Out of 17 flavors of Halo Top, I have only tried two. Therefore in fairness, I concede there may be some better than others. I first heard about Halo Top products and how wonderful they are through a couple weight loss social media sites. Everything I have ever read about Halo Top from those trying to lose weight is that it is a wonderful product that is healthy as well. As with many things in life, if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.

I found the Chocolate flavor to be far superior in taste and texture over the Lemon Cake favor, but this is not saying much. The ice cream is quite dense and requires a little thawing before you can eat it, which is no big deal unless you are “hangry” when attacking a tub. I found it difficult to spoon out until it had set on the counter for a little while.

Once the ice cream had softened, I found it to be creamy enough. But if I am going to eat ice cream at all, I prefer the creaminess that can only come from a full fat ice cream. Just my opinion, but I find anything else to be lacking in substance and therefore not as enjoyable as a former ice cream connoisseur.

The taste was just alright, kind of mediocre in my book. But, taste is subjective to each individual. The ice cream tasted to me kind of like a fairly bland commercially available chocolate milk you find in any grocery store or convenience store refrigerator shelf. It was not horrible, but it was also nothing to write home about.

I love lemon flavor. I love lemon cake. When I saw this flavor, I just had to try it. I let it sit on the counter to let it soften a bit, and then dug into it with great expectations it would be a blissful flavor. Did I say I like lemon cake?

Hands down, this is the second worse ice cream I have ever consumed in my entire life. The only ice cream I eve enjoyed less, actually refused to eat more than a couple times at best was aboard my first ship in the Navy. That ice cream was made from a powdered mix that was prepared with the ships metallic and jet fuel tasting distilled water.

While the Lemon Cake Halo Top was not as repulsive as ship board ice cream aboard the USS Enterprise, it was still a huge disappointment for me. While I found the chocolate Halo Top to be a little too sweet for my taste, the Lemon Cake did not over power with a sweetness. In fact, I found this ice cream to be almost flavorless. I really could not taste any lemon, no vanilla, there was not much of anything in flavor at all. While it did not taste bad, there just was not much taste at all. It was just a weird flavorless ice cream that also had a strange texture to it. This ice cream was not very creamy, and it also had a bit of a grainy texture that I found odd. The grainy texture was likely caused by the guar gum that some ice cream manufactures are including in their ingredients in order to keep their product from settling too much in case it thaws a little before getting to the customer. Manufacturers are whipping more air into their products as a cost saving, profit enhancing method. The guar gum hides this effect. Guar gum acts as a stabilizer and is normally not a noticeable ingredient as it adds nothing to the flavor, nor does it pose any health risks. Just know that if your ice cream ever has an odd grainy texture, this is why.

Nutrition (Chocolate)

Total Calories per 1 pint container is 280 to 320 (depending on flavor)

Serves 4 ( lets be honest, who only eats a half cup)

Calories: 80 calories from fat: 25

Total fat: 2.5 grams

Saturated fat: 1.5 gram

Trans fat: 0

Cholesterol: 45 mg

Sodium: 110 mg

Total carbohydrates: 13 grams

Dietary fiber: 2 grams

Sugar: 6 grams

Sugar alcohol: 5 grams

Protein: 5 grams

Ingredients

Skim milk, eggs, erythritol, cream, organic cane sugar, milk protein concentrate, high fat cocoa, vegetable glycerin, prebiotic fiber, sea salt, organic carob gum, organic guar gum, organic stevia leaf extract.

Summary

While I find nothing too much wrong with Halo Top’s ingredients, I will not eat any more of it simply because it contains cane sugar which as I have written extensively about is a huge contributor to our nations obesity epidemic along with all of the health related problems that come from consuming too much of it. The protein content is only 1 gram more than you would get from a serving of Blue Bell ice cream that has 4 grams. Using this low protein amount as a selling point would only appeal to those who might not be nutritionally aware that is an insignificant amount over what you might find in any other ice cream product in your grocery store freezer.

Halo Top is very popular among the Weight Watchers crowd as many think it is a healthier alternative to other ice creams. News flash, it is not any healthier than any other low fat ice cream you can buy. But the others rarely place the calorie content on their labels in such bold lettering. There are better quality products available to you if you take the time to seek them out.

If you are on a weight loss journey, you should really consider skipping this ice cream because the sugar content is going to not allow your cravings for carbohydrates to go away. The sugar in Halo Top is still going to have an impact on your blood sugar and insulin levels as any other ice cream will. The only exception is the fiber component in Halo Top might, (MIGHT) mitigate some of the effects on your blood sugar and insulin. However, this is going to depend largely on your personal discipline to only consume one serving, which is 1/4th of the pint.

Let’s be honest, if you are trying to satisfy a sweet tooth, are you only going to eat 1/4th of the container? Or, are you going to eat from the container and then find yourself just eating a little more, and a little more, as you keep eating the soft stuff around the edges? If we are being truthful to ourselves, odds are that if you are over weight or obese, you likely do not have the personal discipline to just eat the manufacturers recommended serving amount. If you did, you would not have a weight problem in the first place and the need for a healthier ice cream to satisfy your sweet tooth cravings would be a moot point.

Beware of Halo Tops marketing gimmick of advertising that their is 20 grams of protein and only 280 to 320 calories per container. This implies that one container is one serving, while the nutrition label clearly states the container is supposed to be 4 servings. If you are on a weight loss journey, you are treading on thin ice by still eating the crap that got you into trouble in the first place, even if the label promotes the product as being healthier.

If you want to still eat sweet treats that are delicious while being sugar free, and diabetic friendly, then go to our recipes menu, then select the subcategory of sweet dessert recipes and then choose any of the sub-categories under that for cakes, cookies, pies and more. We at David’s Way believe that a sweet treat on occasion is perfectly fine as long as it does not derail you from your weight loss efforts. Our recipes, when followed to the letter will fill that bill for you.