Top 8 ice creams in a tub

THIS year I took a new step in choosing what to survey.

I took my 10-year-old niece Rosa shopping to choose what appealed to her and then to help taste it, along with a few more willing volunteers — no shortage for this one.

We have to accept that ice-cream is a calorific treat so we didn’t particularly look for healthier types.

However, to keep a balance in the diet we need to be careful not to be lured into taking large portions by the large-sized tubs.

Think of two heaped dessertspoons per serving — enough to fit into a cone.

There is a little protein in ice-cream from milk and cream, but it’s not on the right side of the glycaemic index to keep us satisfied for long.

As there is so much sugar and sometimes salt, we need to drink water with or after it.

It will often have glucose-fructose syrup as well as regular sugar which can amount to a whopping 23% of the entire product.

The remainder consists of a few forms of fat in the shape of cream, milk, and oil providing the creamy texture.

Those whipped with water to lighten them lost little in texture and flavour.

Unfortunately additives are used for ensuring an even texture over a long shelf life, but are otherwise not essential. Choose from our selection or make your own to avoid additives completely.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Marvellous Ice cream, 500ml €5.50

The base has a caramel creamy flavour with a large swirl of chocolate ice-cream, and there were lots of sea salted biscuit bits which contrasted well with the sweetness of chewy caramel bits and large chunks of Easter egg-like chocolate.

Lots of decent sized cherries were liked more by the adults than the children. While one taster thought there was too much going on, everyone else gave it their number one.

Score 8.75

Nobó fresh lemon dairy free, 500ml €6.99

Instead of milk and cream we have coconut milk, honey, avocado, lemon juice, lemon oil and vanilla extract which makes this ice-cream free from dairy, gluten, eggs, soya, refined sugar, colouring and stabilisers which would get our top marks if we were judging it for purity alone.

The lemon flavour is strong at first, then lessens. All tasters liked this and were curious about what went into it as it was less creamy, but still smooth. Made in Ireland is another plus.

Score: 8

Haagen-Dazs macademia nut brittle, 430g €6.15

Made in France, there is a commendably shorter list of ingredients here than in many other samples with no esters and diglycerides of fatty acids.

The texture is none the worse for that.

Nicely creamy when melted a little, the vanilla flavour is rich and the macademia nut brittle broken into shards makes for an interesting, sweet contrast.

Score: 8

Aldi Specially Selected strawberry cheesecake ice-cream, 500ml €2.99

A nice creamy texture here with a stiff thread of strawberry purée going through it. Pieces of biscuit were liked, though not so much by the 10- year-old.

Score: 7.25

Tesco Mango & Passion fruit Swirl frozen yoghurt, 500ml €3

36% natural yoghurt is a good start here with a streak of a blend of mango and passion fruit going through it. An emulsifier called propane–1,2-diol is added to keep the ice-cream soft enough to scoop out.

I’d prefer not to see chemicals in my food for the sake of creaminess. Tasters found this refreshing and light, with more emphasis on the ice instead of cream. They all liked the flavour. Fair value.

Score: 7.75

Dunnes Stores Caramel Chew caramel dairy ice-cream, 500ml €3

We found two with caramel additions — this one and another from Lidl Gelatelli called Cheeky Caramel. Tasters preferred the base of this one which was darker in colour and had a nicer toffee flavour throughout provided by dark muscovado sugar.

While stated it is free from artificial colours, flavours and preservatives, it does have emulsifiers di and mono glycerides of fatty acids. The Lidl tub is marginally cheaper.

Score: 7.5

Supervalu Madagascan vanilla, 500ml €3

A nice, short list of ingredients here, is partly because there are no added chunky bits. Tasters liked the clean, delicate flavour which was nicely light on vanilla.

Included are less desirable emulsifiers, propane-1,2-diol, esters of fatty acids, mono and di-glycerides of fatty acids, but no artificial flavouring, preservatives or colouring.

Score: 7.25

Ben & Gerry’s Greek style frozen yogurt blueberry cheesecake, 500ml €6.31

Water comes top of the ingredients list with 18% yoghurt, yoghurt powder with 10% each of condensed skimmed milk and cream.

There is glucose-fructose syrup, sugar and glucose syrup and icing sugar which lessens the perceived health giving properties of yoghurt, though four per cent of blueberry purée is welcome.

There was a lot of cheesecake in the texture and taste, and more colour than a taste of blueberry.

Score: 7.25