Wednesday 26 October 2016

Italian Festa in Lygon St. 2016

It was cold, windy and a little wet for the 2016 Carlton Italian Festa in Lygon St. Melbourne. However we decided we needed to go so we drove for nearly 2 1/2 hours to get there, stayed for 3 hours then drove for 2 1/2 hours home again. It is definitely more fun when the weather is sunny but we still had a great time.

There was music to please young and old.




Lots of wonderful Italian food treats.









Cooking demonstrations - the first was arancini - Messina style



      - the second was black gnocchi with gorgonzola, raddicchio and vin cotto



Displays included historic Vespas, a range of Italian cars, Juventus football club, Italian historic & educational institutions and food preparation such as salami making and much, much more.







We always enjoy visiting the Centre for Italian Studies stand to see the wonderful young and enthusiastic staff. This year they had Pinocchio and gondola races for the children and stickers for all students. This year mine said Brava! (even old and ex students are part of the family of CIS :))




No matter what the weather, you can't miss the Carlton Italian Festa for a great day (and night) out, even if you do only go for a short while and miss seeing Anthony Callea!



Wednesday 5 October 2016

My Top Five Gelaterie in Rome

There are dozens of web sites and blogs listing the top 5 or top 10 gelati outlets in Rome, and of course I had looked at them many times.

Gelato is an institution in Italy and many Italians male & female, old & young, summer or winter, have a daily gelato. Tourists of course want to experience this Italian delight too and this is the reason for so many bits of web advice.

There is gelato and gelato, so you need to be sure you are getting artigianale gelato - artisan crafted. Avoid all those vivid colours and containers piled high with lots of decorations and go for the natural products hand made in small quantities to guarantee freshness and quality.

These are my top suggestions for a really good gelato in Rome.

1. Fatamorgana - in Monti and Trastevere.




Their gelato is fresh, smooth, of good consistence, tasty and creative. They have such a wonderful variety of flavours that you want to return again and again. In 2014 their Trastevere gelateria was our regular stop and this year we went to the Monte shop especially to once again experience top quality gelato.
We highly recommend the fennel, honey & licorice, the grape and nuts, the green tea and the coconut.

2. Gelateria del Teatro - near Piazza Navona




This very well rated gelateria is nicely situated with some old stairs beside the shop which become a seating area for happily licking customers. This place is so busy that they ask you to take a ticket at the door and to have the correct change ready to pay. The wait is well worth it because the quality is excellent and the variety is huge. That is, in fact, your biggest problem, making up your mind which flavours to have before your number is called.
We fully recommend peach & lavender, limone, and zenzero (ginger)

3. GROM - inside Termini Station




GROM has a different approach to most other gelateria with their gelati in stainless steel bins with lids. This means you can't see what they look like. I also thought the texture was a little stretchy when it was being served but it ate well so no real issues. This gelato was exteremely tasty with some interesting flavours but not such a huge or imaginative range.
Recommendations are almond nougat and salted caramel. Both had good sized pieces of the nougat or caramel in the gelato which gave nice flavour bursts.

4. Gelateria Valentino - near Trevi Fountain



This gelateria has a long history and the husband and wife team running it have a wonderful quiet rapport with the clients. The quality of the gelato was very pleasing and we enjoyed this experience.
Recommendations - the passionfruit was 'to die for' and the Oreo and tiramisu were both perfect.

5. Il Gelato di San Crispino - near Trevi Fountain


San Crispino also has a tradition behind it, which was further enhanced by the success of the book 'Eat, Pray, Love' by Elizabeth Gilbert and the movie of the book starring Julia Roberts.
We were the only people in the shop when we were there and the overall experience was passive - not a lot of interesting flavours, ordinary service and no charm. The photos tell the story!
Recommended are caramel & meringue, honey and the ginger & cinnamon.

We taste tested these five gelaterie in three quick visits to Rome this year. Previously we have been to another well recommended gelateria - Il Gelato Fior di Luna in Trastevere. I would rate it above San Crispino.
I still remember the delicious lingering taste of their licorice gelato.

