Gelato - Heavenly Dessert

Gelato can be simplistically described as an ice-cream with less fat. But like all simplistic definitions, it doesn’t have completeness. Though gelato is often erroneously referred to as the Italian word for ice-cream, but there are differences between gelato and conventional ice-creams. Many a time people can’t make out the difference between gelatos and regular ice-creams. However, though Indians are largely ignorant of the nuances of gelato, but that doesn’t stop them from appreciating its heavenly taste.

Gelato can be prepared with milk, cream, various sugars, and fresh fruit and nut purees. Gelato and conventional ice-creams are different in terms of nutritional value. Gelatos come across as more dense than icecreams and they have less calories, fat and sugar than your average ice-creams. Here by ice-cream we are referring to your average ice-cream available on the kiosk next door, and not some special healthy tailor made ice-cream. One can also define gelatos as special and healthy ice-creams.

Less Air, More Dense

One important difference between gelatos and ice-creams is the difference in their air content. Ice-creams are churned fast to infuse a great deal of air, which is facilitated by the high proportion of cream in the base, whereas gelato is churned at a much slower speed, which brings less air into the base.

Gelato has only 35 percent over run which means it has more product and less air content than industrial ice-creams, thus yielding a denser, more compact silky consistency as compared to mediocre industrial ice-creams, which have 50-90 percent over run. It is sold by weight and not by volume. More air in ice-creams give them a smooth and fluffy texture. Conversely, less air is also the reason why gelatos taste more dense than ice-creams.

Gelatos, on an average, have less air than other frozen desserts, and they also generally have more flavouring than other frozen desserts.

Less Fat, More Taste