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Category Pastry

FB Clabo Award for Best Digital Communication 2022

by lorenzo in Ice cream shop, News, Pastry
Michel Paquier
Pasticceria Besuschio

FB Clabo Award for Best Digital Communication 2022

In a complicated historical moment, presenting your company on the web and on social media can have a fundamental impact. For several years now, presence in the digital world has been an essential factor for every professional reality, and in a very competitive scenario, increasing one’s visibility, having a website accessible at all times and creating mobile friendly solutions has become an essential principle for any activity. Increasing your transparency, building your brand identity, implementing cutting-edge promotional and sales strategies, based on a system that allows easy identification of well-defined products or services, has become the first step in expanding your pool of users, communicate their corporate values and restart in the best possible way.
And so even the great pastry chefs have landed on the internet: even the most reluctant to come to terms with social networks have had to contend with them, just as the need to set up online sales and home delivery services has prompted many businesses to reorganize the own presence on the internet. For this reason, FB wanted to honor and reward two craft businesses that stood out over the year for their commitment to building a digital identity that respects that of their store. As sponsor of the Gambero Rosso Pastry and Pastry Guide, last November 30th FB met in Rome the two winners for Best Digital Communication, Michel Paquier of the Douce pastry shop in Genoa and Andrea Besuschio of the Besuschio pastry shop in Milan, on the occasion of the official presentation of the Guide, now in its eleventh edition.

The good communication of Michel Paquier

It’s difficult to talk about a restart for Douce Genova. Because she never really stopped. Also thanks to the use of social media and what Michel Paquier, maître pâtissier and Genoese by adoption, calls “good communication on the web”. That’s right, even a professional who has entered the establishment of the most refined Italian pastry, gaining notoriety and greater awareness, has begun to become passionate about the new phygital communication rules, discovering how to make up for forced closures in times of lockdown thanks to alternative sales tools. And it is no coincidence that Michel, on the occasion of the presentation of the Pastry Chefs & Pasticcerie d’Italia 2022 by Gambero Rosso, received the award for Best Digital Communication. A well-deserved and heartfelt award for those who are committed every day to creating careful and accurate communication, calibrated on photos of great emotional impact and pleasant and delicate stories like their specialties.

Sincere tales of a good and delicate product

A communication that plays with taste, harmony and balance, but which also knows how to speak to the heart without too many rounds of words or catchphrases. Stories that reach people with sincerity and that convey all the passion that Paquier puts into his work. Through simple but never banal contents, Michel focuses on what he has most precious: his product, made with love and respect, leading to know the essence of his pastry. Also known to the general public for his participation in various broadcasts for pastry enthusiasts, he has transformed his site into a real e-commerce, increasing revenue and awareness of the Douce brand.

“Digital communication is essential. The lockdown period has accelerated our communication through social media, on which we talk about our products without mincing words, with photos and descriptions. Certainly social networks represent an excellent training ground for developing communication, also for our home delivery, which if it was not once considered, now represents a valid ally.”

Listen to the interview

Besuschio Confectionery's digital innovation.

The lockdown first and then the restrictions have therefore demonstrated, even for pastry shops, the importance of digital communication, convincing everyone to update sites, organize online sales in the best possible way, develop delicious take-away and delivery boxes. After the most critical phase, we returned to the laboratories with the awareness that everything has changed and that it is necessary to give space to inventiveness, without ever abandoning tradition.
Even Andrea Besuschio knows something about it, a complete professional in the art of pastry, firmly rooted in his origins and in his territory, yet able to constantly renew himself through a daily work of study, research, experimentation. Faithful to the long family tradition, made up of classic recipes, travel desserts and large leavened products, Andrea has been able to innovate by creating recognizable web and social settings every day and in line with the lines of a historic and prestigious business, so much so that he too deserves the Best Digital Communication award. All the characteristic features of the Besuschio pastry shop, from the careful selection of raw materials to the care of techniques, from the passion and respect for the legacy of tradition to the careful study and research, are contained in the refined choice of images on the web page. Images that describe all the commitment to guaranteeing the ancient pastry art and that represent the mark of an Italian authenticity made up of wisdom and experience, but also of continuous study and the desire to experiment.

How important do you think digital communication is for your business today?
Digital communication is very important in every sector, especially in ours, directly addressed to the customer who is often curious and wants to know more about the products. Through digital communication, the customer base that can be reached and to which one can communicate one’s passion and tradition is certainly greater.

