My absolute favorite summer treat is a scoop of ice cream. My second fave is s'mores!
Combining a homemade version of ice cream with the flavors of s’mores brings the very best of summer together in one amazingly delicious frozen dessert, S'mores Ice Cream!
This S’mores Ice Cream combines toasted marshmallow ice cream with graham cracker pieces and Hershey’s chocolate. It just doesn’t get better than that for celebrating the flavors of the season. If you like Ben and Jerry smores ice cream, you’ll love this recipe!
Looking for more homemade ice cream recipes? Try Creamy Malted Vanilla Ice Cream with Chocolate Chips and White Chocolate Peppermint Ice Cream.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- The absolute perfect combination of creamy vanilla ice cream, toasted marshmallows and graham cracker swirls, it will soon be one of your favorite ice cream recipes
- The best ice cream for a hot summer day, s’mores lovers can’t resist a favorite campfire treat in frozen form
- Because it’s homemade, you can use high quality ingredients for unbeatable freshly churned, natural flavorBring back childhood memories with a smores ice cream cone, make an ice cream sandwich or top it with a big dollop of whipped cream
Love anything s'mores? Try S'mores Rice Krispie Treats, Caramel S'mores Bars, and S'mores Truffles.
Easy homemade ice cream using an ice cream maker
I got my first ice cream maker right after I graduated college. It cost under 50 bucks and lasted about 20 years. I just recently purchased my second ice cream maker to make homemade churn ice cream. Got the same model and it's still about $50. Definitely a great investment.
And, you know what? Making ice cream at home is actually much easier than you think it would be. And, what I really love about it is I get to control the ingredients (no high fructose corn syrup, tapioca starch, guar gum, xanthan gum or soy lecithin here!) and most importantly, the mix-ins! How much, which ones, creating different combinations and flavors.
It's really fun experimenting with all of these things! And my family is always happy to consume it all.
Ingredients & substitutions for this s'mores ice cream recipe
- Heavy cream: its high fat content gives the ice cream a super creamy texture. Half-and-half will work too, but your ice cream won’t be as rich and smooth
- Whole milk: also important for extra fat. You can use a lower fat milk but you could end up with ice crystals in your ice cream, so I always recommend using whole milk
- Sugar: cane sugar sweetens the ice cream
- Egg yolks: you’ll use these for the cooked custard base. Save the egg whites for breakfast
- Marshmallows: use regular marshmallows, not marshmallow fluff or marshmallow creme. Toast them in the oven or with a kitchen torch for gooey marshmallows that will melt in your mouth. It’s my favorite part! Mini marshmallows may be substituted if that's all you have
- Hershey’s chocolate: it’s not s’mores ice cream without classic Hershey’s bars. If you prefer dark chocolate you can make the swap. Chocolate chips would also work well in this recipe
- Graham crackers: crush them up for a graham cracker swirl that adds classic s’mores taste
- Salt: May seem counterintuitive to add salt to ice cream. But salt gives all of the ingredients a flavor boost and balances the flavors really well
Please note you will need an ice cream maker for this recipe.
Ice Cream Maker
1.5-Quart Ice Cream and Sorbet Maker, Double Insulated Freezer Bowl elminates the need for Ice and Makes Frozen Treats in 20 Minutes or Less
How to make campfire s'more ice cream
Step 1
Before beginning, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper for warming the marshmallows.
Step 2
To make this ice cream, start by cooking the ice cream base or custard. This starts with heavy cream, milk, sugar, and salt. While the milk mixture heats up, whisk 6 egg yolks. Yes, 6! (Save the egg whites for your breakfast the next morning).
Step 3
At this point, add a little bit of the heated milk mixture slowly into the yolks to temper them. See my note below in 'Tips for Making this Recipe' on how to do this correctly.
Step 4
Once the egg yolks have been tempered, add them into the milk mixture and heat until a thick custard forms. Strain through a sieve and allow to sit while the marshmallows are toasted.
Step 5
This is the best part! You get to break out that kitchen torch you got for Christmas/Hanukkah or your birthday one year, but have never opened. First, warm the marshmallows in the oven for a few minutes, then broil the tops and sides in the oven or use your torch to get that gorgeous caramel color on top of the toasty marshmallows
Be sure to get them nice and golden brown without burning them (see my tips below).
Step 6
Scoop the toasted marshmallows into a blender along with the ice cream mixture and blend well, until the base is smooth. The toasted marshmallow ice cream base needs to sit in the fridge overnight or at least 4 hours.
Then, add it to the ice cream machine and churn away. Once churned, add in the chocolate pieces and graham crackers.
Step 7
Pour half of the ice cream into an 8x8-inch baking pan lined with parchment paper. Top with a layer of graham crackers and chocolate, then repeat the process with another layer. Stick it back in the freezer for solid ice cream or eat it right away for soft serve
There you have it! Homemade S'mores Ice Cream with Toasted Marshmallow Ice Cream, Graham Crackers and Hershey's Chocolate. Delish!
