The Best Naturally Sweetened Chocolate Ice Cream

Indulge in this guilt-free, homemade, healthy, naturally sweetened, chocolate ice cream! It’s refined-sugar free and loaded with health benefits that taste as good, if not better, that store bought comparisons.

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At the beginning of 2024, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s. In an attempt to eliminate modern wheat and refined sugars, I have gone completely gluten-free with the exception of einkorn flour. I have also eliminated refined sugars, with the exception of making our homemade kombucha.

I have felt so much better and my labs are showing huge improvements with these lifestyle changes.

When summer time was approaching, I began thinking about all the summer BBQs, popsicles, camp fires, and ice cream. I didn’t want to be excluded from summer time treats because of refined sugar.

So I thought about making fruit jello dessert and raspberry coconut bars. I found a great organic BBQ sauce, naturally sweetened with dates, no cane sugar or artificial sweeteners. When the family has smores, I won’t mind saying no, they are sticky and messy anyway. Popsicles are easy to make at home and naturally sweeten with honey.

Then there is ice cream… My husband loves ice cream. We couldn’t have that temptation in our freezer all summer.

I bought a Ninja Creami so that I wouldn’t be tempted to partake in store bought ice cream anymore. This was a win for everyone! I could create my own recipes and naturally sweeten chocolate ice cream while adding loads of healthy ingredients!

Is there such thing as no sugar ice cream?

Technically yes. You could omit every natural sweetener (berries, honey, maple syrup, and of course cane sugar) and just mix heavy cream or coconut cream and egg yolks with a pinch of salt. This would be a truly sugar-free ice cream. However, it would of course, not be sweet, but you would have a cold, creamy ice cream that is nutrient dense!

What is the alternative to sugar in ice cream?

When making homemade ice cream, some natural sugar alternatives include: maple syrup, honey, berries, and dates.

What is the best natural sweetener for refined sugar free ice cream?

Can I substitute honey for sugar when making ice cream? Absolutely! The honey mixes well with the cream and other ingredients giving the end result a smooth and creamy texture.

Can I use maple syrup instead of sugar in ice cream? I use this regularly due to the maple syrup giving a finished rich and robust flavor to the ice cream.

My go-to substitutes for refined sugar in ice cream are honey and maple syrup. This is because of the ease in substitution, pour and mix!

Why not replace sugar with stevia when making ice cream?

This is a point of controversy in the health food world. I think that if it works for you in your kitchen then use it. However, I’ll share my reasonings for why I avoid it.

While stevia is plant-based and is a zero-calorie sweetener, it is still a highly refined product. Oftentimes, stevia blends contain additives that can cause dysregulation to gut health.

Some may say, well honey and maple syrup can dysregulate gut health too because it spikes blood sugar. However, this is contrary to the scientific findings.

Maple syrup has anti-inflammatory properties that can actually aid in the reduction of an inflamed and dysregulated gut, and protects against liver damage. (Unlike cane sugar which attributes to fatty liver disease.)^{1, 2}

For the benefits mentioned above, it is vital that you use a real maple syrup where the only ingredient is maple syrup and preferably organic.

Likewise, raw honey supports digestion, is an antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, promotes wound healing, is an antioxidant, and has prebiotic benefits for regulating the microbiome in the gut. It also reduces gut infection and inflammation, and stimulates the growth of beneficial microbes in the gut.³

The best honey to get these benefits mentioned above from is a raw, local honey.

While on my journey to healing my Hashimoto’s, I am personally choosing to stick to nature as close as possible and avoiding stevia and other processed sweeteners for the reasons listed above.

Is chocolate ice cream artificially flavored?

Store bought versions do contain artificial flavors, depending on the brand you purchase. However, making homemade chocolate ice cream allows you to use quality ingredients that will not only taste better but be better for your health.

Can I add cacao powder to vanilla ice cream?

