Why You Should Never Buy Generic Ice Cream

The origins of ice cream are quite obscure per Reader's Digest, but whoever thought of whipping up the holy combination of milk, cream, and ice many, many years ago deserves unfathomable depths of love and respect because ... damn. How would the damsels in the movies go through their heart-shattering breakups without eating ice cream straight out of the pint as tears run down their cheeks? Some of our core memories wouldn't be the same without ice cream. It's an integral part of all seasons of life.

As children, we didn't really care about where our ice cream came from as long as we got to have some. Now that we're officially grown-ups and are faced with the grim reality that not all ice creams are created equal, we mix the brand and the budget into the ice cream equation.

Price is obviously a factor when it comes to buying ice cream, but there's a reason why some ice creams are more expensive than others, and you're better off not buying generic ones.

Let's start with what overrun means. According to the International Dairy Foods Association, manufacturers aerate ice cream to make it creamy and keep it from freezing into a lump of ice. Depending on the amount of air pumped into the ice cream, they are divided into four categories: Super-Premium, Premium, Regular, and Economy. The super-premium variety has the lowest amount of air and uses the best quality ingredients which makes it the most expensive kind whereas the economy variety is highly overrun and doesn't cost as much as regular ice cream.

Generic ice creams may be easy on your pockets, but you're already paying for air when you buy potato chips anyway. Get a premium variety like Häagen-Dazs or Tillamook for a creamier and richer treat for your tastebuds.

That said, ice cream's purpose is to make you happy, so as long as you're really enjoying it, the price and the brand are irrelevant. Even the worst ice cream flavor is acceptable.