What services do you offer via digital channels and with what feedback? What other services would you possibly like to introduce in the future?
The website, the online shop and above all the Instagram page, where we offer product information services, photos and videos on our working method and on how our products are made. And then the online orders, both through direct messages on Instagram and through the online shop.
In the future we would like to expand shipments to more perishable and fragile products that require special storage such as pastries, cakes and single portions.

How has the situation we are facing changed your digital communication strategy, if it has?
When the pandemic broke out and the lockdown began in March 2020 we didn’t have an online shop yet, and it was thanks to the Instagram page and the requests of our customers that we organized home deliveries. The online shop started in November 2020 and we were able to satisfy every request more easily. We have always planned to create the online shop, but the advent of the pandemic made it particularly necessary, having given up table service for months and having to satisfy the requests of people who lived out of town or far enough away to not be able to come and buy products. Thanks to sponsorships and publications on Instagram we have achieved excellent results.

What elements did you want to include on the site and in digital communication in general to best reflect the image of your restaurant?
First of all we are a family, and one of the things we hold most dear is our history. This is particularly highlighted on the website, and we have also tried to do the same on the Instagram page, in which we have told our story in serial form, starting from the book that tells about our shop and our family.

Who follows digital communication within the pastry shop? Do you rely on an external agency in whole or in part?
Federica, my son Anselmo’s girlfriend, takes care of our communication. She mainly follows our Instagram page and the making of everything that is posted. She and my son, together with a programmer friend, have taken care of the creation of the online shop and still follow it, updating it with new products and following the shipments of parcels and the relationship with the customer. We have always liked doing things as a family.

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Interview with ice cream maker Paolo Brunelli

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Paolo Brunelli

Paolo Brunelli is an award-winning master ice cream maker from the Marches who can boast numerous and coveted awards in his palmares, including the maximum score from Gambero Rosso (3 cones, the only brand in his region) in the Gelaterie d’Italia guide as well as national recognition for the best chocolate ice cream and, for two consecutive years, the prize for the best Italian ice cream shop.

A rigorous professional, with a marked capacity for innovation and a great flair for quality raw materials, for years he has dedicated himself to enhancing ice cream as a product of excellence capable of breaking the mold of seasonality, renewing the proposal and keeping his laboratory active all year round.

And the clientele seems to have understood and appreciated Paolo’s commitment to focusing on ice cream again this winter. He happily succeeded by making use of his ability to transform and work raw materials, creating new and inviting flavors thanks to new Christmas-inspired combinations. A return to ice cream, to the origins of its proposal, albeit in the cold season, supporting in such a particular year the product from which its professional history started.

Its stores are three, all  in the province of Ancona: in addition to the enocioccogelateria in the historic center of Agugliano, there are the Senigallia branch and Combo, a brand new location in Marzocca di Senigallia, a contemporary combination of ice cream, pastry and chocolate .

Ice cream in winter: how did the idea of developing this proposal come about by thinking of new themed flavours?

It is an idea that we have strongly sought. Almost a necessary choice, after the opening of our first store in Senigallia: a place dedicated only to ice cream, to be kept open all year round. Compared to the past, in fact, the scenario has changed and it is no longer possible to bear the burden of bureaucracy with a shop open only in the summer months. Well aware of the fact that in the winter the demand for ice cream from customers drops drastically and inevitably, we have developed a different offer for the colder months. So here is ice cream in winter, with the creations designed for this season.

What flavors do you offer in particular?

For the first time this year we offer a “Christmas Card” with the specialties of the moment. We have devised some particular flavours, dedicated precisely to the festivities, which recall the sweets of the Christmas tradition, evoking their flavours, aromas and characteristic notes. Among these we find, for example, Pandoro, Crema di Natale, Gingerbread, Panforte, Torroncino and Fior di Legno, a brand new fior di latte that recalls the scent of the fireplace. Among the flavors there is no panettone, instead the protagonist of a very popular ice cream cake.

How are the first feedbacks with customers?

The results are very good, I must say: already in recent years we have noticed that, during the holiday season, customers are happy to opt for ice cream cakes and frozen desserts, perhaps tired of the usual leavened desserts. Now he is also showing interest in the new ice cream flavours.

How does it preserve the flavors in the gelato shop? Do you use pozzetti or do you put the flavors in jars and display them inside your vertical display cases?

We have adopted both types of display. For take away we use pozzetti and tubs for ice cream to be served in a cone or cup. Furthermore, for years we have been using the lines of vertical display cases in which, in addition to cakes, we display ice cream in jars, other alternative versions such as ice cream on a stick or with biscuits, and semifreddos.

