There is a lot of confusion over these two terms, so we though we’d clarify it for you.

Honestly, we don’t actually care what you call it, as long as you love it.

But here’s a bit of background for you.

Gelato is an Italian word, meaning “frozen”, whilst Ice cream is an American one. But the definition goes deeper than that.

There is a huge difference between a high end, great quality gelato and a cheap ‘ready mix’ ice cream that’s just full of chemicals and air.

During manufacture the mixture goes through a process called ‘pasturisation’.

The ingredients are first mixed together, but then left to ‘rest’ or ‘age’ … to allow the molecules to re-combine.

The next stage is freezing, when the liquid mixture is churned and frozen at the same time. During this churning process, it is inevitable that a certain amount of air gets incorporated into the mixture. This expansion is called ‘Overrun’ and is where the big difference between Gelato and Ice cream occurs .

Most of the soft scoop ice cream is made up of half mixture and half air. You’re mostly paying for the air content! Producers of this sub standard stuff make enormous profits. Their overrun is anything from 100% upwards.

Their ice cream is literally full of chemicals and air!

That’s why it comes out of those machines as a fluffy concoction.

This isn’t an option for a true Gelato, as teh mixture is generally too heavy, because the amount of air in a high class product will probably be around the 30% mark. Gelato Masters endeavor to keep the overrun to a bare minimum, offering their customers a far superior quality product. Because Gelato is made up of more mixture than air, the end result has a thicker texture, compared to a cheap ice cream. As an example, a 1-litre liquid mix of soft scoop or industrially produced ice cream will end up as a 2-litre tub , because there is an overrun of 100% (equal parts air and liquid).

Cheap producers buy industrial packets of ‘Ready Mix’ ice cream. Basically this is a mixture of chemicals, very little of it contains any natural ingredients. All they have to do is pour it into their machines and add milk and air.

They can then sell their ice cream is ‘Real Dairy Ice cream’ The profit margins for producers of this stuff is enormous, and quality producers often struggle to compete. So, what you’re paying for is air and chemicals!

Anyway enough ranting … we at Conti’s firmly believe that our customers are discerning enough to tell the difference between cheap, synthetic ice cream and quality Gelato, offered by producers such as ourselves.

Our customers are a discerning bunch and will always gravitate to a quality product. They also buy quality for their children, whenever possible, even if it is slightly more expensive, (which is often not the case)!

Why would you feed your loved ones a sub-standard product?

Is it Gelato or is it Ice cream?