Gelato! It’s everywhere in Italy so, where is the best?
Not an easy question, and until a few years ago I would have said that it is impossible to find truly authentic gelato anywhere. Before I spill the milk on which is my favorite, I need to explain the difference between gelato and ice cream. I am talking about the gelato served at a gelateria, not from a grocery store freezer section. That is a completely different frozen dessert and often contains butter and other ingredients not found in artisanal gelato (artigianale).
Despite being practically cousins, ice cream and gelato have some significant differences that set them apart.
Ice cream is usually described as creamier and fluffier than gelato. It is whipped at high speed in an ice cream maker which makes it airier and less dense, and is traditionally made of 50% volume by air. Gelato, on the other hand, is denser and only between 20%-35% air.
Ice cream is usually custard-based, which contains egg yolks and more cream than milk, which means it has more fat. Gelato has no eggs and more milk than cream, giving it a much lower percentage of butterfat than ice cream. It comes in at 4-8% fat versus ice cream’s 14%. This seems paradoxical because gelato can taste so much creamier than ice cream, yet has much less fat …why?
Gelato is made in small batches and held in freezers no colder than 12 degrees F. Ice cream is served frozen at 4 – 6 degrees F. This accounts for gelato’s creaminess, despite less fat, and also its more intense flavor. The more “frozen” food is, the more it shocks the taste buds and inhibits full flavor reception…that’s why that last bite of ice cream is always the best!
When I was 11 years old I went to Italy for the first time and remember clearly that burst of flavor in the gelato, especially in the chocolate. Surprisingly, gelato often does NOT even have milk! I remember going to the beach for a week with my family and every day on our way back home we would stop at the gelateria where I always got both the chocolate and the pistachio (which was not green, but that’s another story!) neither of which had milk. I had never experienced that intense flavor in ice cream before. As an adult, for many years, I searched for that same flavor in gelato but never quite found it. I would drive Michael crazy always giving him the “gelato sermon” when we would stop for some. “I know, I know”, he would say rolling his eyes, “It’s good but not like when you were a kid”!
One day we were in the small town of Pienza just walking the streets getting to know it. We saw a shop that said Gelateria but we didn’t see all the pretty colors of the gelato in their tubs displayed behind the typical glass freezer case. Suspicious, we meandered in and asked the nice man behind the counter where the gelato was. He pointed toward the glass case of closed metal containers in front of him, “Our gelato has no coloring so there’s not much to see. It’s just pure artisanal gelato made with real ingredients not powders”, he said. I began to quiver as he explained how they made their gelato. He saw my excitement and motioned us to come closer. He happily gave us a taste of everything in the case! Not only were they authentic but so creative…they love combining some of the classics with herbs, like strawberry rosemary, lemon basil AND they had chocolate and pistachio without milk. I was thrown back to those first times at the beach and into a full flavor-gasm! We left swooning as Michael confirmed that I now could put my “gelato sermon” to rest.
It is much easier today to find such truly artisanal gelaterie in Italy…you will recognize them by the hidden product because as the gentleman reminded me, there is nothing special to see…no added florescent colors or powders that are not in nature, just real whole ingredients.
If you are in Pienza (or Siena) look for Gelateria Buon Gusto. Don’t be surprised to find that gelato is served in much smaller portions than we are used to with ice cream – either una coppetta or un cono (cup or cone). That smaller amount is completely satisfying because of the richer, more intense flavor, AND because it has less fat and more wholesome ingredients, it’s a guilt-free pleasure. Remember, Italians tend to eat gelato as a late afternoon snack or an evening treat during an after-dinner stroll which gives you so many opportunities to let yourself indulge! Buon Appetito!