Psst...want to know what's even better than ice cream? Gelato, of course! Why? Ounce per ounce, gelato has significantly less fat than ice cream. Compared with regular, American-style ice cream, which goes at 10-18% butterfat, gelato makers add in 4-8% butterfat when making gelato. The fat-stinginess of the gelato maker is great news for those of us who are trying to limit our fat intake.
Additionally, gelato's low fat content means that, when you eat it, you get to taste other things besides just the fat. Regular ice cream coats your tongue with fatty acids, tryglycerides, and sometimes even trans fat. These fats block the flavors from reaching your taste buds. Regardless of whether the ice cream is packed with strawberries, pistachios, espresso, or exotic ingredients like green tea, if fat hits your tongue first, all those delicious flavors will go unappreciated.
However, it's not just the low fat content of gelato that makes it so great. Because of the way that the gelato maker mixes the concoction, gelato contains much less air space than regular ice cream. By volume, gelato contains 35% air, with a premium gelato maker like Ciao Bella packing in only 20% air. In contrast, regular ice cream contains 55% air volume or even more. Why is this significant? Because more air means significantly less flavor.
Why is there so much air in ice cream? In order to answer this question, think back to the fat percentage of regular ice cream. If you take any liquid mixture (which is how ice cream starts out) that contains almost 20% fat, and then you freeze that mixture, guess what happens? You get a solid piece of rock! For this reason, as much air as possible is whipped into the ice cream slurry before it is frozen. The air that is nestled between the pockets of fat maintains the ice cream in a semi-soft state. This is also why, if you happen to let your box of ice cream melt in the car and then re-freeze it, you get a solid chunk of non-servable cement back.
Gelato, on the other hand, does not have this problem. Consisting of minimal fat, it is best maintained at temperatures just at or above freezing (for example, 30F). There are special gelato freezers used by gelato makers and gelato machines that maintain gelato at this temperature. This is also why, if you buy gelato to take home, you should store it in the warmest place of your freezer, such as the side shelf.
Because gelato does not require actual freezing, it is not as cold, and thus more flavorful, when it hits your tongue. Really cold ice cream, which is sometimes served at -20F, tends to numb the taste buds. You can probably think of at least a few individuals in your life that let their ice cream warm up to the point of melting- and for good reason. With gelato, there is no need to wait. Your gelato maker has already made sure that your gelato comes naturally warmed up and ready to eat. And best of all, your gelato contains a lot less fat.
You may have noticed that most premium brand gelato is rather expensive. Not to worry: you can make your own healthful gelato using a simple gelato maker. The gelato maker, which is also called a gelato machine, is small and compact. The gelato maker carries an onboard gelato freezer, and best of all, allows you to save money on gelato. The basic ingredients for making gelato are also simple and inexpensive: sugar, milk, and fruit are the staples of any good and healthy gelato.
Now that you know all the benefits of gelato, can you really see yourself going back to eating ice cream?
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