The Italian summer sweet food are too many to be listed. Each region has its own peculiarity and makes it a real “existential reason” (for example, the attachment of Neapolitans to the “real” pizza margherita and Sicilians to the “real” cannolo stuffed with ricotta is proof of this. And Italy, precisely because it is famous all over the world for its culinary culture, is not really missing in anything. The typical dishes are endless and range from raw materials (fruit, vegetables, meat and not only, all DOP) to appetizers, cold and savory dishes and finally desserts and cakes.
Italian summer sweet food: ice-cream and its alternatives
Typical Italian desserts are many and homemade ice cream is definitely one of the many iconic symbols of the country. But there are certainly some good alternatives, fresh and perfect for the summer. With the exception of desserts and classic pastries or breakfast biscuits, we will make a short list of those that are the most common Italian summer food specialties when it comes to products for eating on the go, consumed while sightseeing a city of art, for example. Among these we remember:
- Sicilian cannoli with ricotta
- Sicilian granita
- The Roman “grattachecca”
- Sorbets, available everywhere
There are also numerous sweets and cakes, typical of the most varied locations, which should be consumed sitting down at a table. These are both cold and warm desserts, and some of them come a little closer to the ice cream in terms of taste and basic recipe. Some examples? The Neapolitan ricotta sfogliatelle, the tigelle (available also filled with ice cream) of Bologna, the classic Viennetta Torinese, the tartufo gelato of Pizzo Calabro or the tiramisu, iconic that of Iginio Massari, in Brescia.
Where to eat Italian summer sweet food alternatives?
There are plenty of places in which to consume the Italian summer gastronomic specialties just listed, and you just have to go to the “cult” places to find a wide choice of pastry shops or street food stalls. But we want to help you in your choice by suggesting some. Among the most famous Sicilian cannoli, are those of Pasticceria Roberto, in Taormina. Some of the best granitas are found in Acireale, from Nevaroli Condorelli. The best grattachecca of all time is that of Sora Mirella. The Gelateria Happy Days in Riva del Garda seems to make the best sorbets.
Here’s where to taste the best Italian sweet food alternatives
We know where to buy alternatives to Italian ice cream to eat on the go or street food, but we have not said anything about those that need to be eaten sitting down with a plate. Some suggestions: from Zerocinquantuno, in Bologna, it is possible to taste some very good tigelle with hazelnut cream. The best truffle ice cream of Pizzo is that of Gelateria Ercole, right in the center, della Gelateria Ercole and the Viennetta par excellence is that of the Ristorante Giudice which offers its particular version in the menu.
Featured image: La Cucina Italiana