In recent years, the grand, robust taste of gelato began attracting converts from regular ice cream all over the world. As soon as you get your first taste of rich, delicious gelato, your desire for boring America ice cream will evaporate. There are many ways in which you can indulge your passion for gelato. Interested in a trip to Florence, Italy, the birthplace of gelato? No? Well, you can easily learn to make gelato yourself in your own home. In this report, we'll touch on different ways you can indulge in gelato.

Gelato - the original type - is prepared from natural, fresh ingredients. When you eat gelato, be certain that what you are getting is authentic. Gelato has been prepared in this fashion for hundreds of years and this tradition is carried on today. If the foods, whether fruits, nuts, chocolate or flavorings are artificial or processed, you will lose some of the rich flavor that makes gelato distinct. Like most products that become sought-after by the general public, gelato has fallen prey to being mass-produced. It goes without saying that the resultant product is inferior to fresh, authentic gelato. It's not difficult to make fresh, authentic gelato in your home if you don't have access to a gelateria or other location that sells quality Italian ice creams. One difference between gelato and common ice cream is the fact that gelato is meant to be eaten within a couple of days of its purchase. It can't be stored for weeks or months in the freezer like ice cream. The robust taste of a good gelato has a tendency to fade rather fast because the ingredients used to prepare it are, for the most part, fresh. The consistency of the gelato will be altered for the worse if ice crystals form on its surface. It's true that you can freeze gelato, but all this will do is extend the time it takes before it turns bad. You won't enjoy the same great taste and consistency after it freezes. This hinders manufacturers who mass-produce products like ice cream from being able to produce gelato as it was originally intended to be prepared. Yet, looked at another way, it helps to maintain the tradition of gelato as food that's meant to be served fresh.

Which is healthier - ice cream or gelato? Compare the ingredients and you can make this decision for yourself. Since you can make gelato from so many different items, you can't generalize about how many calories a serving has. If you're trying to cut back on calories, your best bet would be fruit based sorbets, which are not literally a type of ice cream, but are often sold along with gelato. American ice cream is made with cream, and has a higher calorie content than gelato, which is usually prepared with milk. Do you have a lactose intolerance? You can still make gelato, and save even more calories, by replacing the milk in your recipe with soy milk or plain yogurt. If sugar is an issue, there are varieties of gelato that are sugar-free.

You might have to search around in your supermarket to find gelato because it's outnumbered by American ice cream, but with the popularity of gelato increasing, that won't always be the case. American consumption of gelato may never overtake the amount of American ice cream that is traditionally eaten in the USA. Some reasons are that gelato shouldn't be stored for more than a couple of days and, due to the use of fresh ingredients, gelato is more expensive. The best option, of course, is to prepare your own gelato at home. That way it will be readily available at your merest whim.