Sweet Tooth

I'll admit it...I LOVE really good gelato! It doesn't matter if it's summer or the middle of winter, I gleefully enjoy a petite scoop of this creamy perfection any time of the year. So you can imagine my sheer delight when the most incredible gelateria opened near our house - Cici (pronounced the Italian way, "chee chee").

This gelato is artisanal...meaning Michael and Liana (the owners) make every flavor from scratch in the kitchen above the shop! They use organic ingredients including Straus milk and cream (which is my ULTIMATE favorite dairy farm), organic eggs, and local fruit. The flavors change with the seasons according to what is available fresh from local farms. Some of the flavors yesterday included: Toasted California Pistachio, Organic Blackberry (yes, it's the stunning purple one in the photo! AND they just happened to hand-pick the blackberries on their way to work that morning!), Organic Coffee & Honey, Organic Fresh Spearmint & Chocolate Chip, Organic Strawberries & Cream, Fior di Latte (the Straus dairy sweet cream which is always offered and one of my very favorites), Organic Lemon Sorbetto, and at least 6 other flavors that will make your taste buds swoon!

I'm not sure if having this delectable gelateria near me is a good thing or not because every where we go, I compare the gelato to Cici...and I've yet to find anything that supersedes any of their creamy scoops. Michael and Liana are not only my gelato heroes, but they also operate Cici as a green business (less packaging, compost food waste, eliminate paper waste, and recycle - not to mention they deliver gelato locally via a very cool bike!) because they honor and respect our one Earth.

As you can imagine, supporting this local independently-owned business is a delicious pleasure!

[photo by Reverie-Daydream]