Easy Amaretto Ice Cream Recipe
Homemade Amaretto Ice Cream is a delicious flavor for you to make at home, with a rich, dreamy Amaretto ice cream base swirled with chocolate chunks and sweet cherries.
A little bit of Amaretto liqueur goes a long way when it comes to dessert recipes. Amaretto is almond flavored, with a sweetness and slight bitterness that makes it perfect for cocktails and things like cookies, cakes, and ice cream!
Like many of our ice cream recipes, Amaretto comes from Italy, and has been enjoyed there since 1851. It was only in the 1960s that Amaretto started to be imported to the United States, and mixed into famous cocktails of the era, such as Amaretto sours and Italian margaritas.
In this ice cream recipe, Amaretto adds almond flavor, and also a certain richness and sophistication.
The small amount of alcohol in this recipe also makes the ice cream extra creamy, as alcohol keeps the ice cream from freezing completely solid.
For more Italian-inspired ice cream desserts, check out our Stracciatella Gelato and easy Spumoni recipes!
Why You’re Going to Love This Amaretto Ice Cream Recipe
- Incredible Taste. The flavors of almond liqueur, cherry, and chocolate go so well together.
- It’s Easy to Make. This type of ice cream recipe is called “Philadelphia style”. It’s made by mixing together milk, cream, sugar, and flavorings together and then churning the mixture in an ice cream maker. There’s no need to cook the base or fuss with eggs and custard. Just mix and churn!
- Step by Step Instructions. Even if you’ve never made homemade ice cream before, you’ll be a pro after following this easy recipe. You’ll find instructions for making no-churn amaretto ice cream below as well, so you can even make this recipe if you don’t have an ice cream maker.
Ingredients in Homemade Amaretto Ice Cream
- Heavy Cream -For lusciously rich and creamy ice cream, heavy cream is the obvious choice.
- Whole Milk – But we’ll also use whole milk because the blend of both is what makes the texture of this recipe perfect.
- Granulated Sugar – Sugar adds sweetness, of course, but the granules also play a role in creating super smooth ice cream.
- Amaretto – Use a good quality amaretto to make your ice cream. DiSaronno is always a great choice.
- Kosher Salt – A little bit of salt helps to balance the sweetness of the other ingredients.
- Semi-sweet Chocolate – Chop up a bar of semisweet chocolate to mix into homemade amaretto ice cream, or use a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chunks.
- Cherries – You can use fresh cherries or frozen ones! If they’re frozen, let them thaw and slice them in half, then drain away any excess juice. Fresh cherries need to be pitted and then sliced.
For the complete list of ingredients and instructions, please see the recipe below.
How to Store Homemade Amaretto Ice Cream
Store this homemade Cherry Amaretto Ice Cream in the freezer in an airtight container with a piece of parchment paper or wax paper pressed on top for up to one month.
Tips for Making This Cherry Amaretto Ice Cream Recipe
- For the chocolate chunks, I like to chop a semi-sweet chocolate bar into pieces. You get variation in size for the chocolate in every bite that way. You can also use store-bought chocolate chunks or chocolate chips.
- To make amaretto ice cream without alcohol, use 1 teaspoon of almond extract instead. And if you can’t find amaretto, feel free to replace it with rum, and include the almond extract for a similar flavor.
- It’s very important that your ice cream bowl is frozen, and that the mixture is really cold before going into the ice cream machine to churn. If you find that the ice cream base is not cold enough, let it chill in the refrigerator or freezer for at least 30 minutes before churning. If it’s not cold enough, it will not get thick.
Is There Alcohol in Amaretto Ice Cream?
Yes, this recipe does include alcohol as an ingredient. Per serving, there is approximately 1/2 ounce of amaretto liqueur. While not generally enough to intoxicate someone, you may want to be mindful of this fact. If you’d like to make this recipe alcohol-free, replace the amaretto with almond beverage syrup, or up to 1 teaspoon of almond extract.
No Churn Amaretto Ice Cream Directions
Chill a shallow container or a loaf pan in the freezer while you mix the ice cream ingredients to create the Amaretto ice cream base.
Pour the ice cream mixture into the cold pan and freeze for 3-4 hours. Stir the ice cream every 30 minutes for the first 2 hours to help add air. This will help create a creamy, smooth texture.
After the first 2 hours, fold in the cherries and chocolate chunks. This way they won’t all sink to the bottom.
Amaretto Ice Cream Add-Ins
I think this recipe would be delicious with some chopped or slivered almonds mixed in! The amaretto gives the ice cream a lovely almond flavor, but nuts would add some crunch.
You can also add anything else you think might taste good! Making homemade ice cream is so much fun because you can experiment and make new flavors.
Need more chocolate in your ice cream? Try pieces of homemade brownies, chopped Snickers bars, or a drizzle of fudge sauce in this ice cream recipe.
You can also leave out the cherries, or replace them with strawberries or raspberries. A swirl of raspberry compote would be amazing!
What Other Liqueur is Similar to Amaretto?
You can try making this recipe with other types of liqueurs! Hazelnut liqueur (such as Frangelico) has a similar sweet and nutty flavor.
You might also like to use cherry liqueur and a small amount of almond extract in this Amaretto cherry ice cream recipe.
More Easy Homemade Ice Cream Recipes:
- Cherry Gelato
- Cookie Butter Ice Cream
- Bananas Foster Ice Cream
- Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream
- Mississippi Mud Ice Cream
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Amaretto Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 oz. Amaretto
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks chopped
- 1 cup cherries pitted stem removed, cut in half (frozen or fresh)
Instructions
- Chill the ice cream bowl for at least 24 hours or until solid. You should not hear any water sloshing around when you shake the bowl.
- In a large bowl, combine the heavy cream, whole milk, granulated sugar, Amaretto and kosher salt.
- Whisk for 2-3 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved into the mixture. You should not feel any grit if you rub the mixture together between two fingers.
- Churn the ice cream mixture in the bowl of your ice cream machine according to your manufacturer’s instructions (mine took about 25 minutes), until it is thick and the consistency of soft-serve ice cream.
- In the last two minutes of the churn, add the chocolate chunks and cherries and churn just until mixed.
- Spoon the ice cream into a shallow container or a loaf pan.
- Press plastic wrap or wax paper to the surface of the ice cream. Freeze for at least 4 hours, or until solid.
- Let sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- You can use rum or even hazelnut liqueur in place of the Amaretto. If you use rum, add 1 tsp of almond extract to get a similar flavor. You can also just use 1 tsp of almond extract for a non-alcoholic version.
- For the chocolate chunks, I like to chop a semi-sweet chocolate bar into pieces. You get variation in size for the chocolate in every bite that way. You can also use store bought chocolate chunks or chocolate chips.
- You can use fresh cherries, frozen cherries, or even canned cherries in this recipe. If you're using frozen fruit, thaw it first and drain away any excess liquid.
- It’s very important that your ice cream bowl is frozen, and that the mixture is really cold before going into the ice cream machine to churn. If you find that it is not cold enough, let it chill in the refrigerator or freezer for at least 30 minutes before churning. If it’s not cold enough, it will not get thick.
