Choosing ice cream: Totally subjective, of course

According to editors of Cook's Illustrated magazine, federal regulation allows companies to define an ice cream as light if it contains half the fat and two-thirds the calories (or less) of the brand's standard ice cream. Therefore, the term "light" is relative to how easy on the fat and calories a brand is in the first place. All-natural, organic and frozen yogurt are all terms consumers often equate to a healthier product, which typically isn't accurate.

Natural ice cream and organic ice cream are similar; both use all-natural ingredients (i.e., no artificial flavors or coloring). Organic ice cream, however, uses only ingredients derived from organic farms. According to Organic.org, an organic farm uses no fertilizer containing synthetic ingredients and no pesticides, and animals raised on organic farms are not given antibiotics or growth hormones. If you buy organic ice cream, you're buying the knowledge that the cows and chickens that produce the cream and eggs used in the product have not been exposed to any chemicals or synthetic foods or treatments.

Frozen yogurt, sorbet and gelato are common terms used to describe frozen treats. Gelato is typically richer and denser than regular ice cream because it has less air. Gelato averages about 20 percent overrun, while the norm for regular ice cream is about 60 percent (the amount of air incorporated into the product), according to ABigSlice.com. Consumers often mistakenly use the terms sorbet and sherbet interchangeably. Both incorporate fruit puree, but sherbet contains milk, whereas sorbet does not.

Finally, frozen yogurt contains fermented milk, milk fat, sugar and animal and vegetable gelatins, but smaller quantities of egg than regular ice cream. It does sometimes -- but not always -- contain actual yogurt. The pasteurization process for frozen yogurt destroys many of the live cultures typically found in yogurt, dispelling the common belief that frozen yogurt is more easily digestible for lactose intolerant consumers, according to LifeScript.com. In a 2009 article in The Boston Globe, a spokesman for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says there are currently no FDA regulations for frozen yogurt labeling. Our advice? Check the ingredients before buying, because while frozen yogurt is often lower in fat than ice cream, the difference is usually made up in sugar.

Reviewers say the following about shopping for ice cream:

  • Consider texture as well as flavor. Ice cream is a very sensual experience; even the best-tasting variety can be ruined by a coarse, grainy, too-dense or too-fluffy texture.
  • Be skeptical about reduced-fat ice cream. As explained above, some reduced-fat ice creams (especially from Ben & Jerry's and Häagen-Dazs) only merit that label in comparison to full-fat ice cream of that same brand. Sources say the reduced-fat versions of both of these brands have about twice the fat content of competing brands from Breyers and Dreyer's/Edy's.
  • Don't assume a brand's chocolate is as good as its vanilla. Oddly enough, no brand sweeps the board for both chocolate and vanilla flavors: Friendly's Classic Chocolate, for example, dominates the competition among chocolate ice cream, but its Vanilla version doesn't even blip the radar. Ben & Jerry's Vanilla seems to have universal appeal, but tasters tend to either love or hate the Chocolate version. You'll have to do some tasting of your own to determine the best of the "exotic" flavors, like coffee or mint chocolate chip.

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