The Best Cookies and Cream Ice Cream recipe out there! A decadent and rich vanilla based ice cream filled with chocolate cookies and cream sandwiches sprinkled throughout.
What can I tell you about homemade cookies and cream ice cream that you don’t already know? Probably not much. I guess I can just share with you how revelatory homemade ice cream truly is.
When I first tasted homemade ice cream, I wondered where it had been all my life. Of course, it was my big mama’s ice cream that first hooked me. I remember it so vividly. It was a summer in the 80s when my family came to visit my grandparents in Mississippi. Summers in Mississippi are beyond hot. Sweltering is probably a better word to describe it. Those days I remember a lot of fans around the house blasting at full speed and several glasses of ice cold sweet tea to keep you remotely comfortable.
Well on the very hottest day of our visit when sweat beads were literally a permanent fixture on my forehead, big mama pulled out an old salt rock ice cream maker and filled it with ice. She made a beautifully silky custard over the stove top, sweetened it to taste, allowed it to cool, poured it into the maker, and cranked it until a lovely soft serve texture of ice cream began to develop. She froze it while she made dinner but honestly all any of us could think about was that ice cream.
It was utter perfection; creamy and delightful in every possible way. That’s when I knew it was my destiny to never settle for generic ice cream in life. As soon as I moved into my very first apartment as an adult, I bought an ice cream maker. I deemed it as necessary as having bath towels and groceries. It was essential. Ever since, I have been making ice cream. This homemade cookies and cream version is just another trick pulled from my frozen dessert hat. Hope you enjoy!
- 3 whole large eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups half and half
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- ½-1½ cups (based on preference) Cookies and Cream Sandwich Cookies, crushed
- Beat eggs and egg yolks in a medium sized bowl. Next add sugar to the bowl and whisk together.
- Add heavy cream and half and half to a large pot and heat to boiling level. Remove from heat.
- Slowly add three tablespoons of the hot milk mixture to the egg mixture to temper it and whisk together to combine. Then slowly add in the rest of the milk mixture and continue whisk the entire time to make sure it doesn't scramble.
- Stir in vanilla extract.
- Place the mixture in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours to chill completely.
- Add your mixture to an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.
- Once almost finished, pour crushed cookies and allow to mix in during last 2-3 minutes of churning.
- Store in freezer while not serving.
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girl, you are on an ice cream roll!!!! cookies and cream is the Choi family’s all time FAVE!!! I love this!!!! gorgeous!!!
Yes I am seriously so in love with ice cream right now. From cakes to ice cream haha.
Oh sweet heavens above, this looks like all my dreams come true! I love cookies and cream and can see why you never looked back after eating homemade ice cream 🙂
I know right? I could never look back!
We received an ice cream maker for a wedding gift 14 years ago and I think it was the BEST gift we received! It really is JUST as important as towels! I love homemade ice cream. I haven’t tried cookies and cream, but now I have to try your recipe. Perfect for those sweltering hot days.
Agreed, it totally ranks up there with towels. Ice cream is so perfect all the time. I can’t wait to see how much ice cream you make!
I want allllll the ice cream! Homemade cookies and cream ice cream is the best!
Gosh it is completely the best right?
With a recipe like this, I can’t see how anyone would settle for generic store-bought ice cream!!!
Hooray go homemade or go home!
I have a major cookies and cream ice cream craving right now! I sooo need this!
This ice cream is necessary!!!!
Seriously loving this right now, looks amazing!
Thanks so much Matt!
Oh, homemade ice cream. Insert happy groan here! This looks soooo good. I seriously just want ice cream from this time of year through late August, and yours is fantastic. Gotta try this!
By the way, I tried homemade cinnamon crumb churned ice cream last week. You should try that. You’d knock it out of the park!
That ice cream sounds impressive. I seriously need to try that!
Lovely photos! Cookies and cream ice cream was my favorite for such a long time and it still makes me nostalgic 🙂 Yum!
Thanks Medha! It feels so personal to me. Reminds me of childhood.
Mmm I remember the first time I had home made ice cream also! I wondered the same thing, where has it been all my life?! So much better than store bought!
Every time I taste homemade ice cream, I ask where has it been all my life haha.
