Common Ingredients in ice cream Recipes

We researched the most common ingredients in over a hundred popular ice cream recipes and found the top 15 ingredients.

The most common ingredient in ice cream dishes is cream.

Butter, white sugar, ice cream, eggs and heavy cream are also common ingredients in ice cream recipes. For herbs and spices, vanilla extract is popular. Variations include:

• whole milk and egg yolks in place of butter
• egg yolks in place of ice cream

Salt is in 25% of ice cream recipes.

The average ice cream recipe has about 8.5 ingredients, with a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 34.

In terms of directions, ice cream recipes have about 4.5 steps on average, ranging from 1 to 16 instructions.

Ratios of Common Ingredients in Ice Cream

For half a cup butter (114 g), the median and average amounts of other significant ingredients are below. Some ingredients are potential substitutes for others, meaning they almost never exist together in a single ice cream recipe, and are marked below.

Ingredient	Median	Average	% of recipes with butter	Potential subsitutions
white sugar	1.5 cup (300 g)	2 cup (391 g)	58%
eggs	4.5 large (224 g)	5.6 large (282 g)	38%	egg yolks
vanilla extract	2 teaspoon (8 g)	1.9 teaspoon (8 g)	38%
heavy cream	2 cup (240 g)	1.8 cup (220 g)	33%
flour	2 cup (250 g)	1.9 cup (236 g)	33%
brown sugar	1 cup (220 g)	1.2 cup (267 g)	33%	strawberry ice cream chocolate ice cream
milk	3.5 cup (855 g)	7.4 cup (1813 g)	21%	whole milk

Ingredients by Average Weight in Ice Cream

We also found the average content of the significant ingredients by weight in ice cream recipes. This would be: 36% ice cream, 14% white sugar, 13% heavy cream, 7% butter, 7% flour, 6% milk, 5% eggs, 5% semisweet chocolate, 4% brown sugar, 2% chocolate and 2% peanuts.

Here are the top ingredients, listed in order of popularity.

cream

Cream is the most popular ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 60% of ice cream recipes contain cream.

Variations of cream include:

• ice cream: 39% of recipes
• heavy cream: 27% of recipes

For ice cream recipes, cream is frequently used with butter, brown sugar, salt, ice cream and flour.

ice cream

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is ice cream. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 35% have ice cream.

Softened is a frequent preparation for ice cream in ice cream dishes.

Ice cream is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of half a gallon, 1 pint or 2 pints.

In ice cream recipes that contain ice cream, it is on average, 37% by weight.

For ice cream recipes, ice cream is frequently used with white sugar, vanilla extract, butter, flour and salt.

Potential substitutions for ice cream in ice cream:

• egg yolks

Also, ice cream is not often used with vanilla bean and strawberries.

heavy cream

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is heavy cream. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 25% have heavy cream.

Ice cream dishes often call for heavy cream to be chilled.

Heavy cream is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of 2 cups, 3 cups or 1 cup.

In ice cream recipes that contain heavy cream, it is on average, 19% by weight.

In recipes for ice cream, heavy cream is often used with white sugar, vanilla extract, salt, ice cream and butter. On the other hand, heavy cream is almost never used with peanut butter, pecans, pound cake and chocolate ice cream.

butter

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is butter. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 40% have butter.

Ice cream dishes often call for butter to be salted and melted.

Butter is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of half a cup, 4 tablespoons or 1 tablespoon.

In ice cream recipes that contain butter, it is on average, 6% by weight.

In recipes for ice cream, butter is often used with white sugar, salt, eggs, vanilla extract and ice cream.

Potential substitutions for butter in ice cream:

• whole milk
• egg yolks

Also, butter is not often used with semisweet chocolate and pound cake.

white sugar

White sugar is another common ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 40% of ice cream recipes contain white sugar.

Granulated is a frequent preparation for white sugar in ice cream dishes.

Common quantities for white sugar in ice cream dishes include half a cup, 1 cup or three quarters of a cup.

In ice cream recipes that contain white sugar, it is on average, 13% by weight.

Vanilla extract, salt, eggs, flour and heavy cream are commonly used together with white sugar in ice cream dishes. Conversely, white sugar is not often used with pound cake.

vanilla extract

Vanilla extract is another common ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 30% of ice cream recipes contain vanilla extract.

