L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JULY 21, 2016 www.italoamericano.org 12 L'Italo-Americano The Long History of Gelato Always a favorite during the Summer, gelato has come a long way since its beginning in the – or so historians think – exotic lands of the Chinese emperors, more than 3000 years ago W h e t h e r y o u a r e a n I t a l i a n " g e l a t o " o r A m e r i c a n " i c e cream" lover, Summer must be y o u r f a v o r i t e s e a s o n . C o o l c r e a m y d e s s e r t s b e c o m e s o ubiquitous and so much more f l a v o u r s a n d o p t i o n s a r e available it is hard to resist the temptation to skip lunch and just have a big bowl of them instead. Gelato, with its light texture – it is made with milk rather than cream like ice cream– and more intense flavor, is known as a t r u e s y m b o l o f t h e I t a l i a n culinary tradition, so it is not that surprising to know many believe, in part rightly, the Bel Paese is its birthplace. In truth, food historians and curious stories lovers may like to disagree, as it appears the o r i g i n a l g e l a t o c o m e s f r o m much further east than Italy, and that it was created a long, long time ago. Rice, spices, milk and a bit o f s n o w : t h e f i r s t g e l a t o recipe? According to some, the true home country of iced desserts is China: apparently, sometimes a r o u n d 4 0 0 0 y e a r s a g o , t h e Chinese would freeze in snow a concoction of overcooked rice, spices and milk, the first variety of historically attested gelato. Later, other versions made with i c e d f r u i t j u i c e s a n d m i l k became popular, so much so that, even before Marco Polo arrived in China, people could easily buy frozen treats from carts in the street of beautiful Beijing (which, by the way, was known then as Khanbaliq). S p e a k i n g o f P o l o , m a n y think he is to be credited with bringing the idea of gelato to the west, upon his return in 1288, yet, they are mistaken. The Pharaohs, the Romans and sweet ices In truth, the Pharaohs of the S e c o n d D y n a s t y – w e a r e talking about around four to five m i l l e n n i a a g o h e r e – w e r e already known to serve snow or shaven ice and fruit juices to their guests in, as demonstrated b y a r c h a e o l o g i c a l f i n d s , specifically made silver cups divided in two sections. The ice o r s n o w w a s k e p t i n d e e p ground holes where they could be kept at an ideal temperature. Second to none when it came to war, literature and culinary p l e a s u r e s , t h e R o m a n s , t o o , counted snow mixed with honey and fruit among their favorite treats. Once again, archaeology helps us know more: xcavations in Pompeii revealed the possible presence of kiosks around the city selling snow mixed with honey, a forerunner of modern ice cream carts. Just as in Egypt, the ice or snow were kept in deep wells, filled with the snow of mount Vesuvius carried to town by local slaves. A tad later, i c e d s w e e t s m a d e t h e i r appearance among the Caranqui, an autoctone people of modern Ecuador. T h e M i d d l e A g e s , t h e Renaissance and the birth of modern gelato Admittedly, things get a bit blurry during the Middle Ages, a s m a n y o f t h e A n c i e n t s ' t r a d i t i o n s a n d h a b i t s w e r e dismissed. According to many, however, the habit of mixing fruit juices and ice was once again brought into Italy by the M o o r s , w h o m a d e t h e i r "scherbet" (from it come the I t a l i a n s o r b e t t o ) p o p u l a r i n S i c i l y . T h i s i s w h y S i c i l y i s s o m e t i m e s c o n s i d e r e d t h e birthplace of Italian gelato. Others, however, point out h o w t h e t r u e , l i f e - c h a n g i n g events in the history of gelato t o o k p l a c e l a t e r a n d f u r t h e r north, in the beautiful Medicean Florence of the 16th century: it is said Caterina de Medici was so besotted with the fruits, sugar a n d i c e d e s s e r t c r e a t e d b y chicken farmer Ruggeri, to bring him along with her to France in occasion of her nuptials with the D u k e o f O r l e a n s , s o t h a t h e c o u l d p r e p a r e i t f o r a l l t h e g u e s t s . O t h e r s m e n t i o n t h e figure of another Florentine, Bernardo Buontalenti, creator of an iced cream dessert offered to C h a r l e s V k i n g o f S p a i n i n 1559: this iced cream made with milk, honey, egg yolk, a dash of sweet wine, bergamot, lemon a n d o r a n g e i s b y m a n y considered the first, true gelato made in Italy. Gelato today Today, hand made gelato, known as "gelato artigianale," is a gem of Italian tradition, with specific rules to be followed when making it: only fresh and natural ingredients should be chosen for the basic creams, whereas more creativity can be u s e d w h e n i t c o m e s t o f l a v o r i n g s , e v e n t h o u g h t h e more natural the ingredient is, t h e b e t t e r . I n s p i t e o f t h e u b i q u i t o u s p o p u l a r i t y o f industrially produced gelato, its handmade counterpart reigns s o v e r e i g n i n t h e h e a r t a n d stomach of Italy's "buongustai", who consume an average of 6 kg (that is around 12 lbs) pro capite of the stuff each year. LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE FRANCESCA BEZZONE Today, hand made gelato, known as "gelato artigianale," is a gem of Italian tradition, with specific rules to be followed when making it

• Cover