How to Make Rocky Road Ice Cream

Rocky Road is an ice cream flavor, second only to vanilla in popularity in the United States. Though there are variations on the flavor, it is traditionally composed of chocolate ice cream, nuts and marshmallows. The flavor is claimed to have been created in 1929 by William Dreyer when he cut up almond and marshmallows with his wife’s sewing scissors and added them to his chocolate ice cream during the Great Depression. The company claims it was then so named “to give folks something to smile about in the midst of the Great Depression.”^[1]

Alternately, Fenton’s Creamery in Oakland, California, claims that William Dreyer based his recipe on a Rocky Road ice cream invented by his friend, Fenton’s George Farren, who blended his Rocky Road candy bar into ice cream; however Dreyer substituted pecans for almonds.^[2]

Ingredients

• ? cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• ? teaspoon salt
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 oz semisweet chocolate square
• 1 cup miniature marshmallows
• ½ cup chopped almonds or pecans

Procedure

1. In a large saucepan, mix cocoa powder and sugar.
2. Gradually stir in milk. Stir over low heat until sugar and cocoa dissolve.
3. Cool to room temperature.
4. Stir in vanilla, salt and whipping cream; set aside.
5. Shred chocolate with coarse side of grater.
6. Stir shredded chocolate, marshmallows and almonds or pecans into cocoa mixture.
7. Pour into ice cream canister.
8. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions.
9. Stir marshmallows evenly throughout frozen mixture before serving or ripening.

Makes about 2 quarts. ^[3]

Notes and references

1. “Dreyer’s History”. http://www.dreyersinc.com/about/WebHistory.pdf. Retrieved April 5 2006.
2. “Fenton’s Blender Club:Rocky Road Ice Cream”. http://www.fentonscreamery.com/blender.html. Retrieved April 5 2006.
3. “Rocky Road Ice Cream”. http://www.recipesource.com/desserts/ice-cream/00/rec0095.html. Retrieved April 5 2006.