Unsweetened or fruit sweetened ice cream - Replacement for sugar in ice cream?
What is the best carb or protein to replace sugar in an ice cream recipe?
I would like to remove cane sugar, artificial sweeteners, honey, maple syrup, xylitol, stevia, erythritol, etc. from my ice cream recipe.
I read in another forum about unsweetened ice cream that sugar adds “bulk” to ice cream insinuating that it is necessary to make a pleasant textured dessert.
I’m thinking banana, tapioca flour, and/or sweet potato may work well because of their thicker consistencies and starch content. Before I attempt this, I would appreciate any advice or concerns.
Cheers!
Side note: I will use an ice cream maker. I will include egg(s) to the recipe. To prevent an icy texture, I will use some vanilla extract and/or another form of alcohol.
Best Answer
From a bulk perspective you don't have to replace sugar with anything, you certainly don't need want to add starch to compensate as that will not do favors for your consistency and mouth feel. Sugar helps the consistency of ice cream by reducing ice crystal formation, protein does not, and starch does a bit but makes your ice cream, well, starchy rather than creamy if you add much. Vanilla extract doesn't inhibit ice crystal formation much as it's not enough alcohol unless you add way too much, straight alcohol like vodka is a better choice.
For me the solution isn't bulk, but to make up for the lack of sugar using a stabilizer like guar gum and/or carageenan. Locust bean gum is good for presenting ice crystal formation as well.
Regarding sweetness, fruit isn't a good source of sweetness because of concentration. Most of fruit is water, and to add enough sweetness and fruit flavor you have to add a lot, adding a lot of starch, cellulose and water to your ice cream which isn't good for consistency. When I add fruit for flavor I cook it down into a jam to reduce its water content, this works well for berries, but wouldn't work for starchy fruits like bananas, you might try banana chips instead. I think what without some sort of sweetener it's going to end up pretty bland though.
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How do you substitute sugar for ice cream?
If you want to go truly sugar-free, you'll need to use a milk substitute, like unsweetened almond or coconut milk. HOWEVER, keep in mind that if you use a milk substitute (especially one without sugar or fat), your ice cream will likely become hard as a rock after you freeze it.What sweetener is best for ice cream?
ICE CREAM COMPOSITIONSucrose (table sugar) has traditionally been the most frequently used sweetener in ice cream production, with a combination of sucrose (10-12%) and corn starch hydrolysate syrup (CSS) (3-5%) now being the most common choice of sweetener (Goff & Hartel, 2013).Can various sweeteners and sugars be substituted for sucrose in ice cream?
Which sweeteners are used in ice cream? Sweeteners used in ice cream include cane and beet sucrose ('sugar'), invert sugar, Corn Starch Hydrolysate Syrup (CSS), high maltose syrup, fructose or high fructose syrup, maltodextrin, dextrose, maple syrup or maple sugar, honey, brown sugar, and lactose.How do you reduce sugar in homemade ice cream?
Erythritol and lactitol are sugar alcohols that have been used to create low-calorie ice cream. Erythritol is more commonly used for sugar reduction in ice cream because it provides volume and texture and is only a fraction of sucrose calories.1 minute Sugar free Ice cream | 2 Ingredients HEALTHY Dessert
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Answer 2
Two things: To prevent ice crystals I use Light Corn Syrup. In a recipe calling for wet ingredients of 2.5 cups heavy cream, 1 tsp pure vanilla extract, 1, 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk, and 2 tablespoons molasses I used 3 tsp light corn syrup. I made it in the freezer without an ice cream maker and it was very smooth; no ice crystals anywhere.
It appears you are trying to avoid the sweeteners but I am simply trying to give you the proportions of the wet ingredients to the light corn syrup.
This was part of a recipe from Kate Merker and Taylor Murray (and it might have come from "America's Test Kitchen" but I don't remember for sure).
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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