Is There Actually Caffeine In Coffee Ice Cream?

Though I'm a daily coffee drinker, I'm not immune to the effects of caffeine. That's why I tend to avoid my favorite morning brew any time past three in the afternoon. But the thing is, I am a pretty big fan of coffee ice cream, which is why it's hard for me not to wonder if it has any caffeine in it. I mean, the siren call of a half-pint late at night is pretty tempting, after all. But the truth is — it all depends on the product. 

A typical cup of coffee will run you about 95 milligrams of caffeine, and if an ice cream product contains actual coffee in it, there's a good likelihood there's at least some caffeine present. Take, for example, Häagen-Dazs' coffee ice cream, which according to Caffeine Informer has about 19mg per 88 gram tub, which — if the formula is the same for the pint — comes out to about 70mg total or the equivalent of about ¾ cup of brewed coffee. By contrast, Ben and Jerry's Coffee Toffee Bar Crunch is at 80 milligrams per cup, which is fairly close to a full cup of coffee's worth of caffeine. Which is to say, I might avoid eating the entire thing in one sitting if I'm trying to get a good night's sleep.

I hate to break it to you, but it's just your safest best to assume there's at least a little bit of caffeine in your coffee ice cream. Honestly, I'm sure I could get away with a scoop now and then before bed, but maybe downing an entire pint on the couch during movie night isn't my best bet. Somewhat frustratingly, if you take a close look at the label, you'll notice that brands don't always disclose the caffeine content on their ice creams anyway, so your guess would be as good as anyone else's.

Since caffeine and coffee are inextricably connected, you might as well embrace it by making your own coffee ice cream, which is a practice we encourage. And if you're concerned about your general caffeine intake (that whole Panera energy drink debacle didn't help), we've previously spoken to an expert about what caffeine levels are actually okay for you (short answer: you're probably fine). And those who are hypersensitive to caffeine might want to just avoid coffee ice cream in general, just to be safe.