The ski slopes in central Italy have just finished whitening, the temperatures have reached close to zero and the days are still short.
Now you may be wondering what ice cream has to do with the cold season, you may be wondering why we are talking to you about ice cream in January.Oggi abbiamo deciso di scrivere un articolo sul gelato per due motivi:
- To help you choose the best artisan gelato in Italy
- Because it is never the wrong season for good ice cream
ARTISAN ICE CREAM: THE ORIGINS Artisanal ice cream is undoubtedly a dessert known all over the world, and numerous tales, verging between fantasy and legend, have been passed down over time around its origins. Tracing the origin of ice cream is not easy, as there are many historical testimonies and references to the ancient custom of preserving milk and food by freezing them. There are also several disputes that have arisen over the centuries to claim the frieze of the inventor of ice cream.
Not going into details, we can say that the inventor of ice cream goes by the name of Bernardo Buontalenti, a Florentine architect with a passion for cooking. He invented a very creamy dessert made of milk, sugar, eggs, honey and wine in the 17th century.
HOW TO CHOOSE A GOOD ARTISANAL GELATO WITHOUT FALLING INTO TOURIST TRAPS? Here is a vademecum to keep in mind when entering an ice-cream parlour:
- Avoid ice cream parlours that have mountains of ice cream on display, quantity does not correspond to quality very often.
- The table of ingredients must always be present. Whether it is a clearly visible sign or a book, it must be available and consultable by the customer. It is synonymous with seriousness, respect for the law and transparency towards the customer.
- The ingredients of the ice cream must be few and well understood, if you read strange names it means that the ice cream is rich in elements that make it ultra-processed.
- Be wary of colours that are too bright (although nowadays you can find bad ice-creams with absolutely perfect colours), masses that are too shiny or too opaque (in which case it could be a product that is too full of fat or too old).
- The consistency of the ice cream should only be assessed when tasting and not when serving. An ice cream that you notice is too hard and firm at the time of serving may turn out to be silky and melting when you taste it.
THE BEST ICE-CREAM SHOPS Now that you know what to look at to evaluate your ice-cream, here are some of the best Italian ice-cream parlours:
Toscana
Gelateria della Passera | FIRENZE
Chiccheria | GROSSETO
De’ Coltelli | PISA
Dondoli | SAN GIMIGNANO [SI]
Sicilia
Cappadonia Gelati | PALERMO
Puglia
G&co | TRICASE [LE]
