Protein Ice Cream

 

At long last in the UK the sun has appeared!  In the US it is in full swing and in Australia on the wane. But whatever the weather, continent or country,  ice cream seems to be on the menu all year round, not only when the sun shines. Rich and creamy; slimmer-line with yogurt; or packed with nuts, fruit or chocolate, there is a variety to entice all.

 

In my quest for a low-fat, low-sugar and ‘healthy/nutritious’ bariatric-friendly ice cream I have tasted quite a few. Some pretty good, some pretty awful. So much so that I devised my own recipe using flavoured protein drink powders with milk, water or yogurt. The results were good and ticked all the boxes for a protein boost/hit, low-fat profile and low enough sugar content to avoid the ‘dumping scenario’ that all gastric bypass patients dread. It also proved to be fairly inexpensive compared to some of the commercial offerings.

I’m fortunate, in so far as I have a state of the art ice cream maker (bought second-hand from a friend), that makes light work of preparation and enables me to stop the machine if I want the ice cream soft-whippy style or leave to churn further for firm storage and a scoopable serving.

 

Now, for those who want to cut out the ‘make from scratch’ effort, there’s a new protein ice cream on the block. Called Wheyhey it claims to have as much protein per portion as a 70g chicken breast. It’s low in sugar (since sweetened with xylitol) plus low in fat. Flavours include vanilla, strawberry and chocolate and each pot has about 177 calories. Not cheap at £2.69 per 150ml tub it can be purchased from Holland & Barrett. Each tub also comes with a spoon inside the lid (like the ones you get in cinemas/theatres so would be great to pack in an ice box for a picnic.

 

So what does it taste like?

 

Well not to understate my reaction…I was knocked out by the taste and texture of this range. I simply adore the vanilla flavour (smooth, creamy and with no nasty after-taste) closely followed by the strawberry version. Mr B thought the chocolate was the best. All tasted luxurious and the portion size was just right (as a bariatric this portion size was not too large; and Mr B, a non-bariatric found it sufficient).

 

Nutritional stats are very good too, for example, the vanilla has 177 calories; 22.5g protein; 7.5g carbohydrate and 6.7g fat (of which 3g are saturates) per 150 ml tub.

 

So there you have it…a great tasting ice cream with the bonus of some impressive added protein. A much healthier option than the original and some so-called ‘lite/healthy/low-fat/skinny’ ice creams but still should only be enjoyed as an occasional treat rather than meal replacement.

 

Alternatively, try making my protein ice cream (see page 95 of the ‘Return to Slender Cookbook’) using 500 ml/21/4 cups skimmed milk with 4 x 27g scoops of your favourite protein drink shake mix. You can then experience almost any flavour under the sun at a fraction of the price … and mark off 27g protein from your daily protein tally! That said, I shall still be storing away a Wheyhey pot or two for some alfresco dining experiences.