Gelato: Italian Version of Ice Cream

In the United States many of us enjoy ice cream. Americans eat about 23 quarts of the stuff every year. People in the St. Louis, Missouri area alone purchases the most ice cream in the United States next to Portland, Oregon and Seattle, Washington. That is a lot of ice cream. With St. Louisans having this love affair with this cold creamy delight, it is not fair to say they just love ice cream alone. They also love gelato; the Italian version of ice cream but many Americans have no idea what it is.

Gelato contains less butterfat then ice cream. Ice cream usually contains about 18 to 20 percent butterfat, while gelato has less than 10 percent butterfat. This does not mean that gelato has a less rich taste, it actually is the opposite. Even though gelato has less fat, it is much denser than ice cream. This is because unlike American ice cream, there is no air added to gelato. Many ice cream manufactures add air into the mixture to double the volume of the product. Unfortunately by adding air to the ice cream it cuts the quality of the texture in half. Since gelato does not contain air, it results in a much denser texture. Gelato contains less butterfat; this allows the flavors to shine through and to be picked up by each taste bud. With ice cream containing higher amounts of butterfat it coats the tongue and masks the full flavors of each ingredient.

Both gelato and ice cream are served below 32 degrees Fahrenheit; gelato is generally served about 10 to 15 degrees warmer than ice cream. With gelato being served slightly warmer it enhances and intensifies the flavor of the ingredients when it melts on the tongue. This is one slow sensual dance on the palette that ice cream cannot match and ends up looking like a wallflower when compared with this Italian dessert.

Flavors of gelato can vary greatly just like ice cream. The most common flavors of gelato are hazelnut, chocolate, coffee, lemon, mint, custard, peach, almond, pistachio, strawberry, raspberry and spumoni. Some makers of gelato also like to add chocolate flakes, cookies, small confections and nuts to this dessert. When these types of ingredients are added they are mixed in after the gelato is frozen.

Once trying this wonderful and flavorful Italian dessert, it is hard to go back to just eating plain old vanilla ice cream. Gelato glides across the tongue like silk and is intense in flavor. With one taste, your taste buds will be saying “Grazie”!