Sweet, salty, scoop-able peanut perfection with TONS of chocolate cereal chunks and only 5 ingredients. No banana, coconut, or ice cream machine required!
My freezer did not get a single day off last week. It was ice cream every damn day – sometimes twice. Churned and no-churned. Banana and coconut and some none of the above batches too. For snacks and desserts and dinner once…or maybe more than once.
Because why have dessert after dinner when you can just have dessert for dinner?
Riddle me that!
If it’s homemade, healthy-ish, naturally-sweetened and mostly made of mostly healthy stuff I have zero qualms calling ice cream dinner. If it happens to be veggie-green too, then let’s just eat it for any and every meal already.
And I’m not the only one who qualifies ice cream as a healthy meal, my friend Arman agrees. Workout fuel in ice cream form anyone? Tried it, devoured it, went for a ten mile run afterwards HA! I don’t run. But I do highly recommend the date-sweetened version with extra sprinkles.
I’ll step down from my ice-cream-is-practically-a-health-food soap box now though so we can discuss all the nutty cluster-crunchy ice cream hodgepodge happening in these beautiful blue bowls. Because I know that is one long honking recipe name up there that you probably read in like 0.7 seconds before scrolling right on by to the photos, so I think it’s best we break it down to fully get the yummy picture.
The ice cream. When I set out on this ice cream-making mission I didn’t have a particular flavor in mind, I just knew that I wanted it to be both banana and coconut free. After running through approximately a bazillion ideas in my mind and giving the Ben & Jerry’s website a thorough scroll, I finally landed on peanut butter for a mix of color and texture and utter deliciousness reasons.
This ice cream is date-sweetened, but the dates really do more than just sweeten in this no-churn recipe. They are quite good at giant-rock-of-ice-cream prevention too since dates/date paste doesn’t freeze completely solid. So for creaminess and scoop-ability without an ice cream maker, they are an awesome ice cream addition. And the fact that they take care of the whole natural sugar thing too is pretty sweet.
Natural Delights is my go-to for Medjool dates, my fridge is just about as packed with them as my freezer is with half-eaten ice cream experiments. And the pitted ones make this ice cream blending process extra lightening quick and easy.
Without coconut cream, the recipe needed some other form of healthy plant fat to keep the texture rich and luscious. Hello peanut butter, thank you for answering the creamy ingredient call.
An unsweetened and oil-free natural peanut butter is always my top choice, but any kind will work. The less runny/soupy it is, the thicker and creamier your ice cream base will be. And you could certainly use other nut or seed butters as well, although it will throw off the Reese’s-inspired flavor profile of this recipe a bit.
The last ingredient in the ice cream base is non-dairy milk. I used cashew milk, the kind in a carton. Almond will work too, or really any kind of non-dairy milk you like and have on hand. Homemade would be awesome, but even I am too lazy for that 95% of the time.
The clusters. My personal favorite part, feel free to skip the rest of the recipe entirely. They are just a simple melted chocolate + cereal situation, but man is it 10 times more magical in your mouth than it sounds in writing. Crunch bars have always been one of my favorite chocolate candies though, so perhaps I am biased.
I used my favorite One Degree Organics brown rice cereal and melted semi-sweet mini chips which made for the perfect sweet snappy cereal clusters for snacking while the ice cream is freezing mixing into the peanut butter ice cream as a crunch-meets-creamy contrast.
To create the clusters, simply mix together the cereal and melted chocolate until evenly coated and then plop onto a pan and chill or freeze. Once they are firm enough to break apart without making your fingers too much of a melty-chocolate mess, you can crumble them into the peanut butter base and stir it all up so there are plenty of clusters in every single scoop.
Freeze overnight. Thaw for 10-15 minutes before scooping. Serve it up with extra clusters on top that you didn’t eat all of from the day before. And then I think you can take it from there.
So it’s basically a collaboration between Reese’s, a rice crispy treat, and ice cream. And honestly those three should work together more often because they make crazy-good team!
But before you start melting your chocolate and checking your PB supply levels, I need to tell you one more thing. And if you love ice cream and pretty things, then trust me you are going to want to hear it…
These BOWLS. The cute little caribbean blue ice cream bowls you see showing off all that cluster-filled peanut butter perfection are Le Creuset’s summer-snazzy ice cream bowls, and they are probably the cutest thing I’ve ever eaten peanut butter anything out of. Not to mention perfect for all other flavors of ice cream too.
