5 interesting facts about Italian ice-cream

Matteo Vergani

Of course, this dessert has evolved in time: that is why there some many interesting facts about Italian ice-cream. The Greeks used to prepare their soft drinks with lemon, pomegranate juice, honey and ice or snow. However, along the centuries, lots of people have used frozen milk. Nonetheless, the true ancestor of modern ice-cream is actually Sicily.

This tradition was then imported to Sicily. Here, in 1686, the chef Francesco Procopio dei Coltelli prepared the first mixture that we know as ice-cream. After many failures and improvements, he went to Paris, where he discovered the use of sugar instead of honey and salt mixture with ice to prolong its life. He suddenly became famous for this great invention. Although the origin of the Italian ice-cream is mostly recognized around the world, many of  its qualities and curiosities are still unknown.

5 facts about Italian ice-cream

Italian Traditions has gathered 5 interesting facts about Italian ice-cream:

1. Sore throat is a good excuse to enjoy this dessert: it has been shown that cold foods helps to relieve the pain.
2. Ice-cream is a real food: it contains all the components of a balanced meal, that is water, sugar, fats, proteins, minerals and vitamins. Thus, a artisanal ice-cream can turn into a quick meal, since the amount of calories and energy can be used in a short period of time (it is perfect for athletes and for those who work).
3. In ancient Rome, snow was used for preparing what it is considered the ancestor of ice-cream. Snow came to the Capital from the Monte Terminillo and volcanoes Etna and Vesuvius, other than from some other supply points along the ancient roads.
4. The ice-cream sandwich was invented in Paris in 1803 by Alessandro at Cafe Tortoni Napolitaine, attended by personalities like Napoleon or Voltaire. He also invented the tranche napolitaine, a three layers ice-cream, usually sliced.
5. Does anyone remember the “ice-cream carts“? Maybe not, but just a few years ago, when ice-cream shops were not that common, there were many ice-cream peddlers. The first ones appeared in the mid-nineteenth century, coming from Belluno: they were jobless because of the economic crisis, they brought the Italian ice-cream in the European capitals.