The footprint of ice cream chains is shrinking across Australia, but boutique gelaterias have queues forming around the block. Why? Because in the world of gelato, as with bread, artisan is in.

Gelato Messina, N2 Extreme Gelato, Cremeria de Luca, Fritz, Shlix and Evercream Gelati – the ever-expanding list of authentic gelaterias around the country clearly indicates the market’s ripe for the picking. Perhaps it’s our warm climate, our long-standing love affair with ice cream, or our strong European cultural influences that’s behind gelato’s marketability.

Whatever the reason, it’s is here to stay. In fact, consumer shifts from ice cream to gelato, particularly in the retail market, have been tracked throughout the UK, the US, Asia and Australia in the past 12 months. Perceptions gelato and sorbet are healthier alternatives to ice cream are largely to thank for the trend, but calories aside, there’s no denying gelato – done well – is simply delicious.

It need not be specialty stores that reap all the benefits. More and more bakeries and patisseries are teaming up with gelato makers – or making their own – to entice customers with icy-cold recipe such as gelato doughnuts. Try it for yourself…

Gelato isn’t just the Italian word for ice cream. There are many differences between the two, the biggest being gelato generally contains less fat than ice cream as it uses whole milk. Ice cream, on the other hand, is made with cream, which can coat the tongue and mute other flavours. Gelato also has around half the amount of air of ice cream, which leads to a more intense flavour and a smoother, denser texture.

The Gelato World Cup, which recently wrapped up in Italy, showcased just how varied freshly churned gelato can get. Not only were special dietary needs met with gluten-free, dairy-free and diabetic-friendly recipes, but wide-ranging raw materials also meant classic flavours could enjoy an à la mode twist. Long-established favourite pistachio gelato was garnished with raspberry and rose syrup, while almond gelato was served with apricot sauce and amaretto decorations. And, with the addition of herbs and spices, such as bay leaf, rosemary, cardamom and saffron, traditionally sweet recipes were given savoury notes.

While Italy is the home of gelato, it was the Australian team’s flavours that stood out for innovation and originality.

“To be honest, without blowing our own horns, Australia is well ahead of the trends seen Italy. We tend to take more risks – some work, others don’t. But we don’t limit ourselves to the classics,” the Australian team’s gelato maker Donato Toce says.

And he’d know: Donato is head chef at one of the country’s most adored gelato stores, Gelato Messina. With 40 freshly-churned flavours in the Messina cabinets every day, Donato scoops out unorthodox flavour combinations such as dulce de leche with apple pie without batting an eye. 

“Don’t get me wrong, the classics are awesome, but there has to be a balance between both tradition and innovation,” he says.

“In fact, the large Italian gelato paste companies have just released salted caramel – which has already become a classic in Australia!”

Forget Italy, go local

GIMA’s gelato display

Robert Di Francesca knows a thing or two about artisan gelato. His father grew up in the gelato industry in Sicily, where some of the Di Francesca family still work today, before starting up Australia’s first and only commercial gelato and sorbet product manufacturer, Gelato Ingredients Manufacturers of Australia (GIMA).

Originally based out of country New South Wales, Robert and the team formed strong ties with local farmers and producers, and continue to source as much as they can from Australia. With macadamias from Byron Bay, pistachios from South Australia and figs and cherries from the Central West, GIMA transforms fresh ingredients into semi-finished pastes that are then sold to gelato makers.

“There’s a big difference in taste between gelato made from local ingredients versus those made from imported products – it’s the freshness that stands out, as well as the fruit content,” Robert says.

“We have a good farming process, it’s clean, transparent and we know where all the ingredients come from. Everything is direct from the farmers and processed straight away so it’s fresh, while a lot of the mass-produced imported products sit around for months and even years before they are used.”

Using local ingredients doesn’t only enhance the freshness, however, it also means gelato flavours can be tailored to the Australian palate. While Europeans are enamoured with the classics, such as hazelnut, lemon, vanilla and coffee, Australians expect more diverse flavour profiles, including everything from liquorice, Turkish delight and Kahlua through to spearmint, guava and ginger. For GIMA, burnt caramel is always a top seller, which gelato makers can then modify to include their own signature ingredients, be it salt or fig.

“What’s great about Australia is we have so many nationalities involved in this industry, and they are all creating their own flavours. There are Greek gelato shops opening up, and Turkish and Asian bakeries and restaurants using gelato in their own recipes. This is what makes us so unique – you don’t get this in Italy, which is why they are so focused on the classics,” Robert says.

“Maybe it will change with the next generation, but today, our multiculturalism has certainly made us more adventurous.”

