Grateful for Gelato

My first experience with Gelato came in a small shop in Cleveland's Little Italy.

Just looking at it created a sense of hunger for something I'd never had before; never heard of before.

It was such an incredible taste and experience - enjoying it in a shop where it was made - that I decided I couldn't treat myself to it until there was another genuine article in front of me.

Looking through the glass in the Blue Spoon Cafe this past Saturday morning... I knew I had to have a dish.

Yet, I wasn't sure what was in the delightful ice cream treat... but couldn't decipher the name.

Pannacotta, cooked cream and burnt caramel, was my choice.   It did not disappoint.

The smoky flavor of caramel was silky from the spoon and the cooked cream offered a soft sugary flavor.

Gelato, is described as Italy's version of ice cream, but with three primary differences.

1. It has much less butterfat than regular ice cream which typically has 18 - 26%.

2. It is much denser than ice cream because no air is added during the process of mixing the milk, cream, and sugar.

3. It is served warmer than ice cream.  At the Blue Spoon Cafe in Prairie du Sac they hold the temperature at 8 degrees Fahrenheit so it doesn't freeze hard.

The result is creamy, quick melting, dense dairy treat. 


My thought remains that to get a real good Gelato you should only get a cone or dish someplace where they make it on site.

The slowly made treat is amazingly tasty - a lot of flavor packed into a small dose.

The small cup I ordered was a delight.  And, now that I know it's healthier for me (relatively speaking) there's another reason to enjoy some more.

That sounds like the reason for a bike ride when spring rolls into America's Dairyland.