Is the difference between sorbet and sherbet just a matter of pronunciation? Is gelato just ice cream that comes from Italy? Gelato, ice cream, and sorbet are all delicious, especially in these still steamy waning days of summer, but these three cool treats are different branches of the frozen dessert tree. Here are the creamy details.

Gelato: made with milk, cream, sugar, and possibly a flavoring (mint, espresso, fruit, etc…), gelato is made in the Italian style, which means slowly stirred by a machine while freezing, result in very little air being whipped in.

Ice cream: a generally broad term used to describe a frozen dessert, typically made with milk, cream, sugar, and flavoring. A specific characteristic of ice cream is it is churned by a machine to incorporate significant amounts of air into the dessert, creating a more whipped texture.

Sorbet: made distinctly from sweetened juice, wine, or water and always dairy free. Very little air is incorporated during the freezing process in a machine, and alcohol is often included to reduce iciness. This frozen delight contains just fruit and sugar—no dairy. It’s often churned in an ice cream maker, which makes it scoopable but not creamy. Restaurants use sorbet as a palette cleanser during multi-course meals because its intense fruit flavor is extra refreshing. Bonus: it’s incredibly easy to make at home. Try our no-churn Raspberry-Peach Sorbet or Mango Sorbet.

Honorable Mentions

Sherbet: the love child of ice cream and sorbet. Juice, wine, or water-based with a small amount of dairy mixed in. Processed similar to ice cream with a small amount of air being whipped in.

Granita: made with the same ingredients as sorbet, sweetened juice, wine, or water, but produced without a machine. Granita is frozen in a standard freezer, then scraped periodically with a fork to create large ice crystals.

Italian ice: Very similar to sorbet, but is typically made without any alcohol to produce a coarser texture. The absence of alcohol and coarse texture often makes Italian ice less costly.

Frozen custard: Made with the same ingredients as ice cream but with the addition of egg yolks, creating possibly a more expensive but very dense dessert.

Soft-serve ice cream: Made with the same ingredients as ice cream, but copious amounts of air are whipped into the cream during the freezing process. The additional air is typically 50% or greater of the finished product, allowing for easy dispensing.

Shaved ice: The odd man out here, but one of my favorites. Made with thinly chipped fragments of ice and topped with a flavored syrup before serving.

Frozen desserts are popular treats around the world, and with so many kinds there are only subtle differences between them. Ice cream, gelato, sherbet, and sorbet are all frozen dessert with their own distinct characteristics.

What Is Ice Cream?

Ice cream is a frozen dessert made from a custard made of milk, cream, sweetener, and often egg yolks.

Fat content. Ice cream has the highest milk fat content of any frozen dessert, usually ranging between 14 to 25 percent (the USDA requires that ice cream have at least 10 percent milkfat).

Texture. Ice cream’s fluffy, creamy texture is unique among frozen desserts. Ice cream is churned (in an ice cream maker) at high speeds to add air bubbles to the mixture, resulting in its unique texture. It can also be served in a style called “soft serve,” which has more air bubbles and is served at a slightly higher temperature for an ultra soft swirl.

Flavor. Ice cream is incredibly versatile in flavor, and ice cream flavors can include anything from caramel to strawberry to pistachio to chocolate. Adding toppings like chocolate sauce or nuts to vanilla ice cream, creates an ice cream dessert variation called a sundae.

Temperature. Ice cream is served at the coldest temperature of most frozen desserts (between 6 degrees and 10 degrees Fahrenheit). This affects its flavor—the cold temperature numbs your taste buds and doesn’t allow strong flavors to come through in ice cream as well as they do in gelato, sherbet, or sorbet.