Vanilla extract is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of 1 teaspoon, 2 teaspoons or 1 tablespoon.

In ice cream recipes that contain vanilla extract, it is on average, 0.6% by weight.

In recipes for ice cream, vanilla extract is often used with white sugar, eggs, salt, flour and heavy cream. On the other hand, vanilla extract is almost never used with vanilla bean, pound cake and pecans.

salt

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is salt. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 25% have salt.

Common quantities for salt in ice cream dishes include 0 pinch, a quarter teaspoon or half a teaspoon.

In ice cream recipes that contain salt, it is on average, 0.1% by weight.

White sugar, vanilla extract, flour, eggs and butter are commonly used together with salt in ice cream dishes. Conversely, salt is not often used with pound cake.

eggs

Eggs is another common ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 25% of ice cream recipes contain eggs.

Variations of eggs include:

• egg yolks: 7% of recipes

For ice cream recipes, eggs is frequently used with white sugar, vanilla extract, flour, salt and butter.

Potential substitutions for eggs in ice cream:

• egg yolks

Also, eggs is not often used with strawberries, strawberry ice cream and pound cake.

chocolate

Chocolate is another common ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 20% of ice cream recipes contain chocolate.

Variations of chocolate include:

• semisweet chocolate: 11% of recipes
• chocolate ice cream: 6% of recipes

Ice cream, white sugar, butter, salt and flour are commonly used together with chocolate in ice cream dishes.

flour

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is flour. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 20% have flour.

Sifted is a frequent preparation for flour in ice cream dishes.

Flour is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of 2 cups, three quarters of a cup or 1.5 cups.

In ice cream recipes that contain flour, it is on average, 12% by weight.

For ice cream recipes, flour is frequently used with white sugar, salt, vanilla extract, eggs and butter. However, strawberries and pound cake are almost never used together with flour in ice cream dishes.

milk

Milk is another common ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 15% of ice cream recipes contain milk.

Variations of milk include:

• whole milk: 7% of recipes

In recipes for ice cream, milk is often used with white sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, heavy cream and salt.

Potential substitutions for milk in ice cream:

• whole milk

Also, milk is not often used with strawberry ice cream, raspberries, pecans and pound cake.

peanuts

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is peanuts. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 15% have peanuts.

Variations of peanuts include:

• peanut butter: 7% of recipes

Salt, ice cream, butter, white sugar and butter are commonly used together with peanuts in ice cream dishes.

vanilla bean

Vanilla bean is another common ingredient in ice cream dishes. In fact, over 15% of ice cream recipes contain vanilla bean.

Scraped is a frequent preparation for vanilla bean in ice cream dishes.

Vanilla bean is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of 1 vanilla bean, half a teaspoon or 1 teaspoon.

In ice cream recipes that contain vanilla bean, it is on average, 0.2% by weight.

For ice cream recipes, vanilla bean is frequently used with white sugar, salt, eggs, heavy cream and butter. However, ice cream, semisweet chocolate, strawberry ice cream, raspberries, cinnamon, pound cake and chocolate ice cream are almost never used together with vanilla bean in ice cream dishes.

brown sugar

Another popular ingredient in ice cream is brown sugar. From the recipes we've sampled for ice cream, over 10% have brown sugar.

Ice cream dishes often call for brown sugar to be packed.

Brown sugar is often included in ice cream dishes in amounts of 1 cup, three quarters of a cup or half a cup.

In ice cream recipes that contain brown sugar, it is on average, 14% by weight.

In recipes for ice cream, brown sugar is often used with salt, baking soda, butter, flour and vanilla extract.

Potential substitutions for brown sugar in ice cream:

• strawberry ice cream
• chocolate ice cream

Also, brown sugar is not often used with pound cake.

Other ice cream Ingredients

Other significant ingredients used in ice cream recipes include:

• baking soda - 10%
• cocoa powder - 10%
• baking powder - 10%
• strawberries - 5%
• strawberry ice cream - 5%
• raspberries - 5%
• cinnamon - 5%
• pecans - 5%
• pound cake - 5%
• lemon juice - 5%

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