News

Gelato scoops out niche in pizza biz

March 23, 2005

If you haven't heard of gelato, it's a good bet you will soon.

Gelato, Italian for "ice cream," is denser in texture and lower in fat than ice cream. It's also more intensely flavored and more vividly colored.

Gelato makers and suppliers of frozen dairy equipment say the sweet treat is well on its way to becoming one of the country's most popular frozen desserts.

John Kappus, regional sales manager for the Kappus Company, a frozen foods equipment distributor in Cleveland, predicts gelato's growth will closely mirror the growth of the premium coffee segment.

"If you look at the whole idea of the Starbucks experience, you see that people are willing to go in and buy a premium product," Kappus said. "(Customers) also expect an authentic and unique experience to go along with that. It's a cultural component that goes with gelato, too."

Beautiful and flavorful

Gelatos come in standard flavors such as chocolate, strawberry and vanilla, but in the hands of a serious gelato maker, the similarities begin to disappear. Flavors like tiramisu, sour cherry, pistachio, zabaglione (custard) and fondant (double chocolate made from pricey cocoas) are on the menu. In many cases those flavors are richer, deeper and more complex due to the ingredients used and because gelato's inherently lower fat content eases penetration to the palate.

"When I compare the flavor differences between gelato and ice cream, it's like comparing Starbucks to regular gas station coffee. It's that intense," said Dan Young, chief ice cream dipper at Young's Dairy in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Texture is an issue as well. Gelato's density gives it a pleasurable weight on the tongue, and though much smoother than frozen yogurt, the mouthfeel isn't as silky as high-butter-fat ice cream. Ice cream maker Jeni Britton said her personal texture preference lies somewhere between gelato and ice cream; she likes the higher butter fat of the latter.

"Still, (the lower fat) is a lot of why I like gelato, because it's a finer product and not as heavy as ice cream," said Britton, owner of Jeni's Fresh Ice Creams in Columbus, Ohio.

Seizing on the marketing advantages of a lower-fat product, Young tells his employees to let customers know about it.

Though he's been in the ice cream business for decades, Young is amazed at the imaginative possibilities of gelato, saying, "you can be creative with it until your brain hurts."

Britton agreed. She's seen gelato made from figs and even goat's cheese. The top taste at Jeni's is a unique one as well: salty caramel.

Necessary tools

Were a pizza operator to make fresh gelato in his shop, the investment would range from about $6,000 for a countertop gelato maker and a six-pan display case to $30,000 and up for a larger mixer and a 12-pan display case, said Kappus.

And don't think ice cream makers and freezers will work for gelato, Kappus added. To achieve its dense texture, the gelato dasher (the paddle inside the machine) turns much slower than in an ice cream maker. That measured movement also requires a mixer with more torque, meaning a more powerful motor than found in ice cream makers.

Ice cream freezer cases won't work either, because they chill only from the walls. Gelato cases use forced air to keep all sides of the product chilled to 5 F, about 15 degrees warmer than ice cream.