2 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/2 cup cocoa powder
4 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne (or to taste)
6 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp brandy or spiced rum (optional)
- Heat one cup of cream in a small saucepan. Whisk in cocoa powder, and bring to a simmer. Whisk until cocoa powder is well incorporated. Remove pot from heat. Stir in chocolate until completely incorporated.
- Put mixture into a metal bowl, and add remaining cup of cream. Set that bowl in an ice bath to cool it down. Place a mesh sieve over the bowl with the chocolate mixture.
- Put one cup of milk, sugar, cinnamon, cayenne, and a pinch of salt into a saucepan and heat until steaming, but not boiling, stirring to incorporate spices.
- Place egg yolks in a medium sized bowl. Slowly pour some heated milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly to temper (but not cook!) the egg yolks. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the warmed egg yolks and milk back into the milk saucepan.
- Stir the milk-egg mixture constantly over medium heat with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spoon so that you can run your finger across the coating and have the coating not run. This takes 3-10 minutes.
- As soon as the mixture coats the spoon, remove from the heat and immediately pour through the mesh sieve into the bowl of the chocolate cream mixture. Stir into the cream mixture, and add vanilla.
- Let the mixture cool in the ice bath, and then chill in the refrigerator for a couple hours. Right before churning, add brandy if desired.
- Churn in an ice cream maker, then store in an airtight container in the freezer for several hours.