If you love Black Forest cake but don’t feel like baking, this Cherry Chocolate Blackforest Ice Cream is the easiest holiday treat. It starts with a simple cherry ice cream base and gets mixed with chocolate chunks for that classic cherry-chocolate combo. It’s creamy, bright, and festive without any extra effort. Perfect for December movie nights, holiday parties, or whenever you want something sweet and seasonal.
December is when I’m always playing with holiday flavors in my Creami - everything from Maple Ice Cream to Eggnog or Ube Eggnog, my go-to Chocolate Ice Cream, Spiced hot chocolate flavor and even a simple Chocolate Mint. So this Cherry Chocolate Blackforest version just felt right. It’s festive, chocolatey, and has that cozy holiday vibe without being too sweet or heavy.
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Why You'll Love This Flavor
- Classic Black Forest flavor in an easy Ninja Creami recipe
- Just a handful of ingredients
- Pretty cherry color without artificial dyes
- Chocolate chunks give the best texture and flavor
- Feels perfect for the holidays but great year-round
🛒Ingredients
This is just an overview—jump down to the full recipe card for exact amounts and detailed instructions!
For the Cherry Ice Cream Base
- Half and half – gives the ice cream a creamy, scoopable texture.
- Maraschino cherries – sweet, bright cherry flavor and that classic Black Forest vibe.
- Maraschino cherry juice – adds extra cherry flavor and natural pink color.
- Sugar – sweetens the base and helps with smoothness.
- Cottage cheese – adds creaminess without using heavy cream or condensed milk.
- Vanilla extract – rounds out the flavor and makes everything taste better.
Mix-ins
- Chocolate chunks – the “Black Forest” part; adds rich chocolate crunch in every bite.
How to Make Ninja Creami Blackforest Ice Cream
- Step 1.Blend the base. Add the half & half, cherries, cherry juice, sugar, cottage cheese, and vanilla to a blender. Blend until smooth and pink.
- Step 2. Freeze. Pour into a Ninja Creami pint and freeze for 24 hours. nstall the blade and run the Ice Cream function.
- Step 3. ReSpin. If crumbly, add 1–2 tablespoon half & half and hit Re-Spin.
- Step 4. Add chocolate. Create a hole down the center and add the chocolate chunks. Run Mix-In.
- Step 5. Scoop + enjoy!
🍒Fun Mix-Ins and Topping Ideas
- Warm brownies
- Chocolate loaf cake
- Chocolate crinkle cookies
- Whipped cream + extra cherries
If you want even more mix-in inspiration, check out my guide to the best Ninja Creami mix-ins.
Quick Tip
- Use some of the cherry juice for the best color
- Chop chocolate chunks small so they mix evenly
- If too icy, always re-spin with a splash of half & half
👪Serving Size
This recipe is made for the Ninja CREAMi Deluxe, yielding 4 servings per pint.
🌀Tools You’ll Need
- Blender: Makes mixing ingredients effortless.
- Ninja CREAMi Deluxe 11-in-1 Ice Cream & Frozen Treat Maker: The star of the show, perfect for creating creamy, smooth ice cream.
- Ninja Creami Pint Container: The pint container is essential for freezing and churning your ice cream mix.
🤔 Your Questions, Answered!
Chocolate chunks or chopped chocolate bars mix in the best. Chips can get too hard, so smaller chopped pieces give a smoother bite.
Cherry-based recipes sometimes freeze harder. Just add 1–2 tablespoons of half and half and run a re-spin. It’ll smooth right out.
Yes. You can swap in 2–3 tablespoons of cream cheese or Greek yogurt. Texture may be slightly different but still creamy.
Not necessarily! The chocolate chunks give plenty of chocolate flavor. Adding cocoa powder is optional if you want a richer chocolate base.
Yes, you can use frozen cherries—just thaw them first. Keep in mind they’re not as sweet or flavorful as maraschino cherries, so you may need to add a little extra sugar or some cherry juice to boost the flavor.
More Christmas Flavors
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Ninja Creami Cherry Chocolate Blackforest Ice Cream
Equipment
- 1 Ninja Creami Deluxe
- 1 Blender
- 1 ninja creami deluxe container pint
Ingredients
- 1 cup half and half
- ¾ cup maraschino cherries
- 2 tablespoon maraschino cherry juice
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ½ cup cottage cheese
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup chocolate chunks
Instructions
- Blend half & half, cherries, cherry juice, sugar, cottage cheese, and vanilla until smooth.
- Pour into a Ninja Creami pint, cover, and freeze for 24 hours.
- Run the Ice Cream cycle; re-spin with 1–2 tablespoon half & half if needed.
- Add chocolate chunks into the center well and run the Mix-In cycle.
- Scoop and enjoy, or re-spin later if frozen solid.
Notes
- Use ¾ cup cherries + a splash of the cherry juice for the best color and cherry flavor without making the base too sweet.
- If your pint comes out crumbly, add 1–2 tablespoons of half and half and run a re-spin.
- Chop the chocolate chunks smaller so they mix in evenly and don’t jam the blade.
- For a deeper Black Forest flavor, add 1 teaspoon of cocoa powder to the base before freezing.
- If freezing overnight again, expect the ice cream to firm up—just re-spin with a splash of liquid to bring it back to soft-serve texture.
- Want it extra festive? Top with whipped cream + an extra cherry before serving.
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