Expectant mothers turning to 'magic' gelato flavour at Ottawa café
If rumours are to be believed, Old Ottawa South's own Stella Luna Gelato has created a flavour like no other: one credited with sending "hundreds" of pregnant women into labour.
The flavour blends rich Mayan chocolate, hot chili peppers and a pinch of cinnamon.
"And then there's a little dash of magic!" shop owner Tammy Giuliani told Ottawa Morning host Robyn Bresnahan.
Any expectant mother will tell you, nine months is a long time to carry a baby.
So it's no surprise there's an equally long list of pleasurable things thought to bring on labour: from walking to sex, breast pumps to pineapples, spicy foods to raspberry leaf tea.
But gelato?
"I have no proof other than babies are being born and it's right after a cup of our gelato," Giuliani said.
Giuliani said she first made the flavour for a very pregnant customer who came into her shop one day. And apparently, it worked.
Since then, Giuliani said she has served customers who have been sent to her shop from the delivery room specifically to get a cup of the "magic" treat.
"We've had women who have lost their water in the bathroom, women panting at the back table mid-cup, ready to rush back to the hospital. So it's really working," she said.
One of those women is Sapna Mahajan.
"I was very pregnant, too pregnant, and wanted the baby out," said Mahajan, who visited the shop with her husband at the end of her pregnancy.
Minutes after she finished her cup of Giuliani's special flavour, Mahajan's water broke.
"I yelled to my husband to come in the bathroom, because I wasn't sure what was happening," Mahajan said, laughing.
Hours later, Mahajan delivered her baby.
Not just the ingredients?
While Giuliani said the flavour's ingredients might play a role, she insisted there's more involved.
"To have that moment — sitting down and eating, having someone bring you a cup of this — you can just kind of relax," she said.
"I think that is part of the magic. It's just believing that it can happen."
Pregnant women can enjoy the labour-inducing gelato for free if they visit the shop on their due date.
Giuliani also plans to start a baby wall, featuring pictures of all the newborns who have come into the world with a little help from chocolate, chilies and cinnamon.
