The word gelato is the past participle of the Italian verb, gelare, to freeze. The term is often used in Italy for any frozen dessert, whether milk or water-based. In the most common definition, gelati are made from milk-based mixtures and sorbetti and granite are fruit-based.

Sorbetto, called sorbet in French, is made from juice or strained fruit puree, whereas cremolata is made with unstrained pureed fruit. Granita is fruit-flavored icy granules, coarser than sorbetto, and so slushy that in hot weather it is best served in a glass. Ideally, gelati, sorbetti and granite should be made daily in small batches with no added chemical preservatives, emulsifiers or stabilizers.

Gelato, sorbetto and granita flavors run the gamut from seasonal fresh fruits to popular essences including coffee and chocolate or liqueurs such as vin santo, Marsala, limoncello or even grappa. Each bite packs a wallop of sensory stimulation, a celebration of the primary ingredient undisguised by additives or cloying, heavy ingredients that mask the original flavor.

Though lower in fat, often with no more than six to seven percent butterfat, gelato has much more flavor than American ice cream. This is because fat tends to coat the mouth, blocking the experience of the fresh and natural flavor. In addition, the best gelaterie use full-flavored seasonal products, maximizing the essence of the main ingredient. Another reason for the intense flavors is that gelato is kept at a warmer freezing temperature. The consistency is dense and velvety, with less air beaten into it. The softer texture glides through the mouth, and because it is not so cold, the taste buds do not become numb with freezing, but are open to accept more of the flavor.

As with most foods in Italy, each region has a local interpretation, whether in style or in the use of local ingredients. In the south, particularly in Sicily, gelato made with milk or fresh cheese may be thickened with vegetable starch rather than eggs. In central Italy, the base is a custard made with milk and eggs. In the north, the custard is richer, made by adding cream.

The heat of the day's sun is waning as we take our after-dinner stroll, the traditional passeggiata that fills the streets with families and chatting and nodding hellos as they pass. Facing the bustle of this joyful street scene, a sparkling glass beckons. A handprinted sign, Nostra Produzione (our production), dangles over the pastel rainbow of stainless-steel tubs filled with freshly made gelato, promising that the gelato is made on the premises. Another smaller sign, Produzione Artigianale (artisan production), is taped inside the window.

Our passeggiata is interrupted by the pleasure of selecting two or three flavors of this handcrafted gelato to fill a little paper cup. "Leccato dalle parti, se no ti sporchi" ("Lick around the sides so it won't drip"), I hear a mother instructing a toddler with a creamy chocolate-filled cone.

Eating gelato, like drinking espresso, is a favorite Italian pasttime. It is an opportunity to linger for conversation and people-watching, and a way to cool down from summer's unrelenting heat. In the south, gelato is even eaten for breakfast, served in a fresh brioche with a steaming cup of rich, black coffee!

Who invented frozen desserts? The Bible tells us that Isaac offered Abraham goat milk mixed with snow. The Chinese recorded eating a refreshing iced mixture as early as 200 B.C. From there, the process of making frozen sweets probably found its way to India and then Persia, and was brought to Sicily by the Arabs. In early Rome, of the first year A.D., Emperor Nero Claudius Caesar was said to have had his slaves bring him snow and ice to be flavored with honey and fruits.

In the 7th century, something known as sharbet, a crushed ice drink flavored with local fruit, was found among the Arab population of Sicily. The Greeks and the Turks made a lemon ice called by a similar name, serbet or sharbat, which literally means "fresh beverage." Other sources report that Marco Polo returned to Italy with a recipe for sherbet from the Far East in the 12th century.

In the ruins of the taverns of Pompeii, a device was found that was equipped with what may have been a cooling unit containing a residue of lemon, wild berries and fish gelatin. Ice vendors collected blocks of ice and conserved them in salt in large caverns, then distributed them to upper-class taverns and wealthy families. A scoop of crushed iced was served with a drizzle of saba or sapa, a sweet syrup of reduced grape must. The beverage was drunk then the flavored ice was eaten. It must have been a true luxury in the intense heat of a Campania summer.

Caterina de' Medici, who was born in Florence and was queen to Henry II in France in the mid-1500s, brought sorbetto to France. A few years earlier, the court of the Medici in Florence, held a contest to discover a "singular plate that has never been seen." Guiseppe Ruggeri, a vendor of chicken, showed up and prepared an exquisite sorbetto, and became quite famous as a result.

When Caterina married Henry II, she brought Ruggeri with her to challenge the French chefs. He created splendid concoctions for the many heads of Europe. All of the powerful noble families wanted to know his secrets, but Caterina refused every request. Ruggeri, hated by all the cooks of the capital, was often physically accosted. Eventually, he left the recipe in an envelope for Caterina, having written on the back: "With your permission I return to my chickens, hoping they won't remind me of the pleasures of my gelato."

In the same era, Florentine court architect and artist Bernardo Buontalenti was credited with inventing the first gelato to be churned over salt and ice. He built an ice cave in the Boboli Palace and served his "marvels of gelati" at the Medici's many sumptuous banquets. Buontalenti invented a way to blend the sweetened milk with a zabaglione of Malavasia wine and egg yolks and then freeze it. A gelato flavor is still named after him today: Buontalenti, a rich, eggy gelato with a warm yellow color due to the golden yolks of corn-fed chickens.

Gelato was not only a food for the nobles. By the early 1600s, every public square in Italy hosted a little threewheeled cart of carved and painted wood selling sorbetti. Meanwhile, in the streets, other rolling vendors made the rounds to the sound of a little bell. In the heat of summer, refreshing ices could be found at folk festivals and became a popular treat following religious gatherings.

Pistachio gelato is the benchmark by which many gelaterie are judged. You can tell at a glance if an artificial base has been used, just by the color. If the gelato maker is using real pistachio nuts, the color will be almost drab green. If the bin flashes a neon green, keep walking.

Sorbetto Bellini

The white peaches of the Veneto inspired a bartender at Harry's Bar in Venice to create the Bellini cocktail using the local Prosecco, a sparkling white wine, and a peach puree. In this variation, the puree is made into sorbetto and served in glasses of the wine.

--Pamela Sheldon Johns Reprinted from Gelato! Italian Ice Creams, Sorbetti & Granite by Pamela Sheldon Johns. Photography by Joyce Oudkerk Pool and Pamela Sheldon Johns. © 2008. Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, CA. www.tenspeed.co