Mocha Ice Cream Recipe: So Simple and Delicious it will have the Kids Cheering
Homemade ice cream is a huge favorite in our house and one of those desserts the kids cheer about! It is basically the creamiest mocha ice cream recipe your family has ever tasted. We’ve yet to find something this good in an ice cream shop! The best part is, the time to actively prepare it takes less than 10 minutes!
This post may contain affiliate links which means I may earn a small commission when you click on the links and make a purchase. I will never recommend a product that I don’t support 100%.
Remember that new middle schooler I mentioned? It’s thrown a big curveball into our afternoons, but in the best way possible. Instead of being home for hours, it’s made me very intentional about planning when to cook any dinners/desserts especially if we have other activities later in the evening!
This mocha coffee ice cream recipe is a cinch to mix up with the kids right after school. It is one of those “dump all the ingredients in a single bowl and mix” kind of recipes, and I have to admit I seriously love those! The batter does need to settle in the fridge for a few hours, so I find if we can stick it in there soon after school, we are ready to churn the ice cream when we get home with the middle schooler.
Churning takes about 20 minutes and the Cuisinart ice cream maker runs itself while I get dinner ready. We pop the new ice cream in the freezer, and by dessert it is a delightful soft serve consistency (take note – if you want your ice cream firm you’ll need to plan for a few more hours in the freezer).
INGREDIENTS FOR THE MOCHA ICE CREAM RECIPE
You’ll need the following ingredients to make this mocha coffee ice cream recipe:
INGREDIENT NOTES
Cocoa: I use 100% cacao and my favorite is the Trader Joes brand, followed closely by Viva Naturals on Amazon.
Brown Sugar: Don’t skip this! The brown sugar really gives it a warm flavor that compliments the cocoa and coffee
Coffee: Since we have four children and are usually eating this in the evening, I always use decaf (definitely a hazelnut decaf for me because it’s an affordable favorite!). You can use any coffee as long as you can make it very concentrated.
Making Concentrated Coffee: Either brew a small 2-cup pot and double the grounds, or use a “specialty” or “iced coffee” setting if you have a fancier coffee maker. We have this Ninja and love the ease of brewing to different concentrations.The key is to pack coffee flavor into the 1/3 cup you’ll be adding to your recipe.
HOW TO MAKE MOCHA ICE CREAM
Before you Begin: Make sure your ice cream maker bucket is fully frozen if that’s the style you have. This can take a few hours.
Step 1: Brew your concentrated coffee. Either brew a small 2-cup pot and double the grounds, or use a “specialty” or “iced coffee” setting if you have a coffee maker like this Ninja (which we love, BTW) You will only need 1/3 cup brewed coffee.
Step 2: Pour your coffee, milk, cream, brown sugar, vanilla, and cocoa powder into a large mixing bowl.
Step 3: Whisk all ingredients together. The cocoa powder will take a few minutes to finally dissolve. My kids love to take turns whisking, so that’s what we do!
Step 4: Cover with a silicon lid or plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator, ideally for an hour or more.
Step 5: Set up your ice cream maker and pour in the batter. I always give it a good stir to get anything that may have settled to the bottom.
Step 6: Avoid World War III by giving each child a small taste of the batter. This way they’re off and playing by the time the ice cream is finished and you can have a big spoonful all to yourself, because you’re amazing and you deserve it!
Step 7: Churn for about 20 minutes, or until the ice cream nearly stops moving. Depending on your ice cream maker, sometimes it will start to spill out of the top a bit.
Step 8: Lastly, scrape your mocha coffee ice cream into a plastic container that has a lid and put it in the freezer for at least an hour. Two to three hours is best.
** We often use store bought cones, but if you have the time to take your dessert up a notch I highly recommend making some homemade waffle cones! This recipe is a great one! **
ADDITIONS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
SUBSTITUTIONS
Sugar: Coconut sugar can be substituted for brown sugar. We haven’t tested this recipe with honey or maple syrup, but if you do please let us know!
ADDITIONAL TOPPING IDEAS
Heath Bar Bits We love to put heath bar bits on top of this ice cream!
Strawberries are another good one.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I make this as no-churn? Yes, but churning really gives that amazing soft mouth feel and it is definitely my recommendation! We use a super simple Cuisinart ice cream maker and love it!
Can I use flavored coffee? Absolutely! I usually make this recipe with a hazelnut decaf. It could be fabulous with any number of flavored coffees.
Mocha Coffee Ice Cream
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup whole milk
- ⅓ cup coffee
- 2 cups cream
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ½ tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Brew a small cup of concentrated coffee. On our coffee maker we use an "Iced Coffee" or "Specialty" setting. You can also make drip coffee using an extra scoop of grounds.
- Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
- Whisk for about 2 minutes, or until all cocoa powder and sugar is dissolved.
- Cover and set in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
- Pour mixture into an ice cream maker and churn until the batter slows until almost a stop, about 20 minutes.
- Place finished ice cream into a container with lid and freeze. For "soft serve" style serve immediately, for firm ice cream freeze for at least 3 hours.
