Ice, Cream... and Chemistry - American Chemical Society (2024)

Ice Cream–True or False?

Many myths and half-truths are floating around about ice cream. Test your ice cream knowledge by deciding whether each of the following is true or false:

1. Margaret Thatcher, former prime minister of England, helped to develop the formula for soft-serve ice cream before she entered politics, while working as a chemist in the food science industry.

2. Soft-serve ice cream was born on Memorial Day in 1934 when an ice cream salesman broke down and had to sell his melting ice cream, which was a big hit.

3. Modern-day ice cream was accidentally discovered in 1782 by Martha Washington, wife of the first U.S. president, who left a bowl of cream on the back steps of her home one night, and in the morning found it had hardened into ice cream.

4. The infamous Roman emperor Nero had slaves bring ice from the mountains so he could enjoy chilled desserts by pouring fruit juice and honey over the ice.

5. Ice cream sundaes were invented in the late 1800s in New York to circumvent the law prohibiting the serving of ice cream on Sunday, hence the name.

6. Eskimo pies were originally called “I Scream Bars.”

7. Explorer Marco Polo was the first person to bring ice cream to the New World, bringing the recipe from China.

8. The ice cream cone was invented in 1904 during the St. Louis Exposition when an ice cream vendor ran out of bowls and substituted rolled up waffles instead.

9. The ice cream sandwich was invented by Earl of Sandwich, in England.

Answers to True or False

1. Probably false. While Thatcher did work as a chemist for a company that developed soft serve ice cream, her actual role in developing the product was likely minimal, if at all.

2. Likely true, but may not be the first.

3. False.

4. Probably true.

5. Possibly true, but there are several other equally compelling stories about the origin of the sundae.

6. True.

7. Story likely true, but may not be the first.

8. Story likely true, but may not be the first.

9. False. Don’t mistake the ice cream sandwich for the actual sandwich, which was invented by the Earl of Sandwich.

Note: If you are concerned about the ambiguity of these answers, now you know why ice cream historians are still arguing about the origins of ice cream!

Ice, Cream... and Chemistry - American Chemical Society (2024)

FAQs

How to make ice cream in a bag in 5 minutes? ›

Warning: Donʼt touch rock salt with your bare hands!
  1. Prepare. Pour the cream, sugar and vanilla into the small bag and zip it up tightly. Fill the large bag with ice. and pour in the salt. ...
  2. Shake. Shake the large bag for 5 minutes. It will be cold, so wrap a towel around it or wear some oven mitts!
  3. Enjoy!

What is doubling the amount of air in ice cream? ›

The amount of air added to ice cream is known as overrun. If the volume of ice cream is doubled by adding air, then the overrun is 100%, which is the maximum allowable amount of air that can be added to commercial ice cream. The less expensive brands usually contain more air than the premium brands.

What is the chemical reaction in ice cream? ›

An exothermic reaction is a chemical reaction that releases light or heat, otherwise known as energy . In this case, heat is released from molecules moving around, freezing cream into ice cream! More exothermic reactions include the burning of materials and explosions.

Is ice cream a mixture or compound? ›

Icecream is a heterogeneous mixture because here solid ice (small crystals) are dispersed in a liquid (cream) medium. A heterogeneous mixture is made up of two or more than two substances that remain physically separate.

Can I use regular salt to make ice cream in a bag? ›

Salt: Rock salt, which is also sometimes labeled as "ice cream salt", works best for lowering the temperature of the ice to freeze the ice cream quickly. But coarse kosher salt or even regular table salt will work in a pinch if that's what you have on hand.

How to make ice cream in less than 10 minutes? ›

Step 1In a small resealable plastic bag, combine half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla. Push out excess air and seal. Step 2Into a large resealable plastic bag, combine ice and salt. Place small bag inside the bigger bag and shake vigorously, 7 to 10 minutes, until ice cream has hardened.

Which ingredient helps ice cream to retain air bubbles? ›

Ice cream is whipped to foam for that soft texture. “Without any air, it would be just like an ice cube,” says Goff. Fat helps to stabilise the air bubbles by coating their surface.

What is the ratio of air to ice cream? ›

Snack foods, ice cream, breakfast cereals

Ben & Jerry's and Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice creams weigh more than 100 grams per half cup (120 grams), so they contain roughly 20% air. Breyers vanilla ice cream weighs 67 grams per half cup, with about 45% of the volume being air.

What does too much air in ice cream mix cause? ›

If there is too much air the ice cream becomes pock marked and yellowish and doesn't feel right. Not solid enough. Too little air and it gets really heavy and dense to the point that you feel like you're chewing it. Hard ice cream has a different overrun than soft serve and it can be varied based on desired texture.

Why does ice cream turn yellow? ›

Have you ever bought something with vanilla ice cream in it (like an ice cream sandwich) and found that its edges are tinged yellow. That is because the ice cream at one point was not kept at the proper temperature.

Who invented ice cream? ›

The origins of ice cream, sorbet and other chilled dairy treats are difficult to pin down—but span back to antiquity. According to popular legend, ice cream was invented by the ancient Chinese, brought to Italy by Marco Polo, to France by Catherine de Medici, and thence to America by Thomas Jefferson.

Why do we remove the fat from milk when creating ice cream? ›

The main function of non-fat or lean milk solids in milk is to retain the water present in the mixture and help balance it. It is the ingredient that gives body and structure to ice cream. It has great power to absorb water, fixing it and reducing the percentage of "free water" in the mix, which prevents ice crystals.

What are the three most important ingredients of ice cream? ›

Ice cream
Vanilla ice cream served with whipped cream, chocolate sauce and a wafer
TypeFrozen dessert
Main ingredientsMilk, cream, sweetener
VariationsGelato Frozen custard
Cookbook: Ice cream Media: Ice cream

How does sugar affect the freezing point of ice cream? ›

Sugar lowers the freezing point of water, which makes frozen desserts fair game for changes in freezing point. Most desserts freeze between 29.5 to 26.6 degrees F (-1.4 to -3.0 C) depending on the concentration of sugar.

What are the emulsifiers in ice cream? ›

The most commonly used emulsifiers in ice cream manufacture are mono- /diglycerides (E471). Mono-/diglycerides are mixtures of monoglycerides and diglycerides.

How to make ice cream at home in 5 steps? ›

How to Make Homemade Ice Cream
  1. Cook the milk, cream, and sugar until the sugar has dissolved.
  2. Transfer the mixture to a measuring cup, then add the vanilla extract. ...
  3. Pour the mix into an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer's directions.
  4. Serve immediately or ripen in the freezer before serving.

How does making ice cream in a bag work? ›

Add salt and the freezing point drops by a few degrees. When you add salt to the ice in the outer bag, the ice (at 0°C) is now above its freezing point – so it begins to melt. Melting requires energy, and in this case that energy comes from the flavoured milk mixture in the inner bag.

How do you make ice in a Ziploc bag? ›

Take your zip-top bag and fill it with water until it is 2/3 of the way full. You can also opt for less water, but don't overfill it! You want room in the bag for the water to expand as it freezes. Put it in the freezer, ideally sort of nestled between some other things to give it a bit of shape.

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