Dulce de Leche Ice Cream Sundaes

I generally don't go to all the trouble of adding things to my ice cream. I'm happy enough with a high quality plain chocolate ice cream, melted just a tad so that it's soft and slightly runny.

Last month we hosted a dinner party, and I wanted an ice cream dessert that was a little more involved. Dulce de leche ice cream sundaes seemed to be the perfect dessert to go with the chicken enchiladas. I happened to be more on the ball that usual and between my husband and I, we made our own dulce de leche and our own dulce de leche ice cream the day before the party. The chocolate sauce was extremely simple and turned out nice and rich, just like I like it. The toasted coconut smelled like heaven. Once it all came together, the combination of flavors and textures were exactly what I was looking for.

Start with making your own dulce de leche by boiling cans of sweetened condensed milk. Food Mayhem has great instructions and will alleviate any fears you may have about boiling unopened cans. I boiled two cans and had enough dulce de leche for the ice cream with plenty left over for extra drizzling.

You can buy dulce de leche ice cream (Haagen Daaz is my favorite, readily available brand), or if you have an ice cream freezer, it's not tough to make your own ice cream with this recipe from The Ravenous Couple.

The rest is simple, put it all together and you've got an impressive dessert!

Dulce de Leche Ice Cream Sundaes
Adapted from Martha Stewart

dulce de leche ice cream
dulce de leche
unsalted peanuts
1 cup sweetened coconut

1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (or 6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped)
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

For the toasted coconut:
Spread the coconut on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Stir the coconut every 3 minutes or so, until the coconut is golden brown.

For the chocolate sauce:
Place the chocolate, cinnamon and salt in a small, heatproof bowl.

Bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.

Pour the cream over the chocolate and let stand for about 3 minutes.

Whisk until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

The sauce will keep for a few days in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or over a double boiler.

Put it all together:
Scoop the dulce de leche ice cream into small dishes. Top with additional dulce de leche, chocolate cinnamon sauce, toasted coconut, and peanuts.

Click to print recipe