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A peanut butter and chocolate lover’s dream come true, this Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream is lower in calories and still rich in flavor. It’s also ready in less time than a traditional ice cream recipe, so you can enjoy this cool and creamy treat in no time flat.
I promised you ice cream, and I’m here to deliver it! This recipe is for all you peanut butter lovers out there. When developing this recipe, I experimented by using whole milk instead of heavy cream, and left the usual egg yolks out of the mixture. The result is a peanut-buttery ice cream that’s lower in fat but still high in flavor.
If you prefer full-fat, custard-based ice cream recipes, I have some of those for you, too. Try my Nutella Ice Cream for a divine combination of frosty chocolate and hazelnut flavors. You also won’t want to miss Double Cookie Dough Ice Cream, which is made with homemade cookie dough, brown butter, and brown sugar for a truly dreamy dessert.
Why You’ll Love Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
- With only 4 ingredients, this recipe is easy to follow even if you’ve never made homemade ice cream before.
- Because this ice cream base doesn’t have eggs like a traditional custard base, you can start churning it immediately. That means you get to enjoy it about an hour after it’s been churned.
- The chopped peanut butter cups provide a sumptuous textural contrast to the creamy ice cream. They also add some chocolate, which is always a good thing in my book!
- Since it’s lower in fat and calories, this ice cream has a lighter texture than egg-based ice creams, but the peanut butter keeps it rich and satisfying.
- By making peanut butter cup ice cream at home, you’ll know what you’re eating is free of preservatives and artificial flavors.
What You’ll Need
- Peanut Butter – Creamy peanut butter is best for this recipe. If you don’t want added sugar, use an unsweetened version.
- Peanut Butter Cups – Chop up whole Reese’s peanut butter cups or use the mini ones instead.
- Whole Milk – Creates the foundation for the ice cream base and lowers the calorie count.
- Sugar – Sweetens the ice cream and helps keep it soft.
- Vanilla – Adds a warm, sweet, and irresistible vanilla flavor.
How To Make Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
- Make the ice cream base. Using an electric mixer, cream the peanut butter and sugar until smooth. On low speed, add 1 cup of milk and mix for 2 minutes until it’s smooth. Mix in the remaining milk and vanilla until creamy.
- Churn in your ice cream maker. Follow your ice cream maker’s instructions to churn the ice cream base.
- Add the bulk ingredients and freeze. Fold in the chopped peanut butter cups. Place the finished ice cream in an airtight container and freeze for at least one hour before serving.
Recipe Tips & Variations
- Stick with creamy peanut butter. Use creamy peanut butter instead of chunky for the smoothest ice cream texture possible. You’ll get a lot of chunky texture from the peanut butter cups.
- Try dark chocolate peanut butter cups. If you want that dark chocolate flavor, use dark chocolate peanut butter cups instead.
- Make it with almond butter instead. This recipe would be equally yummy with almond butter instead of peanut butter. The Reese’s cups can also be replaced with almond butter cups (find them at your local natural foods store).
- Serve it as a sundae. For a decadent sundae, serve peanut butter cup ice cream with chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and chopped peanuts.
- Make it a milkshake. Turn this ice cream into a milkshake in your blender with a little milk or cold coffee, then top it off with whipped cream.
One of the easiest ways to prevent this ice cream from getting icy is to refrigerate the finished ice cream base before churning it. The colder it is when you churn it, the smoother and less icy the ice cream will be.
Store the ice cream in an airtight, freezer-proof container. To keep the top from getting icy, you can place a piece of waxed paper or plastic wrap against the top surface of the ice cream.
While I haven’t tried to make this recipe dairy-free, you could try replacing the milk with full-fat coconut milk or a mixture of coconut milk and coconut cream.
Serving Suggestions
- Hot Fudge Sauce – If you’re not worried about extra calories, enjoy some hot fudge sauce over this ice cream for a deliciously decadent sundae.
- Homemade Peanut Butter Cups – if you really want to make it completely homemade, make your own mix-ins too!
- Ice Cream Sundae Bar – set up a sundae bar for the kids, adults, the whole neighborhood!
More Tasty Summer Dessert Recipes
- Banana Cream Pie
- Raspberry Crumble Bars
- Patriotic Pretzels
- Strawberry Milkshakes
- Watermelon Krispie Treats
- Oreo Lasagna
Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups creamy peanut butter
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 1/4 cups whole milk
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cups Peanut Butter Cups, chopped
Instructions
- Using an electric mixer, combine peanut butter and sugar; mix until smooth.
- With the mixer on low add 1 cup of milk. Mix for 2 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved and it is smooth.
- Add the remaining milk, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
- Using an ice cream maker, churn the milk mixture according to the manufacturer's instructions.
- Once the ice cream is churned and frozen Add the chopped peanut butter cups, and fold in.
- Place in an airtight container, and store in the freezer for at least an hour before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I love that we’re on the same wavelength today with our peanut butter ice creams 🙂 Yours sound amazing – I’m a total peanut butter cup fanatic!
I love PB in ice cream. Great recipe, Erin!
Good heavens, I need this for my breakfast! Is that wrong?
Oh man! Erin, this is my dream come true dessert. I’m definitely giving it a go. Peanut butter and ice cream. Perfection 🙂
I absolutely love peanut butter ice cream. I can’t wait to try this.
There is no such thing as too much ice cream. PB is one of my favorites!
Just looking at this ice cream is making me so hungry! I’m an ice cream fiend and I love peanut butter. I need this in my belly now!
Peanut butter ice cream is my all time favorite. This looks fantastic!
This is such a fantastic summer treat! Everyone enjoyed it!
Mmmmm…. this ice cream is exactly what I need these days! I am making it!