/oss/taxonomy/term/2025/all en /oss/article/did-you-know/smooth-ice-cream <p>If you see a product label that lists “guar gum or cellulose gum” among its ingredients you would probably expect to chew rather than lick.  But these substances are critical to making a smooth-textured ice cream.  One of the biggest banes of ice cream lovers is the dreaded “heat shock” which occurs when ice cream is repeatedly removed from and put back into the freezer.  Each time a little melts and refreezes to form crystals which give the product a crunchy texture. The added gums absorb water and prevent it from refreezing into ice crystals.</p> Wed, 31 May 2017 14:27:13 +0000 OSS 2505 at /oss /oss/article/controversial-science-food-health-quackery/it-true-ice-cream-doesnt-melt-easily-should-be-avoided <p>Joe Mercola, the font of much Internet poppycock, thinks that the safety of ice cream is somehow related to the ease with which it melts. He and other bloggers not well versed in science suggest that ice cream that does not melt easily should be avoided. There are ice creams that don't melt as readily as others but that doesn't mean that eating them poses a risk. There are a number of factors that determine how readily an ice cream melts. Basically, the melting rate is determined by the additives used. Ice cream is a mixture of fat globules, water, sugar and air.</p> Sat, 20 Jun 2015 10:25:19 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2268 at /oss