Is there really a difference between gelato and ice cream? I know there is in theory, but do some places call their product gelato, when it’s actually ice cream?
By the way, I was recently in southern France, and had gelato at Fennocchio’s in Nice. Absolutely the best I ever had.
As you say, there is a difference. So anyone advertising gelato and serving ice cream is committing fraud.
Some people somewhere are always committing fraud. But as a regular thing? Doubtful.
What makes you think otherwise?
What exactly is the difference? I am curious as well. I have no doubt that the gelato I had in Italy tasted better than any ice cream I’ve ever had, but I am not sure why.
I thought gelato was made with eggs and ice cream with milk?
Gelato doesn’t have air in it like ice cream giving it a denser texture.
Huh?
Ice cream is made with cream or cream and milk. It can also be made with just milk. When I was a kid this was sold as “ice milk” but it’s often called “light ice cream” now. Ice cream can be made with eggs or without. If without, this is known as Philadelphia style ice cream.
The primary difference between ice cream and gelato is that gelato has less butterfat that typical ice cream, and also a lot less air, making it more dense.
It’s not gelato vs ice cream; gelato is a variety of ice cream. As wikipedia says:
So gelato is a variety of ice cream which has less butterfat than other ice creams, and has not been homogenized.
Ooh, ooh, I know this. As other posters have said, gelato is similar to ice cream but is more dense because it has less air beaten into it and also has less fat.
US laws dictate that ice cream must have at least 10 percent butterfat. There are no labeling rules in the US for gelato, so it is perfectly OK to call an ice cream-style frozen desert *gelato *if you want to; this is not fraud. Gelato is served at a higher temperature than ice cream, so a true gelato may not suit mass-market taste as it has to sit outside the freezer for a while to get up to temperature and soften.
Both gelato and ice cream may be made with eggs. Freench-style vanilla is typically made with eggs. Eggs act as an emulsifier and also add fat and flavor. Gelato in northern Italy may be made with eggs, but it is not as common in the south. Ice cream and gelato usually have other emulsifiers such as caraggean added. If made without eggs, this is extremely important to assure good texture.
I just had a three-day class on gelato recently, so this is all fresh in my mind.
Now you’ve piqued my interest. First, why did you take the class? Are you a restaurateur or otherwise in the food service industry? Second, what in the world is there about gelato that takes three days to talk about?
I am thinking of opening a gelateria. There is company that sells the good brand of gelato machines and also has a very good class. The class covered the basics of laying out a store such as the electrical and plumbing requirements. Next we covered how to make gelato, the equipment, the bases and mixes, and how to best display the product. Then we looked at sorbetto (fruit, water, sugar: no dairy) and how to calculate the right recipe based on sugar content of the fruit. What we made in class was really, really good. The fresh kiwi sorbetto was creamy and smooth even though it had no dairy. Pistachio gelato made from 100% Sicilian pistachio nuts with no added flavoring or artificial color tastes so much better than that green glop you usually get.
The instructors were both Italian and the three days was really just the tip of the ice(cream)berg.
Alton Brown describes the differences between gelato and ice cream in his Churn Baby Churn episode of Good Eats. Look at scene 6.