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I absolutely love rocky road ice cream! But, the chocolate ice cream has to be super chocolatey! I made the perfect, super chocolatey, rocky road protein ice cream using my Ninja Creami ice cream maker. It’s soooo good!
This recipe comes in at 345 calories, 29 grams of protein, 18 grams of sugar, 12 fat, 59 carbs, 35 net carbs (total carbs-allulose) for the ENTIRE pint. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts.
Adding protein to Ninja Creami ice cream isn’t hard. You can use protein powder (in this case, I used unflavored Whey protein powder) or protein shakes. The trickiest part is knowing what to add to the extra protein. Some like just frozen protein shakes, but I definitely think they need extra ingredients to make the protein shakes and powders taste like ice cream and not like protein.
The key to making the best Ninja Creami rocky road protein ice cream is adding the right amount of cocoa powder. I use dark cocoa powder because it gives a deeper, richer chocolate flavor than regular unsweetened cocoa powder. And, I add just enough cocoa powder to make the chocolate super rich, but not so much that it’s overwhelming.
Most protein powder contains some sort of gum, which means you don’t need to add much more for the recipe to come out super thick and creamy. If you opt to use a different brand (I used GNC Whey unflavored protein powder), be sure to check the label to make sure that the ingredients are similar. If your protein powder does not contain a gum like xanthan gum, guar gum, or cellulose gum, you will likely need to increase the amount of guar gum that is included in this recipe. Since my protein powder already has gums added, I only needed ⅛ teaspoon of guar gum. Increase to ¼ teaspoon if your protein powder does not include gums.
Tips for making Ninja Creami Rocky Road Protein Ice Cream:
They do get a little hard, but not as hard as I was expecting. And, oddly enough, they start to get a little softer the longer they are in the ice cream. If you’re hesitant to use marshmallows, you can add them as toppings instead of as mix-ins. Note- you can use marshmallow fluff instead. Be sure to dig a well down the center of the ice cream, add the fluff, and then cover with more ice cream. If you don’t cover the marshmallow, it will freeze and stick to the lid.
Too much guar gum was probably used. A little goes a VERY long way. You only need ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon of guar gum per 16 ounce container. Using too much will create a gooey and almost stringy texture. Be sure to measure accurately because just a little too much can make a big difference.
No, not at all. If you could taste it or if it gave the ice cream a weird texture, I would not be posting the recipe for others to try. I don’t like protein powder’s taste or texture, and I won’t post a recipe that I don’t like.
Yes, you can skip the protein powder if you want rocky road ice cream with no added protein. Since the protein powder used is unflavored, the adjustments are pretty easy. If you skip the protein powder, you will need additional guar gum (there’s gum already in the protein powder). So, change the amount of guar gum from ⅛ teaspoon to ¼ teaspoon.
You can try it and it should work. However, you will likely need to reduce the amount of cocoa powder that the recipe calls for. I would start by adding ½ tablespoon of cocoa powder, blend, and taste. If it’s not chocolatey enough, add another ½ tablespoon of cocoa powder until it’s the right flavor for you.
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Ingredient substitutions for Ninja Creami Rocky Road Protein Ice Cream:
The full ingredient list is at the bottom of this post in the recipe card.
Unsweetened Almond Milk- To keep this recipe fairly low in calories, I used unsweetened almond milk. But, you can substitute that with nut milks, whole milk, coconut milk, a mixture of heavy cream and lower fat milk, or your favorite dairy-free milk. The higher the fat content in the milk, the more likely you will end up with a creamy texture.
Whey Protein Powder- I used unflavored whey protein powder. If you want to use a different brand, you can. If you choose to use chocolate protein powder, you’ll need to reduce the amount of cocoa powder used in the recipe.
Dark Cocoa Powder- I prefer dark cocoa powder because it has a deeper, richer, chocolate flavor. If you don’t have dark cocoa powder, you can use regular, unsweetened instead. Do not use sweetened cocoa.
Swerve Sugar Substitute- Allulose Blend- Allulose tastes the most like sugar to me and does not have a fake sugar flavor. If you prefer, you can use real sugar, or another sugar substitute like stevia, monk fruit sweetener, Splenda, or even honey, agave, or maple syrup. Just be sure to add a little at a time and taste the mixture before freezing.
Guar Gum- If you don’t have guar gum, you can use xanthan gum instead.
