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Currently only available at Coffee Contigo #2...
Gelato, or the plural Gelati, is the Italian regional variant of ice cream. As such, gelato is made with similar ingredients as most ice-creams around the world, with milk (and cream), sugar (and other sweeteners), flavorings (fruits, nuts, essences, etc.) and air as the main ingredients. Other ingredients that stabilize or emulsify may be used to improve the shelf-life or "ice-cream-case-life" of the product. Gelato can be made using the hot process, which includes pasteurization or as a cold process which doesn't require pasteurization. Both processes require a gelato batch freezer, which makes the end product by mixing the ingredients and incorporating air. Like high-end ice cream, gelato generally has less than 55% air, resulting in a denser product.
Gelato is typically made with fresh fruit or other ingredients such as chocolate (pure chocolate, flakes, chips, etc.), nuts, small confections or cookies, or biscuits. Gelato made with water and without dairy ingredients is known as sorbetto (also known as sorbet). Traditionally, milk-based gelato originated in northern Italy, while the fruit and water based sorbetto came from the warmer parts of southern Italy.
Dairy gelato is made with cow's milk (whole or skim) and contains less butterfat depending on the ingredients (nuts, milk, or cream increase the fat content). North American style ice creams contain more butterfat than gelato, ranging from 10% to 18% since cream is used[citation needed]. Good quality gelato combines high quality ingredients with milk and cream, soy milk, or water. Gelato is usually made with whole milk which is 3 to 4% butterfat[citation needed]. Unlike other ice cream, gelato ingredients are not homogenized, which results in a product that melts faster.
Some gelato recipes call for eggs, although with the homogenization of the Italian gelato culture and mixes and stabilisers readily available and in use, eggs are being phased out as emulsifiers.
Some people have the misconception that the word "gelato" is related to "gelatin" and that the latter is an ingredient, chasing away vegetarians and other people wishing to avoid gelatin.
Traditional gelato recipes do not call for it and most gelato is not made with gelatin. Gelato in Italian literally means "frozen", but it is basically used to indicate the Italian type of ice cream.
In the UK, gelato is served from a different freezer from American style ice cream—a forced air freezer—which is usually held at about -15°C (5°F).
This allows the gelato to be served immediately after being extruded from the gelato machine— the "forced air" blowing around holds the product at a consistent temperature. In Italy gelato is typically served with a spoon out of a special freezing tray, ensuring a thicker, more flavourous consistency.
Much of the gelato experience lies in its semi-frozen consistency; therefore, you may serve ice cream from a gelato freezer but you may not serve gelato from an ice cream freezer—the gelato would become too frozen.
Other countries make ice creams similar to gelato. In Argentina, helado is made much the same way.
In France (though usually slightly higher in fat) glace is a very similar product and, in fact, was introduced to France by Catherine de' Medici (of Florence).
Some Italian food products use gelato as a main ingredient. These include ice cream cake, semifreddos (gelato cake), spumoni, cassate, Tartufo, and fruit filled gelato candies, and mignon. Gelati are often eaten in cones, or in bowls with a wafer type biscuit.
These are just some of many Flavors we may have available:
- Chocolate
- Strawberry
- Almond
- Chocolate Chip
- Coconut
- Cherry
- Raspberry
- Banana Split
- Sugar Free Chocolate
- Limon Mojito
- Mango