How do you highlight these new Christmas flavors in your display?

In this period of the year, in the carapine there are not the canonical 20 flavors but only the Christmas ones. We have chosen to focus heavily on the proposal contained in the Christmas Card. At the same time, however, the vertical display cases allow us to continue to offer other flavours, but in jars. In this way the ice cream is kept in ideal conditions from an aesthetic, sensorial and gustatory point of view.

How do you highlight these new Christmas flavors in your display?

In this period of the year, in the carapine there are not the canonical 20 flavors but only the Christmas ones. We have chosen to focus heavily on the proposal contained in the Christmas Card. At the same time, however, the vertical display cases allow us to continue to offer other flavours, but in jars. In this way the ice cream is kept in ideal conditions from an aesthetic, sensorial and gustatory point of view.

So, what do you think are the ideal characteristics of the showcases for optimal exposure, taking into account the needs of the customer and the gelato maker?

As far as we are concerned, we are very satisfied with the vertical display cases, which are very important to us: thanks to this solution we are able to better manage the offer for the winter period, diversifying the products on display. I wouldn’t open a new ice cream parlor without a vertical display, that would be unthinkable for me.

These refrigerated display cases have a temperature of -18° / -20°, which ensures that the ice cream is kept better and undergoes less degradation than the traditional carapina (which has a temperature of -12°), and this feature is essential for canned ice cream, which has a longer shelf life, naturally without ever changing the quality of the product.

How did you insert these showcases in the shop? What results have you already noticed?

In the shop, we have chosen a strategic location, which is visually very appealing: the windows are positioned at eye level, at the entrance and exit of the premises.

On a commercial level, they have guaranteed us a turning point: with the right exposure, we have recorded an increase in sales of showcase products, with an increase from 5% to 15%. In our case this segment is expanding considerably since we started working like this.

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Interview with Nicola Pansa

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Nicola Pansa

In the heart of Amalfi, in a place of indisputable charm, is the historic restaurant of the Pansa family. A family business active since 1830, where the cult of the Amalfi tradition has been handed down for five generations. Today at the helm are the brothers Nicola, Andrea and Marilla Pansa, who carry on one of the most prestigious and happy realities of the Campania gastronomic scene.

How important do you think digital communication is for your business today?

It is fundamental, but not from today: it has played an essential role for us for more than ten years now. Surely the basis of everything is the product, which must never betray expectations. Today, anyone who has an excellent product and doesn’t communicate it doesn’t do a good job. Just as those who communicate a product that doesn’t actually exist are wrong. Starting from an offer of great qualitative value, many years ago we asked ourselves how to communicate it at high levels. Many already knew us, but you are never known enough. For us, communication is experienced as a truthful account of what we do every day. Our social profiles are a sort of daily diary and we also enjoy this thing. All digital channels have the official website as a point of reference and this has given us sweet satisfaction. In recent years, we have seen concrete results from the online shop and visits to pastry shops, and we have won several awards related to digital communication.

What services do you offer via digital channels and with what feedback? What other services would you possibly like to introduce in the future?

We take great care of the online shop on our official website, where we insert a series of products that we sell all year round, even if the most important moments for online sales are obviously Christmas and Easter. In recent years, e-commerce has experienced significant growth, in terms of numbers and turnover, and I believe that this year the trend will develop even more, because in-store sales, unfortunately, will be greatly affected by travel restrictions . Our online shop has been operational for about ten years and works very well, because it is the fulcrum of a multi-channel and coordinated digital communication strategy that also involves social networks and the newsletter. In particular, we have seen very positive results from email campaigns, which lead us to have a 30-35% increase in sales on the days of sending. We try to optimize our offer by using multiple channels to intercept different types of users. We have been shipping throughout Italy and abroad for years: there are many tourists who come to Amalfi from all over the world and once they return home they contact us to place an order. We have many other projects for the future: for example, we are working to create an online shop also on Facebook.

How has the situation we are facing changed your digital communication strategy, if it has?

It hasn’t changed much, because we have already invested in digital communication in unsuspecting times. What has changed is our approach, especially on social media. We have perceived that people forced to stay at home want to share and participate, and we can keep them company through our content. We have therefore increased live videos, to share moments of daily work and tell a few anecdotes: people like it, they feel involved, they get a little distracted from everyday life. Beyond the commercial aspects, we also claim a “social” role through communication.

What elements did you want to include on the site and in digital communication in general to best reflect the image of your restaurant?

