Gelato
Man, I love gelato, and I've heard actual Italian gelato is even better!!! Can't wait to have some every day in Italy. Here is a little bit about Gelato.
Gelato is an ancient Italian frozen dessert, a far more recent variant of which is ice cream. As such, gelato is made with some of the same ingredients as most other frozen dairy desserts. Milk, cream, various sugars, flavoring including fruit and nut purees are the main ingredients.
Gelato is different from some ice cream because it has a lower butterfat content. Gelato typically contains 4-8% butterfat, versus 14% for ice cream in the United States. Gelato has a higher sugar content than ice cream. Dairy based gelato contains 16-24% sugar and water and fruit based sorbet contains 24-30% sugar. Most ice cream in the United States contains 12-16% sugar. The sugar content in gelato is precisely balanced with the water content to act as an anti-freeze to prevent the gelato from freezing solid. Types of sugar used include sucrose, dextrose, and invert sugar to control apparent sweetness. Typically, gelato and Italian sorbet contain a stabilizing base. Egg yolks are used in yellow custard-based gelato flavors, including zabaione and creme caramel. Non-fat milk solids are also added to gelato.
In Italy, the mixture for gelato is typically prepared using a hot process, which includes pasteurization. White base is heated to 85 °C (185 °F). Heating the mix to 90 °C (194 °F) is essential for chocolate gelato, which is traditionally flavored with cocoa powder. Yellow custard base, which contains egg yolks, is heated to 65 °C (149 °F). The gelato mix must age for several hours after pasteurization is complete for the milk proteins to hydrate, or bind, with water in the mix. This hydration reduces the size of the ice crystals, making a smoother texture in the final product. A non-traditional cold mix process is popular among some gelato makers in the United States.
Unlike most commercial ice creams in the United States, which are frozen with a continuous assembly line freezer, gelato is frozen very quickly in individual small batches in a batch freezer. Churning during the freezing process incorporates air into the mix. The added air is called overage. Unlike most commercial ice cream, which contains up to 50% overage, the overage in gelato is low, generally 20-35%. Lower overage results in a denser product with more intense flavors.
U.S. ice cream, with a higher fat content, can be stored in a freezer for months. High-quality artisan gelato holds its peak flavor and smooth texture only for several days. That is only when it is stored carefully at consistent, low temperatures.
