Peanut Butter Cookies and Cream Ice Cream

My ice cream maker is working overtime this summer to keep the freezer stocked with tons of great flavors. In the winter there might be some debate about what we’ll have for dessert after we finish dinner, but this time of year the answer is simple. Ice cream, always ice cream.

Even on nights like last night where big storms with dark, ominous clouds rolled through one after another, we weren’t deterred. In fact, it’s actually a good time to grab a bowl of ice cream, park ourselves in front of the doors to the deck and catch a “show.” With our house set higher than the ones around it, we always have a great view of storms as they pass. The ones with lightning are seriously the best!

But I digress, you probably want to hear about this peanut butter cookies and cream ice cream, don’t you? It can be hard to continually come up with new flavors that both Shane and I will enjoy, but lately all of my inspiration has come from the seemingly never-ending bag of mini Oreos in the pantry. My first thought was a basic cookies and cream ice cream, which I realized is somehow missing from the enormous collection of ice cream recipes on this site. At the last minute though, I changed my mind and decided to make a peanut butter base instead of vanilla.

And it was a very good decision indeed. Creamy, rich peanut butter ice cream with tons of Oreo cookie chunks throughout – just more proof that when peanut butter and chocolate are involved, only good things can happen! This is a no-cook ice cream (I’ve been making a lot of those recently!) so it comes together in no time at all. If you hurry you could probably even be enjoying it for dessert tonight, and trust me, you want to be 🙂

Peanut Butter Cookies and Cream Ice Cream
adapted from Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream and Dessert Book

{Note: this recipe include uncooked eggs – if you have concerns about raw eggs and want to be on the safe side, you can find pasteurized eggs at most grocery stores.}

2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
pinch kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 heaping cup coarsely chopped Oreo cookies

Crack the eggs into a large bowl and whisk until very light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, until completely incorporated. Add the cream and milk and whisk to combine. Mix in the salt and vanilla. Transfer 1 cup of this mixture to a medium bowl and gradually add the peanut butter, whisking to incorporate. Pour this peanut butter mixture back into the ice cream base and stir to combine fully.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for a few hours (or overnight, which is what I did).

Freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. When the ice cream reaches soft serve consistency, add the chopped Oreos and continue churning until incorporated, another minute or two. Store in an airtight container in your freezer.

Makes one heaping quart