Best ices for tasty thrills and chills

FOR cooling down on a hot summer’s day, ice cream is the sweet treat we all enjoy – whatever our age.

But gone are the days when it was a simple choice between a scoop of vanilla, chocolate or strawberry.

When we were kids, Neapolitan was as exotic as it got. But today’s supermarket freezers are filled with a fabulous array – from indulgent mascarpone ice cream with blackcurrant sorbet, to double salted caramel and even an under-the-sea number.

So to ensure you keep your cool when choosing, we’ve put 20 products through a Cash Queens taste test to find the desserts that will make you melt with desire.

All prices correct at time of going to press.

Halo Top Peanut Butter Cup (473ml), £5, Asda A decent low-calorie product. Light and refreshing but it was missing some sort of crispy texture that would have given it a little boost.

ICE FACTOR: A few nutty pieces would be good 7/10

Magnum Double Salted Caramel (440ml), £4, Asda Velvety, rich ice cream with a good hint of salted caramel gooey sauce and thick, crispy chocolate. Cracking the chocolate shell was fun.

ICE FACTOR: A perfect treat 10/10

No1 Mascarpone Ice Cream Blackcurrant Sorbet (500ml) £3.75, Waitrose Creamy, fruity and refreshingly luxurious flavours that worked really well together. The blackberry hit was fantastic and the hint of liquorice a nice surprise.

ICE FACTOR: Tub emptied pretty quickly 10/10

Caramel Popcorn Ice Cream (473ml), £2.50, Asda Good, strong popcorn flavour with a nice balance of rich caramel sauce. Such depth of flavour is unusual for low-calorie desserts. ICE FACTOR: Guiltfree and very tasty 8.5/10 Gelatelli Unicorn Ice Cream (900ml), £1.45, Lidl Not the pretty pastel colours you picture for a unicorn. Tasted more like sorbet than ice cream with a very strong raspberry flavour.

ICE FACTOR: Needs a new colour palette 6/10 Halo Top Birthday Cake (473ml), £3.50, Sainsbury’s Tasted exactly like birthday cake – sweet and lovely but not too sweet. If it had crunchy bits it would have scored top marks.

ICE FACTOR: Fun, low-calorie alternative to cake 9/10

Kelly’s Cherry Bakewell (950ml), £4, Morrisons It literally tastes like a deconstructed, chilled, cherry bakewell tart. Good quality ice cream with bits of pastry, nuts and cherries throughout.

ICE FACTOR: The flavours were spot-on 9/10 No1 Caffe Macchiato Ice Cream (500ml), £3, Waitrose Rich and indulgent with a fab combination of strong, quality coffee and creamy flavours. Definitely one for grown-ups only.

ICE FACTOR: Ideal for those who like their coffee kick 9.5/10 No1 Coconut & Lime Ice Cream (500ml), £3, Waitrose The ice cream was yummy and appetising with a good balance of coconut and a nice hint of lime to stop it being too sweet.

ICE FACTOR: A taste of the tropics 9/10

Haagen-Dazs Peanut Butter Ice Cream (460ml), £4.80, Tesco Very creamy and tasty ice cream but we expected the peanut butter bits to be more crunchy, plus we found them to be a bit dry.

ICE FACTOR: Left a claggy taste 5/10

Percy Pig (453ml) £3, Marks & Spencer Perfect pretty pink colour. Tasted light, fruity and sweet, but not too sweet. We liked the pieces of mini marshmallows hidden in the ice cream.

ICE FACTOR: Flavours and textures work well 8.5/10 Ben & Jerry’s Baked Alaska (465ml), £3, Sainsbury’s The pot that just keeps giving with its moreish whipped ice cream, packed with gooey marshmallow and chunky white chocolate polar bears. We scoffed the lot a bit too swiftly.

ICE FACTOR: Heaven in a tub 10/10