For the Cherries:

Chop the cherries into small pieces (about 5-6 per cherry), place them in a small pan, and sprinkle them with sugar. If they are fresh cherries, set them aside for about 30 minutes to allow the sugar to make them juicy.

Add the kirsch if using. Cook the cherries over medium low heat for 10-15 minutes, or until the juices have thickened. Stir in the almond and vanilla extracts and set it aside to cool. Refrigerate in a covered container until ready to use.

Making the Custard:

Prepare by setting out a bowl with a fine mesh sieve on the top.

After separating the egg yolks and whites, place the yolks in a small bowl. Add a few tablespoons of the milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth. This prevents yolks from drying and thickening.

In a medium pot, combine the whipping cream and the remaining milk. Stir in the sugar and salt and heat the mixture over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the milk and cream are steaming and the sugar is dissolved. Take the pot off the burner.

Once the cream is hot, use a ladle to slowly pour some of it into the egg yolks. Whisk the entire time to slowly heat the yolks up. Continue stirring more hot cream into the eggs until they are warmed through. This step is called tempering, and helps prevent bits of cooked eggs in your ice cream.

Pour the cream and egg yolk mixture back into the pot with the milk and cream. Cook the custard over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk in a circular and figure 8 pattern.

As it cooks, the custard will thicken. Continue stirring until there are slow, thick bubbles on top. Once you see these, cook and stir for 1 more minute, then remove the custard from the heat.

Stir in the 1 tablespoon vanilla and 2 teaspoons almond extract. Pour the custard into the sieve with a bowl underneath to remove any escaped bits of cooked egg. Place a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the custard to prevent it from drying out and forming a skin.

Refrigerate the custard for 4-6 hours, or until it’s cooled through. It’s now ready to churn.

For the Chocolate:

In a small heat proof bowl, combine the chocolate and the coconut oil. Heat it over a pan of steaming water or in the microwave until melted, stirring every few seconds to keep the chocolate from scorching.

Set it aside to cool, but don’t let it harden again.

Churning and Freezing the Ice Cream

Set up your ice cream maker and pour the custard in. Allow it to churn until the ice cream is thick but not quite soft serve ice cream consistency.

Drizzle the chocolate into the ice cream, while stirring if possible. Once all of the chocolate is in, add the cherries, juice and all, and continue churning until they are completely mixed in.

Remove the ice cream from the machine and scoop it into containers. Cover it with an air-tight lid and place it in the freezer immediately.

It will take about 8 hours to harden, but I like to leave mine at least overnight to get it nice and hard.

Black forest ice cream can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 month in an air-tight container.