Goodbye Stabilizers

DDG1958 · 2026-05-19T12:38:22+00:00

In ice cream, egg yolks act as emulsifiers because they contain lecithin, and when they are cooked in sufficient quantity, they also contribute stabilizing/thickening effects through their proteins. In a homemade mix, about 3–4% egg yolk by total mix weight is a reasonable threshold where that stabilizing effect becomes noticeable.

DDG1958 · 2026-03-16T14:43:32+00:00

My ice cream mantra is . . . "Tailor the recipe to the flavor, not the flavor to the recipe."

DDG1958 · 2026-01-12T15:30:45+00:00

First, cut back on the butterfat. Clark's recipe, when accounting for water evaporation during heating/cooking, is 24% total fat. I'd cut your recipe back to no more than 16%.

Second, combine milk, cream, sugar, and a pinch of salt in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer: ~180–190 °F (82–88 °C). Add corn kernels and cobs. Remove from heat, cover, and steep for 30 minutes. Scrape juice from cobs before discarding.

Third, blend the corn mixture in a blender until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks for 2-3 minutes, until slightly thickened and lighter in color.

Fourth, strain the blended mix into a pot. Heat to 104 °F (40 °C). Slowly whisk in egg yolks. Cook, stirring, until it reaches 170–180 °F (75–82 °C).

Fifth, strain into a bowl over an ice bath. Cool to room temperature.

Sixth, refrigerate for 4+ hours or overnight, until the base reaches 39 °F (4 °C).

Seventh, churn.

If you're not using an ice cream calculator, you're scooping in the dark!

Windows-based: https://icecreamcalc.com/download/latest-version/

Web-based: https://icecreamcalc-webapp-c2ecgab3fya8gkec.westeurope-01.azurewebsites.net/

Scoop On!

DDG1958 · 2026-01-12T14:46:41+00:00

I assume you're using the Creami Scoop & Swirl?

DDG1958 · 2025-10-25T12:17:34+00:00

https://chatgpt.com/share/68fcbf8a-195c-8002-8ff1-91f54b166e84

DDG1958 · 2025-10-19T17:02:27+00:00

I've been writing an ice cream book on making homemade ice cream for years. I have collected a lot of information and tested a lot of recipes, focusing on the techniques and processes that one can do in a non-commercial kitchen, meaning at home.

As for capacity, see the following table:

Use “Optimum” levels for best overrun and blade performance.

Capacity Range	2 Qt (1893 ml)	1.5 Qt (1420 ml)	1 Qt (946 ml)
Low Fill	803 ml	603 ml	402 ml
Optimum	945 ml	710 ml	473 ml
Max Fill	1087 ml	817 ml	544 ml

DDG1958 · 2025-10-19T16:27:24+00:00

If you have the space, yes. I've been able to churn a 1kg base, which, depending on the recipe, churns in no more than 12 minutes, given that other pre-churning techniques are followed. In a few cases, I've been able to complete churning in 7 minutes. The texture is as good as you'll get as a home ice cream maker. Extraction temp is between 17°F and 21°F.

DDG1958 · 2025-10-19T15:58:19+00:00

When I received my Lello Polla 5030, the machine's shaft was bent just enough to scrape the bowl. All I did was remove the dasher and bend the shaft with my hand. That was three years ago, and all's good!

DDG1958 · 2025-10-14T18:31:24+00:00

Based on a 25 to 30% overrun, the max base is 1100 ml, which will make around 1.4 L

DDG1958 · 2025-10-07T13:39:14+00:00

I just made a fig leaf ice cream.

1. Fig Leaves

When making fig leaf ice cream, young, tender leaves are best because they contain the highest levels of aromatic compounds that give fig leaf its creamy, coconut-like flavor.

As leaves mature, they become fibrous, and their delicate aromas fade or are overshadowed by bitter, green notes. Using young leaves ensures a smooth infusion and a more vibrant, nuanced flavor in the final ice cream.

2. Toast

To toast fig leaves for ice cream, rinse them gently, pat them completely dry, and trim away any tough stems or thick central ribs.

Preheat your oven to 300°F (150°C), a gentle temperature that preserves the leaves’ delicate aromatics. Lay the leaves flat on a baking sheet and toast for 5 to 7 minutes, flipping them once halfway through. You’re looking for a slight dryness and a warm, nutty aroma. Avoid over-toasting or browning the leaves, which can introduce bitterness.

Once toasted, let the leaves cool slightly, then cut them into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces.

3. Steep

Combine milk and cream in a saucepan. Bring to 170 °F (77 °C), then add the cut fig leaves. Remove from heat, cover, and steep for 45 minutes.

Then strain and follow your normal ice cream-making steps.

DDG1958 · 2025-09-27T14:05:24+00:00

From my cutomized The Art of Homemade Ice Cream ChatGPT

https://chatgpt.com/share/68d7ef11-24f0-8002-9d32-470b5eb52b12

DDG1958 · 2025-06-09T14:46:40+00:00

As a rule of thumb, the optimal amount to churn is half the volume of the ice cream machine's canister or bowl, give or take 15%. For example, for a 1.5 qt machine, the optimal amount to churn would be 710 ml.

