There was the OXO Good Grips Scoop with a lever, the Anti-Freeze Scoop from Crate and Barrel, the Zeroll Original TubMate Spade and an electric ice cream scoop from Deni.
Tester Linda Greene tasked panelists with the job of scooping out really dense ice cream. Panelists appreciated the lever on OXO's scoop, but that was about it.
Crate and Barrel's scoop looks like a traditional scoop, but the handle is filled with liquid, which apparently your hand is supposed to warm and hopefully make the ice cream easier to scoop.
"It required a lot of force but it made great scoops when it actually got the ice cream out," said tester Sara Brown.
The Paddle scoop from Zerroll got the job done, but it's a bit large for pint-sized containers. Turns out, the electric ice cream scoop was the easiest to use, but it was also the priciest at $33. It's kind of big, and some panelists found the electric cord cumbersome.
"It melted the ice cream around the edges, so if you like soupy ice cream, it's a good thing, if you don't, it's not such a good thing," said tester Linda Greene.
While there were no clear winners, Consumer Reports says don't let that stop you. And no matter which scoop you use, it's the ice cream that really matters.
Consumer Reports' latest tests of chocolate and vanilla ice cream found Haagen Daz and Ben & Jerry's still rule. Also, tests of butter pecan ice cream revealed a bargain buy: Wal-Mart's Great Value Butter Pecan.