Our philosophy has always been to innovate, but in the wake of tradition. This is very important in any decision we make. Even when choosing a color for the site’s graphics, activating a social media campaign, creating a video, we feel the responsibility to always be faithful to our identity. We can never ignore the fact that we have 200 years of tradition behind us, we have moral and non-moral ties. We have thought a lot about this. How could we reconcile digital communication with the fact that Pansa is an institution? With intelligence, with caution and great respect. Our important past and our location are added values, which we also try to highlight in communication.

Who follows digital communication within the pastry shop? Do you rely on an external agency in whole or in part?

We do not rely on an external agency: I personally follow the communication, making use of the invaluable collaboration of a working group made up of professionals specialized in specific fields (graphics, photography, programming). Everyone knows exactly what their role is and we work together on the contents to be published, sharing ideas to arrive at the best result.

Digital communication as a means to export the renowned family confectionery tradition all over the world. Through social media and online sales channels, throughout the year, Nicola Pansa thus manages to fulfill the wishes of an international clientele. The same that, together with the brothers, delights in the historic restaurant framed by the suggestive and famous square of Amalfi.

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Interview with Luca Api

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Luca Api, from passion to excellence

Luca Api, who has just turned 28, is a young pastry chef from the Marches moved by a strong passion and clear objectives: to reach the high levels of Italian pastry, working hard and investing in continuous training. Four years ago he decided to get involved personally in the family business – Pasticceria Silvana – started by his mother in 2005 in Ostra Vetere, a welcoming village in the province of Ancona: he moved the shop to a larger premises and now welcomes customers in a pastry shop complete with cafeteria, ice cream parlor and bar.

Luca, how did your passion for pastry come about?

The pleasure of preparing desserts has accompanied me since I was a child: it all started when my mother opened the family restaurant. I became more and more passionate and I decided to embark on a path of research and training, dedicating myself to my passion and putting all of myself into this activity. I never stop, I continue to innovate and aim high: my goal is to enter AMPI, the Italian Pastry Masters Academy.

Speaking of innovations, why did you choose to adopt a new exposure with a flat edge drop?

I wanted a modern and linear venue, to establish a direct link with the customer. This type of showcase guarantees me to achieve the intent in an optimal way. Furthermore, it offers me a double function: it displays the product and at the same time acts as a counter. The customer can observe our specialties while leaning on the shelf to taste them.

Since you have this display system, has something changed in your way of making pastry?

The new display is much more versatile and dynamic, because it allows me to vary the products presented throughout the day. For example, after having finished the brioches for breakfast, I can decide to display the tarts and baked cakes. Now, it is even more essential that our creations are perfect and very precise, because the customer can notice all the details up close: there must be no smudges.

Your restaurant is both a pastry shop and an ice cream shop. How do you manage two such different worlds, even in terms of product display?

It’s true, they are two different worlds, but at the same time very close. In the laboratory it is necessary to have the right equipment, for pastry and ice cream. Then, you need to know how to manage the two departments separately, without contamination. In production, I dedicate a part of the working day to ice cream making and all the rest to pastry. In terms of display, I wanted to give each department its own space: for ice cream, I have a pozzetto counter detached from the rest of the display. All thanks to the FB Brand.

Your gaze is fixed on the goals you want to achieve in the future, but now we are in a delicate phase. Has the Covid-19 emergency affected you?

The enthusiasm remained the same as before. Sure, the first few days were tough, but the tenacity and desire to do things are always there. Inside of me I have a certainty: we are the first to fight fears and communicate a message of trust to customers. I had set myself important goals for my 30th birthday and maybe, given the unpredictable situation, I’ll have to translate them over time, but it doesn’t matter: we need to get through this period by continuing to roll up our sleeves and pedaling with our heads down, without hiding fear behind us.

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Interview with Lucca Cantarin

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Lucca Cantarin, strategies to get going again

That he can rightfully be placed in the gotha of Italian pastry is shown by his curriculum, dotted with important milestones. He was in charge of the pastry shop at Le Calandre, the three-star restaurant of the Alajmo family. Then came the Spanish experience of Paco Torreblanca, a world-renowned pastry chef. Then the passages in France to the Maison Baud and in the nearest Padua, to the court of the world champion of pastry Luigi Biasetto. To all this is added the tradition in the confectionery art started by grandfather Mario with the production of homemade ice cream. A tradition that his family has been handing down from generation to generation for over a century. Returning to his Arsego after the important experiences with the great masters, Lucca has enriched the proposal of the place that bears the name of his mother Marisa with the pastry shop. A story of success and in constant growth that of the Paduan pastry chef, who has maintained his determined verve even during the Coronavirus emergency. “My state of mind is still positive today”, he says confidently. A positivity supported by facts and even before that by some choices that have proved successful and that he himself tells us.

