On Food and Cooking

a few other minor ingredients. Its appeal
is the richness and delicate flavor of
cream itself, complemented by vanilla or
by fruits or nuts.
French or custard ice cream contains an
additional ingredient: egg yolks, as many
as 12 per quart/liter. The proteins and
emulsifiers in egg yolk can help keep ice
crystals small and the texture smooth
even at relatively low milk-fat and high
water levels; some traditional French ice
cream mixes are a crème anglaise (p. 98)
made with milk, not cream. A mix that
contains yolks must be cooked to
disperse the proteins and emulsifiers
(and kill any bacteria in the raw yolks),
and the resulting thickened, custard-like
mix makes an ice cream with a
characteristic cooked, eggy flavor.
A distinct style of custard ice cream is
the Italian gelato, which is typically high
in butterfat as well as egg yolks, and