Pro tips for making toasted marshmallow ice cream
- Temper your eggs into the ice cream base. This is a critical step. If you add raw egg yolks to the hot milk/cream mixture, you will end up with scrambled eggs. Instead, whisk your eggs in a separate bowl while the milk/cream mixture is coming up to temperature. Gently dip a ½ cup measuring cup into the mixture to fill it up, and while continuing to whisk the eggs with one hand, very slowly pour in the milk mixture. Keep whisking for a few seconds after you’ve finished pouring. Then slowly pour the egg mixture you just whisked back into the pot with the remainder of the milk/cream while whisking the milk/cream with one hand. Continue whisking for a few seconds after you’ve finished pouring. This will ensure your egg yolks get incorporated and not scrambled
- Be careful using a kitchen torch or the broiler! (this is the mom in me coming out) I wouldn’t recommend placing your marshmallows on parchment then using the torch. This increases your chances of setting the paper on fire. Not good. I have torched the marshmallows on a silpat without issue, however, the ideal situation is to torch them on an unlined baking sheet. They may stick a bit but I’d rather lose a bit of each marshmallow to the baking sheetthan start a kitchen fire!
- The ice cream base needs to be 100% cooled in order to use in a standard ice cream maker. The bowl of the ice cream maker is frozen and needs to remain as cold as possible in order for the ice cream to churn and turn into ice cream. This requires a little bit of patience to cool the ice cream base, I know, however, it’s well worthwhile. If the bowl gets too warm, it won’t turn into ice cream so it will all be for naught anyway. Take the time, at least 4 hours but preferably overnight, to sufficiently chill your ice cream base before churning it. Also be sure you've frozen the bowl of the ice cream maker (if you have this model or a similar one) at least overnight so it's sufficiently frozen
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FAQs
What does S’mores Ice Cream taste like?
Imagine you made classic s’mores with toasted marshmallows and melty chocolate sandwiched in between graham cracker squares. Now picture that same s’mores flavor combined with homemade vanilla ice cream and you’ve got the best ever Campfire S’mores Ice Cream.
Why do you put eggs in homemade ice cream?
Egg yolks are full of fat and protein, so they help the ice cream stay creamy and thick. They also add a ton of flavor and give the ice cream a rich, off-white color.
What’s the secret to creamy ice cream?
Make sure to thoroughly chill the ice cream base before adding it to the ice cream maker, preferably overnight. Use the full-fat dairy I recommend and don’t skimp on the sugar. Store in an airtight container and place a piece of parchment paper on the surface of the ice cream before freezing to prevent ice crystals from forming.
FOR ALL MY FAVORITE BAKING TOOLS INCLUDING THOSE USED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE, CHECK OUT MY BAKING RESOURCES PAGE!
More recipe
If you are a S'mores lover like me, try my S'mores Truffles recipe and my S'mores Cupcakes recipe. You can also use S’mores Ice Cream for Ice Cream Sandwiches or on top of Kickass Brownies.
Did you enjoy a KICKASS BAKER recipe? Please share a comment and leave a 5 Star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Rating on this recipe! We appreciate you sharing your feedback!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ⅙ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 large egg yolks
- 10 ounces marshmallows
- 4 Hershey's Bars 1.55 ounce size
- 4 sheets graham crackers
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside
- In a small pot, simmer cream, milk, sugar and salt until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
- In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks.
- Whisking constantly, slowly whisk about a third of the hot cream into the yolks, then whisk the yolk mixture back into the pot with the cream.
- Return pot to medium-low heat and gently cook until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer).
- Strain through a into a bowl and set aside to cool for a few minutes.
- Spread the marshmallows out on prepared baking sheet. Place marshmallows in oven for 5 minutes.
- At this point, you can either use the broiler or a kitchen torch to toast the marshmallow.
- If you use a broiler, place the oven rack as high as possible and watch the very closely to ensure they don't burn. This should take about 2-3 minutes at most.
- If using a kitchen torch, toast the tops and sides of the marshmallows, then rotate so that they are evenly toasted on each side.
- In a blender, add the ice cream base and the toasted marshmallows and puree until smooth.
- Place in a clean bowl, cover and chill completely in the fridge, at least 4 hours or overnight, until completely cool.
- Once ice cream base is completely cool, churn in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
- While the ice cream is churning, chop the chocolate bars in bite-sized pieces and crush the graham crackers into small pieces. You can do this by placing the graham crackers in a sealed tiptop bag then rolling over them with a rolling pin or you can pulse in a food processor a couple of times. You want pieces of graham cracker, not crumbs.
- Once ice cream has finished churning, pour half into an 8x8-inch baking pan lined with parchment paper or wax paper.
- Sprinkle half the graham cracker crumbs and half the chocolate over top.
- Repeat with remaining ice cream, graham crackers, and chocolate.
- Serve directly from the machine for soft serve, or store in freezer until hardened.
Notes
- Ice cream should be stored in an airtight, freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 3 months
- Ice cream base recipe adapted from NYTimes.com
Nutrition
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