 

Lucca, how is the situation at the moment for your business?

It is paradoxical but we are working harder than before. My restaurant is located in a small village outside the center and many are not going on vacation, so they come to us. The geographical position is now an advantage, but it wasn’t during the closure to the public, when we could only make home deliveries. In a reality like ours, making delivery is more complicated than in a big city because to reach customers you have to move more, since the population density is low. Some conditions have therefore been favourable, others less so, but what I consider fundamental, in the face of an emergency like the one we are experiencing, is not to sit still, not to wait for customers to arrive by themselves or for everything to go back to the way it was before the pandemic broke out.

So, what were the winning strategies?

First of all we never stopped. In the first phase, I developed the delivery by investing heavily in the packaging to find a formula that would facilitate the work, allowing us to achieve two objectives: to be quick in managing orders but also to present our products in an attractive way, taking great care of the packaging graphics. As regards ice cream, for example, we have given customers the opportunity to order 11 different kits from our site, each containing 2 different flavours, for a minimum purchase of 20 euros. In the trays the flavors were already portioned and separated from each other so that they didn’t mix, which was very important to me. We already had an optimized site for managing online orders and this helped us a lot.

Then you reopened and what were the changes implemented inside the club?

The ice cream parlor and pastry shop with adjoining cafeteria are two separate shops, even if housed in the same building. In both we have positioned safeguards aimed at containing the virus, with particular attention in the areas where contact with the public is more direct, such as at the point where orders are placed at the counter or where payments are made. Furthermore, we have reduced the seats both inside and outside, to ensure the correct spacing of the tables.

For some colleagues, reorganizing the spaces was experienced as a drama…

For me it was not like this, indeed I think it is possible to change the layout of the premises managing to guarantee the safety required by the emergency and at the same time preserving the pleasantness of the environment and of the display of the ice cream and sweets. Looking back, I don’t understand why a pandemic was needed to introduce innovations that I consider a form of respect for the operator who works in constant contact with the public. And then we must bear in mind that there are precise regulations to observe: I am sorry to see around that the desire to transgress often prevails, I find all this not very sensible. Operating safely is not at all like a compulsion. It would be worse, however, if the lack of attention led to a new lockdown.

Speaking of customers, how have behaviors changed?

In most cases I notice that the level of education has increased. If before people crowded inside the club, now they stand in an orderly queue for 10 – 15 minutes waiting for their turn: scenes that I used to only see abroad. This is a good sign for me: it means that the pleasure of enjoying a good ice cream prevails over the “sacrifice” of waiting longer than usual, which is inevitable in the context in which we find ourselves now.

So what is Cantarin’s recipe for staying afloat during the Covid-19 storm?

The ingredients are many. There must be presence and closeness to the customer, with punctual communication and an even more attentive service. Then the opportunities offered by technology must be exploited (as in the case of online orders) and the possibility of modifying the fittings as needed to ensure compliance with safety standards. This is for everyone’s good. It’s a difficult time for anyone to manage: for those who govern us and have to make decisions, for us craftsmen and for all citizens. The first thing, I repeat, is not to stand still and suffer the situation. I am convinced that if we manage to overcome this challenge by drawing positive lessons from it, we will come out of it having made great strides that are useful for the future.

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Pastry programs, desserts starring on TV

by lorenzo in Pastry

Pastry programs, desserts starring on TV

The world of pastry is increasingly the protagonist on TV. For more than ten years we have been attending programmes, talent shows and reality shows where pastry chefs and aspiring pastry chefs challenge each other over cakes, pastries and chocolates. In the beginning there was Buddy Valastro. His program “The cake boss” aired in Italy in 2009 told the daily life of his family-run pastry shop in America. Valastro’s specialties were his cakes decorated with high-impact sugar paste.

Also thanks to the spread of cooking talents such as Masterchef, over the years we have witnessed the multiplication of formats dedicated to creations in sponge cake, shortcrust pastry and fillings. The notoriety of these TV programs has contributed to changing the perception of the figure of the pastry chef. Also thanks to the presence of important figures in the sector such as Iginio Massari , these broadcasts have made it possible to bring a profession that requires study, apprenticeship, passion and commitment to the spotlight.

A virtuous relationship of mutual influence is thus created between the world of pastry and that of TV. The spread of television programs has led to a significant increase in enrollments in pastry courses and the opening of new premises. Market trends and new industry trends affect the creation of new formats.

