I had to eat some before I took the photo… yum!

I have a rule when I go to Italy.  I eat gelato every day!  And if I miss a day I should have it twice the next.

I’ve had gelato all over Italy. But the best I ever had was discovered on the waterfront in the town of Monterosso al Mare in Cinque Terre in a shop called “Slurp… Gelato Artigianale”.  It was here and only here I found a flavor known as Crema al Limone made with the fresh local lemons and fresh cream. Other lemon gelatos I saw throughout Italy were not creamy but more like a sorbetto. This creamy version was so amazing I knew I had to learn how to make it and I nailed it on my first try!

The owner of the shop was super friendly.  I forgot to find out his name.  When I took his picture his friend had to get in it.

Owner of Slurp and his friend

The key to this gelato is the double whammy of freshly squeezed lemon juice (don’t use the bottled stuff!), and fresh lemon zest.  Feel free to sub some limoncello for some of the lemon juice for a different twist.

My beautiful wife and granddaughter

Gelato is not any more difficult than ice cream to make. First you make a custard with the dairy and egg yolks.  Then, once cooled you freeze it just like ice cream.  Ice cream makers mix in a little more air than is ideal for gelato.  If you want to make gelato all of the time you can buy a gelato maker but I find the results satisfactory with my ice cream maker.

I served this gelato at a dinner with some chef friends recently and everyone raved about it.  We had just finished a six-course dinner so we were pretty full, but this lemon gelato topped us off perfectly.

Train station in Monterosso

If you’ve never been to Cinque Terre this will give you one more reason to go.  But even if you can’t make the trip, this amazing gelato will transport you there.

KETO OPTION: If you are on a Keto diet this recipe is super easy to modify. Just use a sugar substitute such as Swerve instead of sugar.

Scroll down for the recipe or if you would like it in PDF format click here… Crema al Limone Recipe PDF

Buon appetito!

My version of Crema al Limone

The view from the tables across from Slurp