How to spot a good gelato

Customers at Gelato Messina

Generally, you can pick quality gelato by the way it looks. It sounds obvious, but products made with natural colours and ingredients have delicate, pastel tones that look like crushed versions of the original food. Pistachio flavour, for example, should be an olive-green hue that resembles crushed nuts, not fluorescent green.

As for the structure, the end product has to slowly and easily scoop up, which will show it’s creamy and has a uniformly smooth consistency without lumpy bits of ice. If it melts too slowly or too quickly, the recipe has gone wrong somewhere – usually when fat is introduced.

Another point to ask yourself is, ‘does the gelato manufacturer offer fior di latte, or fior di panna?’ These flavours, made from pure milk and cream respectively, are the basic form of gelato, and most clearly expose the quality of the milk. The Italians are generally distrustful of a gelato shop that doesn’t at least offer fior di latte.

Ultimately, the proof is in the taste. If you still want more after eating a few scoops, you’ve got a quality product. If you feel thirsty, however, try again.

The inside scoop

Min Chai

With n2 extreme gelato owner min chai

BB: Is there science behind liquid nitrogen, or does it just sound and look cool?
Min: There’s a truckload of science behind it! First, you need to understand ice cream gelato is a cross-breed of art and science creating a microstructure of ice crystals, air bubbles, fat droplets and a viscous solution of sugars, polysaccharides and milk proteins. It involves physical chemistry, food science, colloid science, chemical engineering, microscopy, materials science and ultimately consumer science. The use of liquid nitrogen at N2 Extreme Gelato plays on the strength of a phenomenon called nucleation-dominated ice crystallisation – it forms a large number of microscopic ice crystals in seconds, resulting in exceptionally smooth textures. This also means we are able to make gelato on order and serve it at that perfect temperature of -6°C: freshness guaranteed.

BB: So liquid nitrogen is safe to eat and work with?
Min: Of course it’s safe. Nitrogen is non-toxic, non-flammable and it constitutes 78.09 per cent of the earth’s atmosphere. Yes, that’s a quote from wikipedia and we’re not ashamed of it! Liquid nitrogen boils off when it comes in contact with anything warmer than itself (the boiling point of liquid nitrogen is -196°C) and we guarantee its completely evaporated by the time its in your cup. Customers’ safety is our priority and we do have rigorous safety procedures and training in place to keep everyone safe.

BB: What’s your take on ‘skinny’ gelato? Do you try to appease the hoards of health conscious consumers?
Min: We don’t do skinny, fat-free desserts. We are indulgent and we make no apologies for it. We source our full cream milk and fresh cream from local dairies, we use real fruits, fresh herbs, weird and wacky ingredients we stumble across in our made-to-order gelato and sorbet – so it’s all of the good stuff. Come here for some pampering and real lurvin’.

BB: Are you going to ever run out of exotic and bizarre flavours?
Min: There’s a section of our website that encourages customers to come up with their own flavours. They name it, describe it and tell us the story or the inspiration behind it. It’s been a tremendous success and we’ve integrated many of them into the store. It’s a great way to engage with our followers on social media while also keeping our menu fresh and crazy.

Fior Di Latte Gelato by Gelato Messina

Literally translating to “flower of milk”, but referring to the best part of the milk, this is a ‘naked’ gelato flavour. With no vanilla, no eggs and no fruit, there’s nowhere to hide in this recipe, which spotlights the milk and the cream for a simple fragrance and taste.

It’s also the foundation for a lot of more complex gelatos, making it an important recipe to perfect. You can choose between standard cows milk, or buffalo milk – but the latter makes for a beautifully white result.

Ingredients:
650g milk (Jersey cow milk or buffalo milk*)
12g cream
145g sugar
45g skim milk powder
35g dextrose
5g stabiliser

*If you use buffalo milk, replace the cream with more buffalo milk and subtract about 10g off the amount of skim milk powder to keep the recipe balanced.

Method:
1. Put the milk and cream in a pasteuriser and select high pasteurisation. Put all the powders in a bowl and dry mix.

2. When the milk and cream hit 40°C, whisk in the powders; the pasteuriser will take the mixture to 85°C, then will switch to cooling phase. Once the pasteuriser runs its cycle and gets down to 4°C, let the mixture age for 4 hours at 4°C.

CHURNING:
1. Measure an appropriate amount of mixture into a measuring jug and put in a batch freezer. Within 10-12 minutes, your mixture should be ready for extraction.

2. For long-term storage, up to two weeks: Put the gelato in a blast freezer for 30 minutes, then store at -18°C. For short-term storage, two to three days: Put the gelato in a storage freezer at -18°C.

SERVING:
The serving temperature of the gelato should be around -11-13°C.

Recipe extract from Gelato Messina: The Recipes (Nick Palumbo)