Let’s see together which are the broadcasts that tell in the most significant way what is behind the whip, whisk and pastry bag.

THE CHALLENGES AMONG ASPIRING PASTRY CHEFS

For years, making sweets at home was relegated as an activity for grandmothers or to be dedicated to Sunday afternoons. Thanks to some TV formats, pastry enthusiasts have been able to get involved with their creativity and passion. “Bake Off Italia“, aired for the first time in 2013, is inspired by a British format.

In the programme, amateur pastry chefs challenge each other with creams, preparations and decorations. In each episode there are two tests to be faced: the creativity one where participants are left free to trace and the technical one where instead they are asked to reproduce a recipe. Among the judges there are illustrious personalities of the sector such as Ernst Knam.

The final winner wins the opportunity to publish their cookbook. And if an aspiring pastry chef could compete with one of the sacred monsters of the sector? It happens in the program “The Sweetman” where the participants have the opportunity to prepare their best creation under the gaze of Iginio Massari. The Maestro observes the preparation of the dessert, giving advice to the participant and judges the final result.

THE CHALLENGES BETWEEN PASTRY SHOPS

From sweets to pastry shops: the TV challenges broaden the perspective to get to the competition between clubs. New factors enter the game: not only the creations but also their display and presentation, the cleanliness of the place and the atmosphere you breathe. In “Best bakery” the judges Alessandro Servida and Andreas Acherer tour Italy in search of the best pastry shop in the country. From north to south, the program is also an opportunity to discover the Italian confectionery tradition. For each pastry shop visited, the judges expressed their opinions on the basis of three parameters: “first impression”, “the speciality” and “the dessert of the challenge”. The latter item is the most captivating and complex to deal with: the professionals were in fact asked to prepare a dessert using a “mysterious” element assigned by the judges themselves.

A “Cake Star” in each episode three pastry shops in an Italian town challenge each other whose owners, in turn, give an opinion on the other competitors in thanks to the appearance of the pastry shop, the pastry cabaret and the “piece de resistance”, i.e. the outstanding dessert, with a score from 0 to 5 stars. Judges and conductors are Katia Follesa and Damiano Carrara who also give a judgment that will be added to that of the competitors. At the end of the first round, whoever has received the most stars will be able to access the final duel and will fight in a challenge on equal terms, outside their own laboratory, to win the Cake Star trophy, the title of best pastry shop in the city and a cash prize. of 2,000 euros to be reinvested in the company.

PASTRY SHOWS

On television there is also space for programs in which professional pastry chefs show their creative and culinary skills. On Gambero Rosso Channel we find “Silvia’s fabulous world ” in which the pastry chef Silvia Federica Boldetti offers sweets made of shapes and colors inspired by books and real life situations .

Gambero Rosso with its editorial products is devoting more and more attention to the world of pastry, as demonstrated by the guide “Pasticceri e Pasticcerie 2020” of which Fb Showcases is a sponsor.

In “ The king of chocolate ” instead Ernst Knam delights the eyes of the viewer with his mouth-watering proposals. Indeed, the maître chocolatier and his team of experts prepare delicious sweet creations and grandiose chocolate sculptures for their demanding clientele.

And the world of ice cream?

At the moment in Italy there is not yet a real format dedicated to master gelato makers that sees them as protagonists in TV challenges.
Separate mention for Alessandro Borghese’s program “Kitchen Sound” in which the IceCream-branded episodes featured ten professional gelato makers from all over Italy.
The show talked about gourmet ice cream combined with sweet and savory dishes.

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The art of plating: 5 ideas that will change your desserts

by lorenzo in Pastry

The art of plating: 5 ideas that will change your desserts

You no longer eat only with your mouth, but also with your eyes: this is how food evolves and becomes a true multi-sensory experience. In fact, food is a special material capable of involving all our senses, starting from sight. The search for beauty for the eyes is increasingly important, especially when the time for dessert arrives on the table: carefully arranging all the elements and presenting a dish well can transform a simple recipe into a culinary experience.

Plating desserts is an art and the ingredients that must never be missing are creativity and style. The cheffa Maria Vittoria Griffoni, owner of PepeNero Bistrot and Jovanotti’s personal chef, has dedicated five sweet creations personalized to us with her touch of inspiration and originality, from which we have drawn inspiration to tell you five ideas for the composition of your desserts. Here’s what we learned from her!