Mini Marshmallows-If you don’t have mini marshmallows, you can cut larger ones into small pieces or you can use marshmallow fluff. You can use sugar-free marshmallows or vegan mini marshmallows.
Sliced Almonds-Traditionally, rocky road ice cream has almonds. But, if you don’t have almonds or just don’t like them, you can use peanuts, walnuts, or pecans instead. Don’t like nuts? Try adding mini chocolate chips as a mix-in instead.
Directions for making Ninja Creami Rocky Road High Protein Ice Cream:
Directions for Making the Ice Cream Mixture
- Pour the unsweetened almond milk, protein powder, cocoa powder, sugar substitute, and gaur gum into a small blender and blend until all ingredients are fully combined. Pour the mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container.
- Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit. To avoid getting a bump on the top of the frozen mixture, freeze with the lid off of the container.
Directions for Processing the Ice Cream Mixture
- After 24 hours, remove the pint container from the freezer.
- Place the pint container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on “LITE ICE CREAM.”
- If the ice cream is dry or crumbly looking (like sand), pour in a tablespoon or two of unsweetened almond milk and then re-spin. If the ice cream looks like little balls of ice cream, respin without adding liquid. You may have to repeat this process a couple of times.
- Dig a well down the center of the ice cream and pour in the marshmallows and almonds. Process on mix-ins.
- Remove the pint from the machine and enjoy!
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Recipe
Ninja Creami Rocky Road Protein Ice Cream
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Equipment
Add Food Grade Vegetable Glycerin To Make Leftover Ice Cream Scoopable Right Out of the Freezer
Per 16 ounce pint: *Add 1 Teaspoon to full fat/full sugar bases *Add 1.5 teaspoon to high protein bases *Add 2 teaspoons to low sugar/low fat lite bases. Freeze and process per the recipe. Take the leftovers out of the freezer and scoop without having to reprocess. ***This is a guideline and adjustments may be needed based on your recipe.
Original, Breeze, Swirl, and Deluxe Ingredient Measurements
Use the multiplier below to adjust quantities based on the machine that you own. ***If you have the Original, Breeze, or Swirl machine, which use 16 ounce containers, choose the 1X option. ***If you have the Deluxe or XL machine, which use 24 ounce containers, choose the 1.5X option.
Ingredients
Ice Cream Base
- 10 Fluid Ounces (295 ¾ ml) Unsweetened Almond Milk
- 1 Scoop (1 Scoop) Unflavored Whey Protein Powder
- 1½ Tablespoons (1 ½ Tablespoons) Dark Cocoa Powder
- 2 Tablespoons (2 Tablespoons) Swerve Sugar Substitute (Granulated-Allulose Blend)
- ⅛ Teaspoon (⅛ Teaspoon) Guar Gum
Mix-ins
- 2 Tablespoons (2 Tablespoons) Mini Marshmallows (Cut in half)
- 1 Tablespoon (1 Tablespoon) Almonds (Sliced)
Optional
- 1-2 Tablespoons (1 Tablespoons) Unsweetened Almond Milk
Instructions
Make the Ice Cream Mixture
- Pour the unsweetened almond milk, protein powder, cocoa powder, sugar substitute, and gaur gum into a small blender and blend until all ingredients are fully combined. Pour the mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container.
- Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit. To avoid getting a bump on the top of the frozen mixture, freeze with the lid off of the container.
Process the Ice Cream
- After 24 hours, remove the pint container from the freezer.
- Place the pint container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on "LITE ICE CREAM."
- If the ice cream is dry or crumbly looking (like sand), pour in a tablespoon or two of unsweetened almond milk and then re-spin. If the ice cream looks like little balls of ice cream, respin without adding liquid. You may have to repeat this process a couple of times.
- Dig a well down the center of the ice cream and pour in the marshmallows and almonds. Process on mix-ins.
- Remove the pint from the machine and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. Optional ingredients are not included in the nutrition information.
Recipes that use allulose:
Allulose is a low calorie sweetener that your body doesn't fully digest, so it provides only 0.4 calories per gram instead of 4. That's why the calorie total doesn't match what you'd expect from the carb count. Calories from allulose are calculated based on metabolized carbohydrates. Allulose contributes fewer calories than standard carbohydrates.
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Teresa Claus says
Did not expect it to be that good. Thank you for a great recipe.