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Recipes | Gelato: A Sweet Taste of Italy (July . . .
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Gelato: A Sweet Taste of Italy (July/August 2008)
The word gelato is the past
participle of the Italian verb,
gelare, to freeze. The term is
often used in Italy for any frozen
dessert, whether milk or water-based.
In the most common definition, gelati
are made from milk-based mixtures
and sorbetti and granite are fruit-based.
Sorbetto, called sorbet in
French, is made from juice or
strained fruit puree, whereas cremolata
is made with unstrained pureed
fruit. Granita is fruit-flavored icy
granules, coarser than sorbetto, and
so slushy that in hot weather it is
best served in a glass. Ideally, gelati,
sorbetti and granite should be made
daily in small batches with no added
chemical preservatives, emulsifiers or
stabilizers.
Gelato, sorbetto and granita flavors
run the gamut from seasonal fresh
fruits to popular essences including
coffee and chocolate or liqueurs such
as vin santo, Marsala, limoncello or
even grappa. Each bite packs a wallop
of sensory stimulation, a celebration
of the primary ingredient undisguised
by additives or cloying,
heavy ingredients that mask the
original flavor.
Though lower in fat, often with no
more than six to seven percent butterfat,
gelato has much more flavor
than American ice cream. This is
because fat tends to coat the mouth,
blocking the experience of the fresh
and natural flavor. In addition, the best
gelaterie use full-flavored seasonal
products, maximizing the essence of
the main ingredient. Another reason
for the intense flavors is that gelato is
kept at a warmer freezing temperature.
The consistency is dense and velvety,
with less air beaten into it. The softer
texture glides through the mouth, and
because it is not so cold, the taste buds
do not become numb with freezing,
but are open to accept more of the
flavor.
As with most foods in Italy, each
region has a local interpretation,
whether in style or in the use of local
ingredients. In the south, particularly
in Sicily, gelato made with milk or
fresh cheese may be thickened with
vegetable starch rather than eggs. In
central Italy, the base is a custard made
with milk and eggs. In the north, the
custard is richer, made by adding
cream.
The heat of the day's sun is waning as
we take our after-dinner stroll, the
traditional passeggiata that fills the
streets with families and chatting and
nodding hellos as they pass. Facing the
bustle of this joyful street scene, a
sparkling glass beckons. A handprinted
sign, Nostra Produzione (our
production), dangles over the pastel
rainbow of stainless-steel tubs filled
with freshly made gelato, promising
that the gelato is made on the premises.
Another smaller sign, Produzione
Artigianale (artisan production), is
taped inside the window.
Our passeggiata is interrupted by the
pleasure of selecting two or three
flavors of this handcrafted gelato to fill
a little paper cup. "Leccato dalle parti, se
no ti sporchi" ("Lick around the sides so
it won't drip"), I hear a mother
instructing a toddler with a creamy
chocolate-filled cone.
Eating gelato, like drinking espresso,
is a favorite Italian pasttime. It is an
opportunity to linger for conversation
and people-watching, and a way to
cool down from summer's unrelenting
heat. In the south, gelato is even eaten
for breakfast, served in a fresh brioche
with a steaming cup of rich, black
coffee!
Who invented frozen desserts? The
Bible tells us that Isaac offered Abraham
goat milk mixed with snow. The
Chinese recorded eating a refreshing
iced mixture as early as 200 B.C. From
there, the process of making frozen
sweets probably found its way to India
and then Persia, and was brought to
Sicily by the Arabs. In early Rome, of
the first year A.D., Emperor Nero
Claudius Caesar was said to have had
his slaves bring him snow and ice to be
flavored with honey
and fruits.
In the 7th century,
something known as
sharbet, a crushed ice
drink flavored with
local fruit, was found
among the Arab population
of Sicily. The
Greeks and the Turks
made a lemon ice
called by a similar
name, serbet or sharbat,
which literally
means "fresh beverage."
Other sources
report that Marco Polo
returned to Italy with
a recipe for
sherbet from the Far
East in the 12th century.
In the ruins of the taverns of Pompeii, a
device was found that was equipped
with what may have been a cooling
unit containing a residue of lemon,
wild berries and fish gelatin. Ice
vendors collected blocks of ice and
conserved them in salt in large caverns,
then distributed them to upper-class
taverns and wealthy families. A scoop
of crushed iced was served with a
drizzle of saba or sapa, a sweet syrup
of reduced grape must. The beverage
was drunk then the flavored ice
was eaten. It must have been a true
luxury in the intense heat of a
Campania summer.
