KitchenAid KPFD200 A Glossary Of Luscious Frozen Desserts, Ice Cream, Ice Milk, Frozen Yogurt

A GLOSSARY OF LUSCIOUS FROZEN DESSERTS

Ice Cream

At its simplest, everyone’s favorite dessert is a combination of cream, sugar, and pureed fruit or flavoring that’s whipped into a foam and frozen. According to FDA standards, real ice cream must contain at least 10% milk fat by weight. Gourmet ice creams are usually 14% to 18% milk fat and are produced with very low (20% to 30%) overruns.

There are two major varieties of ice cream: French (or custard) ice cream contains eggs, while Philadelphia ice cream (also called American, New York, or plain) does not. French ice creams can be somewhat richer and smoother than their Philadelphia counterparts, although the rich custard base tends to mute the intensity of flavors.

Did you ever wonder how ice cream, kept at 0º F in a freezer, is still soft enough to be scooped? The answer is simple, yet surprising: the sugar or sweeteners added to ice cream depress the freezing point of water, so at least 25% of the water in ice cream remains liquid at freezer temperatures. This helps explain why temperature stability is so important when storing ice cream: any increase in temperature, even if it’s far below 32º F, will cause some small ice crystals to melt. If the temperature then drops, the water will refreeze on existing crystals, making them larger. A few large “heat shocks,” or many smaller temperature fluctuations, will turn the finest ice cream into a gritty, icy mess.

Ice Milk

According to the FDA, ice milk is simply “ice cream” which contains less than 10% milk fat. On store shelves, you’ll find ice milk labeled as reduced fat, light, or low-fat ice cream. With it’s lower fat content, ice milk usually doesn’t have the smoothness of ice cream, but it can feature a lightness and intensity of flavor that’s difficult to duplicate.

Frozen Yogurt

Substitute yogurt for the cream in ice cream recipes, and you’ll have a creamy alternative to traditional ice cream that is about 2% milk fat.

Gelato

Known for its bright, intense flavors, gelato is a deliciously creamy dessert that’s a favorite in Italy. Usually made from whole milk, sugar, eggs, and flavoring, it’s produced with very low overruns (20% to 30%), yielding a dense, somewhat soft dessert that is only 5% to 6% milk fat. When you think of gelato, think of gourmet ice cream on a diet.

Water Ices

Water ices are non-dairy blends of water, sugar, and flavorings. Sorbet, granita, and slushes (frozen drinks) are water ices.

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