Why Gelato?
Because It Has a Long History of Being Delicious

It’s hard to imagine that Italian volcanoes Etna and Vesuvius have caused such an eruption in the 21st century America, seeing as these locations helped contribute to the development of frozen desserts more than 5000 years ago. First, Asian cultures discovered they could consume crushed ice and flavorings. Five hundred years later, it became a custom for Egyptian pharaohs to offer their guests a cup of ice sweetened with fruit juices. Romans later began the ritual of eating the ice of the volcanoes Etna and Vesuvius, covering it with honey. Then came the Italian Renaissance during the 14th century, when gelato was officially developed by famous artist and architect Bernardo Buontalenti. From that point, gelato began dominating taste buds all over the world, including the U.S. beginning in 1770 after being introduced to this continent by Italian native Giovanni Biasiolo. At this point, there were two types of gelato – one made by mixing water with fruits such as lemon and strawberries (also known as Sorbetto), and another made by mixing milk with cinnamon, pistachio, coffee or chocolate. But due to the invention of the hand-crank freezer, and the subsequent birth of the industrial ice cream industry, gelato would take a back seat to American-made ice cream (which contains more air), and would not begin to re-emerge in popularity again until the late 1900s. However, as it stands today, gelato is one of the hottest commodities on the frozen dessert market, writing a new chapter in culinary history as one of the greatest success stories in dessert innovation