When making vanilla ice cream, you could just add your cacao powder in to turn in into chocolate ice cream. However, for the best results, you will need to increase your natural sweetener. For instance, in my vanilla ice cream, I use 1/4 cup maple syrup or honey. When including cacao, it can make the chocolate ice cream less sweet with its over powering bitter flavor. To fix this, I use 1/3 cup maple syrup and reduce the milk products slightly. This makes a more naturally sweetened chocolate ice cream.

If you don’t mind having a less sweet chocolate ice cream, adding the cacao in the vanilla mixture is also very tasty. To me it tastes like a dark chocolate ice cream.

Is chocolate ice cream good for you?

That depends on what is in it. Store bought versions; I’d say most of them are not. Homemade? It absolutely can be good for you! Outside of the better, natural sweeteners added (honey or maple syrup) raw milk and cream are loaded with nutrients and beneficial fats for your health. Then when adding cacao, you are adding more health benefits.

Cacao helps lower blood pressure, improve blood flow, and helps prevent blood clots. Outside of helping the cardiovascular system, it contains antioxidants and affects insulin to help lower your chances of diabetes.⁴

Cacao powder contains important healthy nutrients such as:⁴

• Iron
• Phosphorus
• Manganese 
• Magnesium
• Potassium
• Fiber

Adding cacao powder instead of artificial or watered down versions is going to give you the best nutritional value in your homemade ice cream!

How to make naturally sweetened chocolate ice cream

My method for making ice cream requires these equipment items:

• Ninja Creami
• Immersion blender
• Measuring spoons
• Scale

Ingredients need for creamy, naturally sweetened chocolate ice cream!

• Raw milk
• Raw cream
• Cacao
• Egg yolks
• Maple syrup (or local, raw honey)
• Ground vanilla bean (or vanilla extract)
• Salt

As a good rule of thumb, it is best practice to source quality food products such as organic, grass fed, wild caught, local, non-GMO, and made at home with the most basic of ingredients. This will help to have more nutrient dense meals that will not only taste better, but nourish your family while reducing toxins and unnecessary chemicals. Get tips from this article on how I grocery shop and meal plan for my family of six and do our best to only bring home quality ingredients.

Easy steps for making naturally sweetened chocolate ice cream

1. Add all your ingredients to your Ninja Creami 24 ounce pint containers.
2. Using the immersion blender, blend all the ingredients until fully combined. This will take about 30-45 seconds. Make sure that your liquid does not exceed the first line: freeze fill line.
3. Cover your pint with the lid and place in your freezer, on a flat, level surface for a minimum of 24 hours.
4. After 24 hours, you can remove from the freezer and take off the lid. Place the container in the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and place the bowl lid into the lock position.
5. Slide the bowl container into the machine and lock into place on the machine.
6. Press the power button, select full, select ice cream, and push in the button to start churning.
7. After 2 minutes you can release the bowl, slide out and release the lid. If your ice cream is not the consistency you desire, but is crumbly, you can reinsert and follow steps 5-6 again.
8. If you want to add mix-ins instead then start by making a hole in the center to the bottom and add them to that hole. Then reinsert and select full, mix-in. It should start automatically.
9. If your ice cream is still crumbly add a about a tablespoon of cream to the top and re-spin.
10. You can serve immediately! Be sure to rinse your bowl lid and blade immediately for easier clean up.

What to do with leftovers in your pint container.

If you have leftovers in your pint, make sure to smooth out the surface with the back of a spoon so that it is flat and level before putting it back into the freezer. Again, make sure it is on a flat, level surface before refreezing. This will prevent damaging your equipment when you re-spin your leftover ice cream. 

What are your favorite mix-ins for chocolate ice cream? Please share your ideas in the comments below!

And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.

Numbers 13:27

References

1. https://www.webmd.com/diet/maple-syrup-good-for-you
2. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/maple-syrup
3. Schell, K. R., Fernandes, K. E., Shanahan, E., Wilson, I., Blair, S. E., Carter, D. A., & Cokcetin, N. N. (2022). The Potential of Honey as a Prebiotic Food to Re-engineer the Gut Microbiome Toward a Healthy State. Frontiers in nutrition, 9, 957932. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2022.957932
4. https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-cacao-powder