#1. Geometries

The first rule to immediately amaze at first glance is playing with geometric shapes, taking your dish into consideration and checking the harmony of spaces. Focus on geometries but not on symmetries, because a plate that is too symmetrical risks looking artificial, and above all let yourself be guided by your instincts! As the chef Maria Vittoria always does, who even during the plating of this delicate mascarpone cream relied on the inspiration of the moment, creating a decoration with quick but decisive strokes.

#2. Verticality

An effect of impact but not always easy to achieve lies in the use of verticality in the construction of the plating. By following a stratification of the ingredients and skilfully alternating elements that differ in color but also in texture, it is possible to create an elegant and certainly original dessert. The final result will not only be pleasing to the eye, but will contribute to giving a feeling of dynamism to your dish, such as our cheffa’s delicious multi-layered millefeuille, which gave further vertical impetus to the dish with the interlayer garnish and raspberry finish.

#3. Spoon desserts

Another simple and very practical idea is that of preparing spoon desserts: creams, ice creams, tiramisu and many other desserts can be placed inside glasses, bowls and jars, to be garnished with flakes of chocolate, crumbled biscuits, fresh fruit or grains of dried fruit, but not only…
Take inspiration from this exquisite yogurt Bavarian cream with granola and strawberries.

#4. Colors and contrasts

The chromatic element is essential in the presentation of a dessert, especially when there is a good play of contrasts. It is also essential to consider the color of the plate, to be chosen according to the final composition we want to achieve.
Don’t the ingredients of your dessert have a particularly lively color scheme and you don’t have dishes available with which to create games of contrasts? The secret is to liven up the chromatically unstimulating sweets by inserting details of a strong and different color to break up the monotony.
Sometimes very little is enough to give vitality to a dish, as for the chocolate crepes served by the cheffa. The bright red of the strawberries, combined with a sprinkling of intense spearmint, adds panache to this whimsical reinterpretation of the classic crepes.

#5. The art of simplicity

The desire to amaze could lead you to overstep your leg and fall into some form of decorative excess. The decorations must highlight the cake without overwhelming it, following the principle of simplification and deconstruction of the shapes. The new trend is precisely that of minimalism and the search for the essential: Maria Vittoria herself reveals to us that the absolute protagonist is always the material and the dish must give the best impression of genuineness. Small gestures are enough to present the ingredients of a dessert in a different way. The chef also teaches us that there is nothing better than the skilful contamination between cooking and pastry, as in this pineapple sorbet with a touch of freshness given by the addition of sage and ginger, served in total minimal simplicity.

These are just a few suggestions, but now it’s your turn to put on an apron, let your imagination run wild and experiment.

The chef’s final advice? Is to reawaken one’s creativity, look at the elements already available to us and take care of the details of our preparations, to satisfy the eye before the palate. With simple precautions you will be able to bring amazing desserts to the table and, at the end of the meal, even receive an applause!

L'arte di impiattare i dessert

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    Ice cream for all tastes: discovering the most enticing ice cream parlors

    by lorenzo in Pastry

    Ice cream for all tastes: discovering the most enticing ice cream parlors

    Summer is almost upon us. In many regions it has already arrived for a while and some lucky ones have already had the privilege of enjoying the pleasure of the first tan and the first everything at sea. However, sultriness, heat and high temperatures do not get along well with sweets: the chocolate melts, the creams are kept with difficulty. But there is one exception: artisanal ice cream, that delight for the palate and the senses that can bring everyone together, from children to grandparents. It can be enjoyed 365 days a year and is suitable for all occasions: as a dessert at the end of a lunch or dinner with friends, as a pleasure break from study or work, as a refreshing snack on an afternoon on the beach, as an excuse for a romantic walk.

    Impossible not to love it, also because there really is (literally) for all tastes!

    Italy can boast of being considered the motherland of this delicacy: ice cream is universally recognized as one of the symbols of our age-old gastronomic tradition and is enjoying success everywhere. All over the world there are tens of thousands of ice cream parlors, scattered in every corner of the planet: some boast local names, demonstrating the origins of the founders and the school of origin, while others are the fruit of the work and of the passion of people who, even if far away, have fallen in love with our excellence.

    The design of the artisanal ice cream shop

    The aspect that, more than the others, distinguishes an ice cream parlor from the others is the design, the style that constitutes its character and makes it unique and unmistakable. There is no right or wrong, but some tendencies are more dominant than others. Let’s try to summarize them in three categories, the most widespread at the moment.

    1. Traditional atmosphere

    This is what characterizes historic ice cream parlors, those that have remained practically as they have always been or those that, although restructured and renovated, have nonetheless kept faith with the original style. They are usually distinguished by the presence of bright, bright and captivating colours which aim to capture everyone’s gaze and attention, from the youngest to the oldest, and to invite them to enter.

