She is the undisputed star of summer: you can find ice cream on every corner. In the windows flourish the mentions “artisanal ice cream”, “homemade ice cream”, “artisanal ice cream maker” or “master ice cream maker”. What the consumer loses.
How is ice cream made?
The actual ice cream recipe is “very simple” and includes few ingredients, emphasizes Bruno Aïm, president of the National Confederation of Glaciers of France (CNGF).
In a sorbet, in addition to fruit, there is sugar, water and a stabilizer such as locust bean gum. The regulations impose a minimum of 25% fruit, except for citrus where the minimum content is 15%, and the mention “whole fruit sorbet” guarantees at least 45% fruit. But “a good ice cream usually goes up to 60 or 65% fruit,” says Bruno Aïm. For the ice cream, milk, cream and sugar are mixed, sometimes also eggs according to the recipe, then the desired flavor.
Pasteurization, skimming, maturation, turbinado, fruit preparation… Before the ice cream lands in the bins, the process is long. Not to mention the search for new flavors that occupies much of the time on the glacier.
However, there is a much simpler and less expensive method used by many glaciers. Italian companies such as Pregel, Fabbri or Mec3 market prepared bases (“premixes”) that contain powdered milk, vegetable fats and emulsifiers to which it is enough to add water or milk as well as a flavoring paste, before passing everything through the turbine. “Anyone can do it. It’s very easy to implement,” laments Bruno Aïm.
· What is “artisanal” or “homemade” ice cream?
The term “artisanal” simply means that one has the title of craftsman and that the company is registered with the Chamber of Trades and Crafts (CMA). This title does not impose specifications. The manufacturing process doesn’t matter: an ice cream parlor that promises “artisanal ice cream” may very well sell ice cream made with premixes. A shop can also sell ice cream made by another company, as long as the latter has the title of artisan.
Therefore, the mention “artisanal” does not systematically mean that the ice cream offered for sale is a product that is very different from industrial ice cream. This does not justify distrusting all the windows displaying “artisan ice cream”, but it is by no means a quality label. The term “industrial” is not necessarily synonymous with poor quality either: a company can industrially manufacture very good ice cream with a recipe that contains few ingredients.
And the “homemade ice cream”? It simply means that the ice cream was produced on the spot. But again, they can be made from premixes.
· Master ice cream maker, ice cream maker… what are we talking about?
The term “master glacier”, which we see almost everywhere, is misleading because it is not framed in the regulations and has no legal value. “Glacier craftsman” simply means that one holds the title of craftsman, as indicated above, while “master glacier craftsman” is a title that can be awarded by the Chamber of Trades and Crafts after several years of practicing the profession.
To distinguish professionals who make their ice creams according to the rules of the art, the CNGF recently launched a “quality charter” and a brand “Ice creams and sorbets of French tradition”. After having obtained the validation of his file and having successfully passed several checks, the certified ice cream maker can display the logo on his shop window. About sixty glaciers are currently part of the network.
· How to recognize a quality ice cream?
So how do you find your way around all these sorbets and all these ice creams? Unlike ice cream sold in supermarkets, the list of ingredients is not directly accessible when choosing your flavor at the ice cream shop. The easiest solution is to consult with the seller himself. Especially since “the composition must normally be indicated on the container or on the container lid”, if only to warn allergy sufferers, specifies Bruno Aïm.
Other clues may arouse our attention. If the ice cream appears “puffed” and overflows from its container, without melting, it was probably made with premixes. The latter contain gelatin, which holds the product together and allows it to be stored at cooler temperatures, and the manufacturing process incorporates more air during turbination. “A good ice cream, if it overflows the tray, it melts,” he says.
You should also be careful with colors that are too bright. The good clue is the pistachio: a true pistachio ice cream is not neon green, but tends towards hazelnut. A vanilla ice cream is not yellow, but cream. An abundance of flavors like candy or chocolate bars is also not a good sign. Be careful once again, the rule is not universal: sometimes you can find these types of flavors in very good ice cream parlors, which produce them themselves to meet the demand.
· How much does an ice cream cost?
“It’s hard to answer,” explains Bruno Aïm. In France, the price of a scoop of ice cream is usually between 2.5 euros and 3 euros, but it can be less or much more depending on the place. The truth is that price is not a reliable guarantee of quality. The easiest way is to trust your own judgement.
Source: BFM TV
