We use certified organic, grass-fed whole milk and cream produced on our Pennsylvania farm.
Since organic milk and cream are our main ingredients, we set out to find the best milk money could buy. When we discovered Spring Wood Organic Farm in central Pennsylvania, we knew our search was over. Owner Roman Stoltzfoos is one of the most established and experienced organic dairy farmers in the U.S. His simple philosophy is that healthier grazing cows produce healthier and better milk and since nature created the cow as a grass-grazing machine, all a farmer needs to do is follow nature's simple user manual. Less than one percent of the dairy farms in the U.S. have grass-fed herds and true organic cows produce less milk than the factory herds, but the trade-off in terms of quality, flavor and, above all, health more than justifies the higher cost. The difference in taste is immediately evident even if you're not a milk sommelier.
We treat our milk as a precious commodity. Because every time milk is heated during pasteurization its quality is compromised, we start making our product with raw milk and pasteurize it only once as we prepare each batch. This gentle method preserves the milk's quality by avoiding double pasteurization. For city dwellers, our gelato might be the closest thing to fresh organic cow's milk that they'll ever taste..
Eggs
In the old days, gelato makers relied mainly on egg yolk's natural emulsifying characteristics as a stabilizer, instead of extra fat and artificial stabilizers. Fresh egg yolk is still the best emulsifier nature has to offer. We make the effort to crack and separate our farm fresh eggs to create the Crema and other flavors.
Our organic eggs come from Spring Wood Organic Farm's free-range chickens, raised by Delmar Stoltzfoos. These chicken enjoy a diet free of antibiotics and growth-promoting hormones. Their organic brown eggs are actually laid on the very same day that we use them in our gelato. These eggs are nothing you are likely to ever see in your local supermarket (where "Grade A" eggs may legally be a month old); their incredibly clean taste and bright yellow color are evident in some of our more delicate recipes.
Nocciola (Hazelnut)
Also known as filberts, hazelnuts have been grown in southern Europe for many centuries. As a matter of fact, in Italy Nocciola is the third most popular ice cream flavor. The delicate silky taste and aroma makes this a totally addictive flavor. To compensate for the hazelnut's elevated fat content, we use less cream in this recipe.
We use imported "Nocciola di Piemonte (IGP)," which are not certified organic but we simply could not find anything certified that comes close to their flavor and we are totally satisfied with their purity.
Pistachio
Pistachios are grown in the Middle East (Iran and Turkey) and California. Few people are aware of Italian pistachios because precious little of the crop is exported. One particular Italian variety, Bronte, is cultivated on the slopes of Mount Etna, an active volcano. The nut is of different than the common pistachio; longer in shape with a brilliant green color and an intense flavor that cannot be imitated. As if to make matters a bit more complicated, the plant yields a crop only once in two years... so with all this going on, you'll understand why we felt compelled to fly the little gems in and use them in our pistachio gelato.
Sugars
We use all organic cane and corn sugars and we strive to make our flavors balanced and not overly sweet, which can be a challenge. When judging sweetness we aim for the clean aftertaste.
Vanilla
Our gelato is made with organically grown Madagascar Bourbon vanilla beans. We use only real bean caviar, no extracts or pastes... and we use it liberally.
Fruits
We prefer to use local organic fruit in season, primarily in sorbets. All of our fruit flavors are made of fresh-picked fruit. |
