Going ‘pazzo’ (wild) for gelato

I have a confession to make. I’m not really an ice cream person. Yes, occasionally I’ll enjoy a scoop or two, but I could honestly do away with it all together. Frankly I find it a bit heavy and can only last a few spoons before getting rumbly and gassy. As always there are a few exceptions, like the nostalgic appeal of mango and cheese dirty ice cream on the street or my favorite dark chocolate sorbet from Berthillon in Paris by Ile Saint Louis, the sun in your eyes and the bateaux mouches idly floating by on the Seine. And of course, there’s gelato.

One particularly scorching summer in Italy, my family and I were exploring the historic streets of the old Tuscan towns, the heat weighing down on our heads from the blazing sun while simultaneously the old stone pavements roasted our feet from the ground up. Medieval buildings and charming cafes made for quaint and picturesque surroundings but offered no respite from the blistering climate. As we turned a corner, there it stood like an oasis: a glittering display of freshness — swirly mounds of gelato invitingly adorned with colorful accouterments, looking oh-so-silky and cool. How could one resist?

 When you decide on a flavor — or two or three — they don’t simply scoop it up, it’s ceremoniously scraped with a paddle and piled high onto your favorite vessel. You stand on the street, forgetting about the heat, concentrated on this flavorful, frozen mountain, cooling you from the inside out, awakening your senses.

Gelato is by no means just any ice cream. The impossibly smooth texture and intense flavors are rather tricky to achieve. One of the things I find so fascinating about gelato is the absence of the “milky” taste often found in regular ice creams. Take one of my favorite flavors, for example: nocciola, or hazelnut. It tastes like sweetened roasted hazelnuts and not frozen cream flavored with hazelnut. Pistachio is the same. There are specific recipes and techniques in achieving this intensity.

Just recently, I was invited to an event hosted by Fabtech, one of the country’s leading suppliers of complete commercial kitchen solutions since 1988, showcasing the latest state-of-the-art gelato machines by Cattabriga. A special kitchen tour and demonstration was conducted by award-winning gelato master, chef Giacomo Schiavon, to launch Fabtech’s’s collaboration with Gelateneo, Cattabriga’s school of gelato, which is opening the very first school of gelato in the Philippines.

The evening was a celebration of all things luxuriously Italian as VIP guests were chauffeured to the event in Maseratis to enjoy a five-course Italian feast prepared by chef Margarita Fores, finishing with fabulous espresso prepared via WMF Espresso machines by RICMAS. The highlight of the evening, however, was the gelato itself. Apart from the tasting bar with traditional flavors like coffee and stracciatella, it was the lemon sorbet and tiramisu gelato that truly stood out.

I love the tangy freshness of a sorbet, which is, however, often icy. This lemon sorbet was mind-blowingly airy and unctuous. It felt like a cloud straight from Capri — the citrus-infused summer air and sea breeze all in one bite. The tiramisu gelato was chef Giacomo’s award-winning recipe, where his passionate intention was not to recreate a tiramisu but to “embody the idea of tiramisu, capture the emotion behind it.”  It was an impossibly silky concoction of mascarpone, espresso and a touch of Marsala served with a dusting of bitter cocoa. Just so divine, magical enough to convert even a non-ice cream fanatic. And in this unbearable summer season, with the impending elections making everyone’s head hotter than usual, I can’t think of any better neutralizer than a giant bowl of gelato. Forget the politics that’s driving you crazy; we’re better off getting pazzo (wild) for gelato.

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For more information, visit www.fabtech.com.ph.