The Great Gelati Challenge 2016


Last year's Great Gelati Challenge was so much fun that this year we were determined to live up to the challenge again. Now it might seem simple to exceed 66 different gelati flavours in eleven weeks, but the reality is that you have to really search out new flavours as the weeks go by.

You quickly taste all the flavours available in smaller gelaterie and you need to expand your circle, also certain areas are known for certain flavours so some long distance travel is needed. Gelato flavours can also be seasonal.

Needing to beat last year's figure of 66, we set to work on our first day in Italy by visiting one of the top gelaterie in Rome. So many choices and so exceptionally good!    [More on this in a later post on the Top 5]


Gelateria del Teatro, Rome


You might need a bib to read the following list! Some names are in English & some in Italian with explanation. Some don't have a translation but are names given by individual gelato makers for their own creations, and occasionally I forgot to make a note!

White peach & lavender
Limone
Pistacchio
Caffe
Mandorla latte (almond milk)
Wafer 
Sicillian cassata
Mandorla
Ricotta & caramelized fig
Bianco kiss
La Vie en Rose
Creme di Diaffiu
Zuppa Inglese (a type of trifle)
Pesce (peach)
Gianduja (similar to Nutella)
Nocciola (hazelnut)
Caffe Viennese
Tiramisu
Stracciatella (chocolate chip)
Coco (coconut)


La Pergola at Olmini, Macchie, Umbria

Mente
Pannacotta
Mele verde (green apple)
Polvere di Stelle - star dust!
Amareno (dark cherry)
Fior di arancia (milk based orange blossom flavour)
Banana
Extra rich chocolate
Fragola (strawberry)
Torrolino
Cacoa
Gioaba (guava)
Charlie Brown (Smarties)
Lampone (raspberry)
Malaga (rum & raisin)
Panna (custard cream)
Yoghurt & fruiti di bosco (forest berries)
Stracciatta Capricciosa
Crema Gran ...
White chocolate


                                                     Alise Cafe, Castiglione del Lago, Umbria

Melone
Pompelmo rosa (pink grapefruit)
Anguria (watermelon)
Baci (choc hazelnut)
Melograno (pomegranate)
Whisky cream
Cheesecake
Cookies & cream
Uva & noci (grapes & walnuts)
Finocchio, meile & liquorizio (fennel, honey & licorice)
Te verde matcha (green tea)
Coco creme (coconut milk)
Fico (fig)
Peru (no milk super rich dark chocolate)
Messico (pineapple, coconut & lime)
Ellusa (yoghurt, orange & toffee chips)
Deliziosa all' arancia (delicious orange)
Donna Claudia (Wow! )
Gorgonzola & hibiscus
Pardula (cheese, orange & saffron, typical Sardinian dessert)


                                     Vaniglia e Pistacchio, Cagliari, Sardinia

Cocco & Nutella
Lime & mente
Mandarino
Pinolo (pine nut)
Duplo (a type of chocolate bar)
Limone & basilico (lemon & basil)
Crema Catalana (like Creme Brulee)
Ananas & zenzero (pineapple & ginger)
Marscapone
Capuccino
Fonti (vanilla gelato with fresh raspberries & cracked chocolate)
Lavender
Pinguino nero (dark chocolate swirls)
Dark chocolate & ginger
Passione (marscapone, whole hazelnuts, amareno & chocolate)
Santo Domingo (dark chocolate)
Uva rossa (red grapes)
Vaniglia
Cremino
Arancia (no milk orange)


                                                At Gelateria C' Era Una Volta, Lucignano, Tuscany


                                          Gelateria Vittoria, Panicale, Umbria

Mango
Panna cotta amaretti
Caramel & meringue
Honey
Passionfruit
Oreo (biscuit)
Ginger & cinnamon
Almond nougat
Salted caramel



In the last minutes before boarding the Leonardo Express for the airport I was tasting my 89th gelati flavour for 2016.