Milk - Ice Cream Key Ingredient

Full cream milk is the best for making homemade ice cream because of its high butterfat content of 3-4 %.

Skimmed milk by contrast only has about 0.5% butterfat content.

You can also use goat’s milk if you like but it will add a slightly tangy taste to the ice cream.

Condensed milk and evaporated milk can be used in some ice cream recipes but they have a different butterfat content to real full fat milk. Condensed milk has about 10% butterfat content, evaportated milk a little less, about 8% butterfat. Therefore you cannot expect to use them in the same ratio as real milk in any recipe. If you use sweetened condensed milk then you must also allow for using less sugar in a recipe.

Milk is the primary ingredient of gelato (Italian for ice cream). Used alongside sugar and a selected flavoring, gelato is not made with cream. The texture of gelato is therefore a little different.

As milk is a key ingredient to ice cream making, the dairy industry is greatly supported by the ice cream industry. It's estimated that around 9% of milk produced by US dairy farms goes into the production of ice cream. In making your own homemade ice cream, by using milk you too will become a supporter of dairy farming - a cause which many food and trade associations around the world work hard to promote and sustain.

Making Homemade Ice Cream

Storing Ice Cream

Ice Cream Making Measuring Guide

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