A little roomy around the edges to catch any toppings that may topple down from the scoop peaks. Classy stemmed silhouette that allows for a) a handle that won’t make your hand chilly if you happen to be in transit while eating or b) ice cream an extra 4 inches closer to your face than it would be in a plain bowl. Either way it’s a win. And hey, I won’t even tell if you eat non-ice cream things out of them as well.
If you adore them as much as I do, then hop on over to Instagram ASAP and enter my giveaway to win a set for yourself in the color of your choosing. The giveaway is US only (apologies to my international friends!) and only open until Wednesday at midnight so get on it -> HERE
Peanut Butter Chocolate Crunch Cluster Ice Cream
- Yield: 4 people 1x
Description
Sweet, salty, scoop-able peanut perfection with TONS of chocolate cereal chunks and only 5 ingredients. No banana, coconut, or ice cream machine required!
Ingredients
Chocolate Crunch Clusters
- 2 cups crispy rice cereal
- 3/4 cup chocolate chips
Peanut Butter Ice Cream
- 2 cups non-dairy milk ((cashew used))
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1 cup Medjool dates, pitted ((about 12))
Instructions
- For the clusters, melt the chocolate chips and mix with the crispy rice cereal until evenly coated. Drop small spoonfuls on a pan lined with wax paper and refrigerate or freeze until firm.
- For the ice cream, blend all the ingredients until smooth and creamy.
- Pour half of the peanut butter base into a loaf pan. Sprinkle in a layer of the clusters.
- Top with the rest of the ice cream and more chunks. Stir to evenly distribute.
- Freeze overnight.
- Remove from the freezer 10-15 minutes before scooping and serving. Enjoy!
Or if banana ice cream is more your style, try this one >>> Peanut Butter Chunk Nice Cream
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HOW IS THIS REAL?! Honestly every time you make something I am blown away. Like literally every recipe you post I want to scream from the rooftops about how beautiful and perfect it is. Can we just move in together already?! I’m v jealous of your freezer at the moment 😉
Um yeah!!! To the roomies thing, I mean – that would be the most delicious and fun setup EVER. You are the best, thanks lovely <3
First of all, you are the queen of ice creams. And they can DEF be dinner, forever and ever, that’s fine by me. THOSE CLUSTERS THOUGH!! I can’t handle it. I’m totally a mix-in person when it comes to ice cream. I mean this peanut butter base looks insanely creamy and perfect, but the clusters look to die for as a sweet crunchy complement!! Seriously too excited to try this before summer is gone.
There were so many clusters in this one it was actually logistically difficult to scoop…and I am 100% okay with that! Bring on the scooping challenge for the sake of crunchy mix-ins in every single bite 🙂
Wow, how beautiful and luscious! I actually have a Cuisinart ice cream maker. Do you think it would be O.K. to churn it?
For sure! And then just stir in the chunks at the very end 🙂
This looks incredible! Do you think you could also use PB2 to make it lower fat?
Without coconut milk the peanut butter is the main thing that keeps it creamy, so it will be very icy without. You could try using the PB2, freezing it overnight, and then breaking it into chunks and re-blending the next day to get rid of the ice crystals and make it creamy again. That’s my best idea for a low fat option 🙂
This ice cream looks absolutely fabulous! Cant wait to try it!
Thanks Meriem! No such thing as too much ice cream in August, right? 🙂
Oh my gosh Natalie, this recipe is brilliant. I am so in love With your simplicity. xX
The simple sweet stuff is my favorite stuff! Thanks Annelina 🙂
Your ice cream recipe CANNOT BE BEAT lately!! OMG I just want ice cream season to last ALL year so I can try them all. I’ve been eating my fair share of store bought ice cream lately, but I REALLY need to get on the homemade bandwagon ASAP!!
I’ve been through quite a few so delicious pints lately too…too supplement the homemade as if there hasn’t been enough lol. Thanks Kaila!
I just adore these cute little caribbean blue ice cream bowls!!!
Thanks for the giveaway!
Me too, I just cannot resist turquoise dishes 🙂 Thank you Rebecca, and good luck!
Florida hugs!
ice cream diet going STRONG hahaha – I miss peanut butter sometimes 🙁
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Oh you know it haha! And you’ve just given me reason to make even more😊
girlfriend – these look amazing! I want these bowls, but I REALLY want them to come filled with the ice cream already. is that possible?!
you amaze me every time!!!
