Graeter's French-pot ice cream is small-batch ice cream made in 2.5-gallon copper pots, hand-folded with chocolate chunks. The black raspberry chocolate chip is the canonical flavor.

Louis Charles Graeter opened a small ice cream shop on Court Street in Cincinnati in 1870. He adapted a French-pot process he had learned, freezing ice cream in 2.5-gallon spinning copper pots one batch at a time. His widow Regina took over after his death in 1919 and grew the business. The same family still runs Graeter's today, with the same French-pot process used across all 50-plus locations in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

Where to eat Graeter's French-pot ice cream in Cincinnati

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Make it at home

Serves 15 hrIntermediate

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (475ml) heavy cream
  • 1 cup (240ml) whole milk
  • 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • Pinch sea salt
  • 1/2 cup black raspberry preserves
  • 6 oz (170g) dark chocolate, chopped into uneven chunks (3/8 to 1/2 inch)

Method

  1. Whisk the egg yolks with half the sugar in a bowl until pale.
  2. Heat the cream, milk, remaining sugar and salt in a saucepan until just steaming. Whisk a ladleful into the yolks to temper, then stream the rest in slowly.
  3. Return to the pot and stir over low heat until the custard coats a spoon and reads 170F (77C). Do not boil.
  4. Strain through a sieve into a chilled bowl. Stir in the vanilla and the black raspberry preserves until streaked through.
  5. Chill thoroughly, at least 4 hours.
  6. Churn in an ice cream maker per the manufacturer's instructions until thick.
  7. In the final minute of churning, add the chocolate chunks. Transfer to a chilled container and freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.

Editor tip. Use uneven chocolate chunks, not chips. The Graeter's signature is hand-folded chocolate that breaks unevenly each spoonful.

Common allergens: Dairy.