What a precious memory! And I love that you’re continuing the legacy. This ice cream sounds divine!
Thank you so much dear!
Homemade ice cream is the best! Love this!
Thanks so much Jessica!!
Man I am loving this ice cream roll girl!! Cookies and cream is always a classic 🙂 Love these!!
Gosh I hope I can stop my ice cream kick soon but it is a bit too addictive right now haha!
There is just nothing like homemade ice cream, but there is NOTHING like homemade cookies and cream ice cream. Love this recipe, lady!
Seriously you are so right! There is nothing like homemade ice cream.
gorgeous pictures! this is one of my favorite ice cream flavors, looks so good!
This is one of my absolute faves too!
There is just nothing like real deal homemade ice cream! Cookies and cream is my favorite 🙂 Pinning for sure!
Hooray it is totally a fave of mine too!
Gah! I want!!!
Oh yeah!
You could shut down Hagan Daz and Ben & Jerry’s! 😉
Oh yeah I totally could!!!! That should be my next goal!
There’s nothing quite like homemade ice cream. This cookies and cream ice cream is just perfection… I need to get my ice cream making game on!:-)
You totally need to get your game on!!
This is my first time to your site and I love it! I think I found my new “spot” for all things sweet (and believe me, I have quite the sweet tooth)! I’m in such an ice cream mood, and this one will be next on my list to make! Great recipe!
Wow thank you so much Heather! So grateful you stopped by!!!
How do you know exactly what I’m craving? Now I just need to head to the store to buy the ingredients and make this amazing looking ice cream (cookies and cream is just a favorite of everyone’s, right?)
I’ll always have a soft spot for cookies n cream ice cream, we ate so much of it on our honeymoon years ago. I love that you made your own, I can’t wait to whip up a batch
My hubby would totally kick my butt if he saw this post. We bought the kitchen-aid ice cream mixer about 6 months ago and I have yet to make homemade ice cream. This cookies and cream looks amazing!! Cookies and Cream is my absolutely favorite all time ice cream. So pinning this and making asap! 🙂
This sure does scream utter perfection!!
You’re so right — there is nothing like homemade ice cream, and your big mama’s ice cream sounds amazing! I broke down and bought an ice cream maker over a year ago and it’s one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. You better believe this cookies ‘n cream version is happening soon!
You completely took me back to my childhood, Jocelyn! My PaPaw used to make vanilla ice cream in an old rock salt hand crank churner… the Texas sun melted us kids while we waited impatiently for the deliciousness to cool us off! Love this recipe! Thank you for taking me back!
I will definitely be using the 1 1/2 cups cookie pieces “based of preference”! Hahaha! Looks absolutely delicious. My favorite ice cream out there!
man…I wish I had your grandma! This ice cream is so gorgeous-silky and full of tasty Oreo goodness!
The BEST ice cream that has come out of my ice cream maker. Ever. THANK YOU!
Hooray!!! So glad you enjoyed it!
I hate to tell you this; it’s not the best C & C recipe. It’s the best ice cream recipe, EVER. I’m an ice cream snob. If the vanilla base is not outstanding on it’s own, the rest is a waste of time. Thanks for ending my search for the BEST VANILLA (and C & Cream – some family members’ favorite). I also made it with a puree of fresh strawberries, swirled in when ice cream maker was almost done. Sigh.
Hooray!!!! I am so so glad you enjoyed it. It is seriously my fave ice cream indeed.
Hello! So I just tried this recipe, and it tastes delicious, but for some reason when I put it in my ice cream maker it wouldn’t freeze up. I put in my ice cream maker bowl thing a few days ago so it was definitely solid. Any ideas on why this may have happened? It seemed like it was getting close but then turned back into a liquid
Hi Amanda, it sounds like an ice cream maker issue for sure. How old is the maker? Sometimes the bowl doesn’t freeze up all the way and if after 30 minutes, it hasn’t started to become ice cream, it might not be cold enough or it could be an issue with the bowl unfortunately. You could also just mix it by hand every 30 minutes in the freezer if you have the maker issues.
Love the blueberry pancakes and can’t wait to fix them for hubs.
I so enjoy your blog and almost always want to fix something you feature.
Thanks a million!
Marilyn/Missouri