I can’t wait to try this!
If that was possible I would order like 1000 in every flavor…I mean color😏 Haha! Thank you Haley💜
Mmm! Just reading the name had me drooling! Looks so delicious lovely 🙂
Haha it is a long but mouthwatering one😊 Thanks for popping over here to see it!
I saw it and tried it…BUT…I hate hate hate these damn cup measurings. Obviously 2 cups arent 2 cups, because it was much to fluid, not creamy…every time its these measurings…I will see next day, how it work.
The shifting didnt work…all was very mixed up.
Sorry for the confusion, the cup measuring system is what I use and am used to. By 2 cups I mean 16 fluid ounces or half a quart if that helps. A little variation shouldn’t hurt it though, hope it turns out okay!
This seriously has to be one the yummiest ice cream ideas I’ve ever seen! The crunchy clusters would seriously be so addicting I imagine! Loved the video of it. I love, love peanut butter ice cream too. I definitely need to try this one…I think I’ll add my usual vanilla and salt since I love to add those to all my ice creams!
You are an ice cream rockstar lately, I just can’t keep up with all of your creations, lol! I’m in love with those bowls too, they are just the cutest and I know how much you love blue! I would love some of these bowls in red, that’s my favorite color! Another awesome recipe my friend!
I don’t even know how it has taken me this many months of summer to get around to the classic of pb + chocolate, but thank goodness I finally did! Yes and yes to the salt + vanilla. My PB was salted, but I never object to a little extra sprinkle with sweet stuff like this. I’ve actually been making a salted chocolate ice cream on repeat just for snacking lately and it somehow keeps getting saltier with every batch haha 😀 I do have a thing for blue, but the red ones of these are gorgeous too!
made this for some friends last night it was so tasty, i hadn’t managed to find a vegan no-churn recipe that is creamy and doesn’t crystallise until this one. thanks 🙂
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Yay!! I am so happy to hear it was a success Harriet 🙂 Yes it’s a tricky scoopable but not an iceberg line to walk with no-churn ice cream, the peanut butter really does wonders for the texture here without coconut milk. Thanks for the feedback!
This looks great, thanks for sharing! I make nice cream all the time, but often have issues with crystalizing. Do you cover the loaf pan with something before placing it in the freezer? I usually use a container that comes with a lid, and even with the lid, crystalizing occurs. Any suggestions? Thank you!
I personally do not cover it with anything, but that is probably a good idea just to keep other things in the freezer from tainting the flavor. A piece of plastic wrap pressed on top of the ice cream would be my best suggestion. I don’t think a lid or lack of will affect crystallization though, that has more to do with the ingredients and fat content. Hope that helps!
This is the best ice cream I have ever tasted! So decadent and creamy but yet so healthy! I skipped the dates and added vanilla extract and it turned out perfectly. I loved it and I love all your creative and delicious recipes! Keep up the wonderful work!
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YAY!! I am so so happy to hear it–such a decadent flavor combo, right!? Good to know it worked even without the dates too. Thanks for the feedback and support Andreea, really appreciate it 🙂
Following the success of your no churn pistachio ice cream, I’m giving this a try! You have become my favourite food blog. You’ve got real talent! Keep it up girl! Greetings from the island of Malta 🙂
Oooh yay, I think you will love this one too it’s super luscious with all that PB goodness going on😋 Thank you for the kind words and support Christina!
I made a peanut free version for an allergic guest, using another almond and cashew butter instead and it tastes like caramel ice cream. So rich and flavorful, but so easy to do – just as a summer recipe should be. I used 85 % cacao bar for the clusters, because I don’t like it too sweet…I am almost afraid to make it again since I just can’t resist it 😉
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Omg that sounds AMAZING!! I gotta try that nut butter combo now and I adore extra dark chocolate, so everything about this bowl of ice cream sounds just perfect. Thanks for sharing…and making me crave ice cream before lunch ha!
Really really delicious 😋 I had friends over last night and I made it as a dessert… It is so refreshing and creamy. I used mandel instead of the rice cereal, and I added some chocolate chips inside. I love it 🙂 🙂
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Oh that sounds amazing, I am so happy it was a success! I haven’t made this one in a while, now you have me craving some too😋😋 Thanks for the feedback Neila!