Homemade hazelnut ice cream sweetened with rich dark maple syrup. This rich and creamy dessert is enhanced by the natural sweetness of roasted hazelnuts.

two scoops of maple hazelnut ice cream in a waffle cone.

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Inspiration can come from anywhere: a stroll in the park, books and magazines, and even maple hazelnut scented candles. Yes, it’s true. This ice cream was inspired by the candle in our guest bathroom!

After smelling the sweet, alluring scent of maple hazelnut for the last couple of weeks, I decided to make it into something that I could actually eat.

The pairing of maple and hazelnut creates such a warming, rich flavor combination. They go together like peanut butter and jelly! It’s only natural to turn this duo into cakes, cookies, or ice cream!

Hazelnut Ice Cream

Maple hazelnut ice cream is the perfect treat for these warm autumn days still looming around Los Angeles. Growing up, I only favored three ice cream flavors: vanilla, mint chocolate chip, and butter pecan. This maple hazelnut ice cream is quite similar in flavor and texture to butter pecan.

I hardly categorize ice cream as a summertime dessert. I crave it all year long. As the holidays near, I’ll be making more festive ice creams… think hot cocoa ice cream, gingerbread ice cream, and my favorite- peppermint ice cream!

Ingredients

Heavy cream is also labeled as heavy whipping cream. It contains a minimum fat content of 36% and doubles in volume when whipped.

“Light whipping cream” has a range of 30-36% fat content, however, it is often mixed with emulsifiers and stabilizers. Stick with heavy cream.

Milk: I prefer to use reduced fat (2%) milk. You may use whole milk (5% fat), if desired.

However, stay way from non-fat or skim milk. That will result in an icy textured ice cream.

Maple Syrup: For best results, use dark maple syrup. Dark maple syrup is known for its richer, more intense flavor compared to lighter hued maple syrup.

Be sure to use high quality PURE maple syrup. The kind of maple syrup has ONE ingredient.
Stay away from imitation maple syrup or “pancake syrup.”
With maple syrups, the dark the color signifies the stronger the flavor. In the past, maple syrup was graded from Grade AA to Grade C to indicate color and flavor.

Hazelnuts are also known as filberts. For this recipe, it is best to use skinned hazelnuts. Don’t fret if you have trouble removing the skins. It’s okay to leave them on.

The skin is slightly bitter. Skin can be removed by lightly toasting the nuts, then rub the skins off with a towel.
Hazelnuts are high in oil content which causes them to turn rancid quickly!
Equally delicious nut substitutes include: almonds, pecans, or walnuts.

Recommended Ice Cream Machines

There two three main types of ice cream machines: electric maker, freezer canisters, and brine bucket machines.

I personally use this compressor ice cream maker (an electric maker type, photographed in use above). It is a bit more expensive than other ice cream machines. However, well worth the price if you make homemade ice cream and sorbets often.

Freezer canisters are the most commonly used for home use. This type of machine requires you to freeze the separate churning canister ahead of time before use. (I had this freezer canister ice cream maker prior to upgrading to the compressor.

Brine bucket machines use the traditional old-school method of salt and ice to freeze to the ice cream base.

The compression machine doesn’t need any extra prep. Simply pour the chilled ice cream mixture into the machine. Within 35 minutes, you’ll have real deal churned ice cream!

Storage

Keep fresh churned ice cream in a freezer safe container. Ideally, the container should have a lid or cover. Otherwise, tightly cover container with plastic wrap. It’s a good to press the plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the ice cream to prevent freezer burns and ward off any unwanted flavors from seeping in.

Store ice cream in the coldest part of the freezer, usually the very back of the freezer.Maple hazelnut ice cream will stay fresh for up to a week. You may keep it longer, but overtime, the ice cream will develop freezer burn and lose its flavor.

What to do with all that ice cream? Try the boozy root beer float recipe featured below!

Use this ice cream to make:

Boozy Root Beer Float

This boozy ice cream float features maple ice cream, whiskey, and root beer! It’s an updated adult version of a classic childhood favorite.

RECIPE HERE

Maple Hazelnut Ice Cream flavored with dark maple syrup and loaded with toasted hazelnuts

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