[KREH-mah] 1. Italian for "cream". A dish served "alla crema" is with a cream sauce; crema caramella [kah-rah-MEH-lah] is a dessert (see crème caramel); crema inglese [een-GLEH-she] is a creamy dessert sauce (see crème anglaise); crema pasticceria [pah-stee-cheh-REE-ah] is pastry cream (see crème patissière). 2. The word crema is also used to describe the creamy, buff-colored froth on the surface of an espresso.