Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream

A recipe for Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream! This homemade ice cream is packed with macerated strawberries and swirls of chocolate hazelnut.

I have a handful of recipes on the blog using strawberries and chocolate. This one brings them together in ice cream form! This Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream layers a creamy vanilla base with sweet, macerated strawberries and a store-bought or homemade chocolate hazelnut spread.

There is some prep involved, but most of the time is hands-off while chilling in the refrigerator and freezer.

Start by forming the vanilla custard. Heat milk and cream with sugar and a pinch of salt until steaming, but not yet boiling. Slowly whisk the hot cream into the egg yolks to gently heat them, then pour the mixture back into the saucepan to continue to lightly cook until thickened.

After removing from heat, whisk in the vanilla, then refrigerate the custard until well chilled, 4 hours to overnight.

Once ready, churn the custard in your ice cream maker and add the macerated strawberries during the last few minutes.

Finish by layering the creamy mixture in a loaf pan with swirls of the chocolate hazelnut spread and freeze to the desired consistency before serving.

I often like to add an extra drizzle of chocolate hazelnut spread and chopped strawberries over the top.

Looking for something a little different? I also have a recipe for White Chocolate Strawberry Ice Cream.

A Few Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream Tips

After adding the eggs to thicken the cream, do not increase the heat to try to speed up the process. Stir constantly (especially the bottom and sides) and heat just until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Otherwise, you may end up with cooked, curdled cream.

If the mixture does curdle, I have been able to save ice cream by blending it until smooth in a stand blender or with an immersion blender as a last resort. The result won’t be perfect, but it helps enough to not waste all the ingredients.

I usually skip this step, but to help get a creamier texture and chill the mixture faster you can place the bowl of custard over an ice bath for a few minutes right after it is removed from the stove. Be careful not to get water into the custard. Stir occasionally if you want to speed up the process a bit.

Make sure the custard base is well-chilled before churning in the ice cream maker.

Place the loaf pan in the freezer before assembling the ice cream. This will keep it from melting so quickly while layering with the chocolate hazelnut spread.

This ice cream can be made with a store-bought chocolate hazelnut spread such as Nutella or even a homemade version- Crema Gianduia (Italian Chocolate Hazelnut Spread).

Add the chocolate hazelnut spread using either a spoon to drop in dollops or a piping bag to drizzle across the surface. Move quickly to swirl into the ice cream. It will harden as it chills.

Looking for more ice cream recipes?

Try my:

• Honey Peach Ice Cream
• Mastic Ice Cream
• Olive Oil Stracciatella Ice Cream

This recipe was originally posted in May 2013 and updated in June 2026.

Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream Recipe

Adapted from What’s Cookin, Chicago?

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Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream

A recipe for Strawberry Chocolate Hazelnut Ice Cream! This homemade ice cream is packed with macerated strawberries and swirls of chocolate hazelnut.

Course Dessert

Cuisine N/A

Keyword chocolate hazelnut, dessert, ice cream, nutella, strawberries, strawberry, summer

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Resting Time: 8 hours hours

Total Time 8 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4 Cups

Ingredients

Ice Cream Base:

• 2 cups (475 milliliters) whole milk
• 1 cup (240 milliliters) heavy cream
• 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (150 grams) chocolate hazelnut spread

Strawberries:

• 8 ounces (227 grams) fresh strawberries hulled and diced
• 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) freshly squeezed lemon juice

Instructions

• In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, cream, sugar, and salt over medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar.
• In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks.
• Once the milk mixture is steaming, but not yet at a boil, slowly pour about 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) into the eggs while constantly whisking.
• Once incorporated, slowly stream in and whisk another 1/2 cup (120 milliliters).
• Slowly pour the mixture back into the saucepan over medium-low heat while whisking. Cook while continuing to stir until just thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, 170-180˚F (77˚C-82˚C). Be careful not to overcook or it will curdle.
• Remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.
• Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl.
• Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, about 4 hours to overnight.

For the Strawberries:

• In a medium bowl, stir together the strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Set aside for 20-30 minutes, while the ice cream churns, then lightly mash.

To assemble:

• Place an 8.5 x 4.5 inch (22 x 10 centimeter) loaf pan in the freezer.
• Freeze the chilled custard in the ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Five minutes before the ice cream is finished churning, slowly add the diced strawberry mixture.
• Place 1/3 of the churned ice cream into the cold loaf pan.
• Drizzle 1/2 of the chocolate hazelnut spread over the ice cream and quickly use a toothpick or chopstick to swirl the mixture slightly.
• Cover with another 1/3 of the ice cream.
• Drizzle with the remaining chocolate hazelnut spread and quickly use a toothpick or chopstick to lightly swirl.
• Cover with the remaining ice cream and smooth the top gently with a spatula.
• Cover the loaf pan with freezer safe plastic wrap and freeze until the desired consistency is reached, about 4 hours, before serving.