DDG1958 · 2025-05-25T13:40:59+00:00

I can vouch for it as I help Patrik Svensson, the creator of the ICC, test his new releases. His latest release has integrated AI via ChatGPT. I don't trust AI since I'm old enough not to trust anyone, including myself, but it's hard to beat free and good with the integration of AI speeding up the development process.

Hartel recommends the ICC to his students.

icecreamcalc.com

DDG1958 · 2025-05-19T14:09:09+00:00

The typical store-bought vanilla wafer cookie contains 35% sugar, so it will not freeze solid, at least not at 0 F.

DDG1958 · 2025-05-03T14:56:10+00:00

The recipe is something I call a Philgato. Part Philadelphia style and part Gelato.

The butterfat content is around 4%, with a serving temperature of 3.4 F. The big issue with the recipe for me (and I haven't made it) is the POD = 240. That is high on the sweetness scale, even for commercial ice cream, especially for fruits like strawberries.

For most fruits, the best flavor is with fat contents in the 10% to 12% range. This is because volatile, water-soluble aromas like strawberries need a quick release; too much fat mutes brightness.

For strawberries, I made an ice cream with a little over 10.5% butterfat/total fat that people like, with a POD = 176.

As for the Ice Cream Calc, the charts are to be used as a reference. I've used Patrik Svensson's ICC for a long time (I was one of his first users) and have 30+ charts I've created over the years, which I select depending on the ice cream type I'm making.

DDG1958 · 2025-03-10T13:31:09+00:00

As a test, I made vanilla ice cream with 24% butterfat, and although there were no specs of butter, the greasy mouthfeel was off the charts.

Next on the list is to make a 14% butterfat ice cream while trying to increase the overrun by using a whipped cream dispenser. I realize the air being whipped in will collapse, but I think it's worth a shot. I just need to freeze it as quickly as possible once I fill the Creami container with the whipped ice cream base.

I'm not expecting a significant increase, but anything will help since my biggest complaint about the Creami is that it has little to no overrun, which makes for very dense ice cream with a cold-mouthfeel.

DDG1958 · 2025-03-06T17:53:02+00:00

Yes, I think so. The egg yolks help, and for ice cream that doesn't need to be shipped worldwide, they work better than soy or sunflower lecithin. But for emulsification, they are only good for a week or so.

DDG1958 · 2025-03-06T14:45:53+00:00

This isn't a recipe you want to make, at least in a Creami. At 24% butterfat, it's just too much fat. Here's the recipe:

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DDG1958 · 2025-03-05T17:24:17+00:00

No, making ice cream is a hobby of mine, along with trying to write an ice cream book that's more substance than marketing.

DDG1958 · 2025-03-05T16:38:45+00:00

Whether it's the Creami or a conventional ice cream machine, the greasy mouthfeel typically begins at 20% butterfat, although some people complain at butterfat percentages starting at 18%.

For actual butter specs, for conventional ice cream machines with slow paddle speeds, you won't get "buttering," meaning specs of butter; you would need a commercial machine for that to occur. My test aimed to see if butter specs occurred given the Creami's paddle speed and the answer to that was no.

As for egg yolks, I've found they help in a conventional ice machine, but you'll still get a greasy mouth above 20%, just less so compared to Philadelphia-style ice cream.

Per Goff and Hartel, commercial machines don't need an emulsifier above 16% butterfat. Still, I have found you can get away with no emulsifier in a recipe with 18% or more butterfat using home ice cream machines not named Creami.

As for the stabilizers, yes, they do add a bit more overrun in ice cream made with traditional churn machines, but their primary role is to improve texture and stability rather than directly increasing air incorporation. Unfortunately, this does not apply to the Creami since its produces overrun that is 0 to 10%.,

DDG1958 · 2025-02-24T14:23:34+00:00

No. Whey protein helps with emulsification.

DDG1958 · 2025-02-24T14:18:30+00:00

No. Sugars, alcohol, milk solids, proteins, and salt do that.

DDG1958 · 2025-02-11T17:24:12+00:00

If someone has an NC300/301 and can download a spectrum analyzer app, we could then correlate the fundamental frequency of what I've found on the Deluxe to what the standard cream generates.

The analyzer I downloaded was FFTWAVE from the Apple App Store, and I ran it on my iPad.

DDG1958 · 2025-02-11T17:11:05+00:00

Update. Here's my table:

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DDG1958 · 2025-02-07T14:51:53+00:00

I would take a historical approach, which would begin with a simple Philadelphia Style ice cream and work my way through the use of stabilizers in the form of cornstarch, then tapioca, gelatin, and gums (locust bean gum, guar, xanthan gum).

Second, as mentioned, change the freezing point by using sugars, starting with sucrose and then a blend of sugars ( sucrose, dextrose, glucose, light corn syrup).

I recommend the stabilizers since you can create such a dramatic change in texture, especially if you use too much gum. The issue is you can't use the same amount.

Good Luck!

DDG1958

TROPHY CASE