    1. Vintage – shabby atmosphere

    The return to vintage is a fairly widespread trend that has been in vogue in recent years under various aspects: from design to clothing. There are many artisan ice cream parlors that are inspired by this style, characterized above all by the use of light colours: white and pastel shades in primis. This responds both to aesthetic questions and intends to suggest and instill in those who enter the idea of simplicity, naturalness, genuineness of the product: the white refers to the color of milk, while the pastel shades to that of an ice cream free of additives and colourings.

    The use of furnishing and decorative elements in wood and made through the recovery of other objects instead suggests the idea of craftsmanship, of the handmade.

    1. Industrial environment

    Also in this case it is a fairly widespread trend in recent times. The aspect that distinguishes it is the presence of materials deliberately left exposed: iron and steel structures, walls in concrete or exposed brick, systems and ducts exhibited as furnishing elements. The predominant colors are contrasting: light and dark (concrete and glass vs iron and steel) and warm and cold (brick vs concrete). Around the scene there are sometimes also mechanical components of various kinds with the intention of recalling the idea of a laboratory, a place of production.

    These are obviously general categories, which are not the rule: there are cases of ice cream parlors that go beyond any label or that, on the contrary, bring together elements and aspects of different styles.

    A second element that discriminates between ice cream shops is the way the ice cream is displayed, stored inside refrigerated display specially designed and manufactured. Inside these, the various flavors are stored either in the sorbettiere, the trays in which the ice cream is visible, or in the carapine, the traditional buckets closed by lids. Impossible to establish which container is the most suitable: these are choices deriving from the school of thought of the master gelato maker and from aesthetic-stylistic preferences.

    What is the best ice cream in Italy?

    Since 2017 also the Gambero Rosso tried to give an answer to this question that makes the sweet tooth dream. In fact, starting this year, among the various guides created by this company, a new, seductive title has been added: Guide to ice cream parlors of Italy 2017. It analyzes those which, on the basis of the parameters considered, appear to be among the excellences of Italian gelato: the evaluations are expressed in cones, from 0 to 3 depending on the level achieved.

    Of the more than 37,000 ice cream parlors present throughout the country, just over thirty have been able to obtain the coveted recognition of the three cones Gambero Rosso.

    Let’s see ten of the most famous, in order from North to South.

    1. Alberto Marchetti in Turin, Alassio and Milan

    The ice cream is produced according to family recipes, favoring quality and carefully selected ingredients and raw materials. Without adding anything else, according to Marchetti himself.

    1. Soban to Valenza and Alessandra

    The ice cream maker Andrea Soban is a wandering spirit in constant search of new tastes, flavors and local excellence to enhance. He is an experimenter and proponent of zero kilometer gourmet ice cream.

    1. The ice cream tree in Seregno, Cogliate and Monza

    Local and very fresh ingredients, in some cases self-produced, in order to produce sustainable ice cream. As fascinating as tasty are the savory proposals! For some years they have also landed in the Big Apple, with stores in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

    1. Bloom in Modena

    Gourmet ice cream based on artisanal ingredients and limited use of sugar. Where possible you can even do without milk!

    1. Ciacco – Gelato without a doubt in Parma, Milan and Bergamo

    Also in this case the “definitely” of the name underlines the naturalness and purity of the raw materials and the final product. Some flavors are also suitable for vegan palates.

    1. Cremeria Capolinea in Reggio Emilia

    Gelato maker Simone De Feo loves to surprise with savory experiments, but, at the same time, he doesn’t disappoint with classic flavours. His ice cream comes from the collaboration with small local production communities and constantly rides the wave of the most current gastronomic and pastry trends.

    1. De’ Coltelli in Pisa and Lucca

    Ingredients and raw materials are strictly organic and produced within local and circumscribed micro-realities, such as yoghurt and sheep’s milk ricotta from the San Rossore park. Rare and purely Tuscan flavors without neglecting the gourmet touch.

    1. Paolo Brunelli ice cream shop in Senigallia and Agugliano

    Paolo Brunelli is a true master of contemporary ice cream: he offers unusual combinations that enhance the palate. The Gambero Rosso Gelaterie d’Italia 2017 guide also awarded him the Special Award for the best chocolate ice cream.

    1. Otaleg! in Rome

    The quality of master Marco Radicioni’s ice cream, considered by many experts to be the best in Rome, lies in the traditional, slow and painstaking process.

    1. