30 mins or until the grainy mixture looks sweaty. Check the water level in the double boiler occasionally and replenish if necessary.

Gradually stir in the milk and cream and keep stirring until completely blended. Continue cooking with stirring until sauce looks glossy and smooth (timing can vary and can be 15 to 60 mins). The fudge is ready when it is completely smooth and all the sugar is dissolved.

Store in the fridge until required.

To assemble, warm sauce slightly using a microwave with short pulses of low power and drizzle the sauce generously on the ice cream.

Enjoy the treat
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