If you've had real frozen custard, you already know it doesn't taste like ice cream. It's denser, silkier, and somehow richer without being heavier. That difference isn't marketing — it comes down to two things, one of which is written into federal food law.
Difference one: egg yolks
In the United States, ice cream and frozen custard are both standardized foods, meaning the FDA defines what can be called what. Both must contain at least 10% milkfat. The dividing line between them is egg.
To be labeled frozen custard (or "French ice cream"), a product must contain at least 1.4% egg yolk solids by weight. Ice cream contains less than that. Cross the 1.4% line and it stops being ice cream and legally becomes custard.
Those yolks do two jobs. They add richness, obviously. But more importantly they act as an emulsifier, binding fat and water into a smoother, more stable mixture. That's why custard has a texture people describe as velvety or silky rather than icy — the yolks are actively preventing large ice crystals from forming.
Difference two: air
The other half of the answer is a word most people never encounter: overrun, the amount of air whipped into a frozen dessert as it churns.
Air is cheap, and it makes a product lighter, fluffier, and larger by volume. Commodity ice cream can carry a great deal of it. Frozen custard is churned slowly and deliberately to keep overrun low, which is why a pint of custard feels noticeably heavy for its size and why the flavor hits more immediately — there's simply more dessert and less air in each spoonful.
Quick test: pick up a pint of custard and a pint of standard ice cream. The custard will feel dense, almost like it's been packed. That weight is the absence of air.
So which is better?
Neither is better — they're different tools. Airy ice cream is refreshing and scoops beautifully straight from a hard freeze. Custard is the richer, more indulgent option, and it's noticeably better when it hasn't been frozen rock-solid. Let a pint sit out a few minutes before serving and you'll get that soft, dense, almost-gelato texture it's meant to have.
Custard also carries mix-ins exceptionally well. A denser base holds cookie pieces and swirls in suspension instead of letting them sink, which is why loaded custard flavors work so much better than they have any right to.
Where to get real frozen custard in the Berkshires
Kelsey makes hers from scratch in her licensed Pittsfield kitchen and sells it by the pint for $14, with flavors rotating as inspiration strikes. Some of what's been in the freezer lately:
- Holy Crumbs — vanilla custard loaded with homemade chocolate chip cookie pieces, brownie pieces, vanilla crumble, and cookie butter. The one people come back for.
- Blueberry Cobbler and Peach Cobbler — summer fruit, cobbler crumble, exactly what you'd hope.
- Apple Cobbler — the fall arrival.
- Peanut Butter & Banana
- Milk Chocolate
Because it's a rotating lineup made in small batches, the best move is simply to ask what's available — or watch the Facebook page, where new flavors get announced as they're churned. Pints need 24–48 hours notice like the rest of the treat menu.
Want a pint?
Ask what's churning this week — pickup in Pittsfield or delivery across the Berkshires.
Order Frozen CustardBrowse the full bakery menu for everything else coming out of the kitchen.