Caterina de' Medici, who was born in
Florence and was queen to Henry II in
France in the mid-1500s, brought sorbetto
to France. A few years earlier, the
court of the Medici in Florence, held a
contest to discover a "singular plate
that has never been seen." Guiseppe
Ruggeri, a vendor of chicken, showed
up and prepared an exquisite sorbetto,
and became quite famous as a result.
When Caterina married
Henry II, she brought
Ruggeri with
her to challenge
the
French chefs.
He created
splendid concoctions
for
the many
heads of
Europe. All of
the powerful
noble families wanted
to know his secrets, but
Caterina refused every
request. Ruggeri, hated
by all the cooks of the
capital, was often physically
accosted.
Eventually, he left the recipe in an
envelope for Caterina, having written
on the back: "With your permission I
return to my chickens, hoping they
won't remind me of the pleasures of
my gelato."
In the same era, Florentine court architect
and artist Bernardo Buontalenti was
credited with inventing the first gelato
to be churned over salt and ice. He
built an ice cave in the Boboli Palace
and served his "marvels of gelati" at
the Medici's many sumptuous banquets.
Buontalenti invented a way to
blend the sweetened milk with a
zabaglione of Malavasia wine and egg
yolks and then freeze it. A gelato flavor
is still named after him today:
Buontalenti, a rich, eggy gelato with a
warm yellow color due to the golden
yolks of corn-fed chickens.
Gelato was not only a food for the
nobles. By the early 1600s, every public
square in Italy hosted a little threewheeled
cart of carved and painted
wood selling sorbetti. Meanwhile, in
the streets, other rolling vendors made
the rounds to the sound of a little bell.
In the heat of summer, refreshing ices
could be found at folk festivals and
became a popular treat following
religious gatherings.
RECIPES
Pistachio Gelato
Pistachio gelato is the benchmark by which
many gelaterie are judged. You can tell at a
glance if an artificial base has been used, just
by the color. If the gelato maker is using real
pistachio nuts, the color will be almost drab
green. If the bin flashes a neon green, keep
walking.
1 cup (6 ounces) shelled pistachios,
lightly toasted (about 12 ounces in the shell)
3 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
In a food processor or coffee grinder, coarsely
chop the pistachios, reserving a few whole ones
for garnish.
In a medium saucepan, combine the pistachios,
milk, and sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring
until the sugar is dissolved, and bubbles form
around the edges of the pan. Remove from
heat, cool, cover and refrigerate overnight.
Strain the milk mixture through a fine-meshed
sieve, pressing on the nuts with the back of a
large spoon to get as much liquid from the nuts
as possible. Transfer to an ice cream maker
and freeze according to the manufacturer's
instructions.
Makes 1 quart; serves 4.Sorbetto Bellini
The white peaches of the Veneto inspired a
bartender at Harry's Bar in Venice to create
the Bellini cocktail using the local Prosecco, a
sparkling white wine, and a peach puree. In
this variation, the puree is made into sorbetto
and served in glasses of the wine.
5 white peaches, peeled and pitted
1/4 cup fresh raspberries
2 cups spring water
2/3 cup sugar
2 bottles Prosecco or other sparkling white wine
In a blender or food processor, combine four of
the peaches, raspberries, water and sugar.
Process until smooth. Transfer to an ice cream
maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's
instructions. Transfer to an airtight container
and put in the freezer for one hour.
To serve, fill each of 12 champagne flutes two-thirds
full with Prosecco or other sparkling wine.
Slice the remaining peach into 12 thin slices.
Using a melon baller, scoop two to three balls of
sorbetto into each glass, gently sliding them into
the sparkling wine. Add a peach slice to the rim
of each glass and serve at once.
Makes 1½ quarts; serves 12.
--Pamela Sheldon Johns
Reprinted from Gelato! Italian Ice
Creams,
Sorbetti & Granite by Pamela
Sheldon Johns. Photography by Joyce
Oudkerk Pool and Pamela Sheldon
Johns. © 2008. Ten Speed Press,
Berkeley, CA. www.tenspeed.co
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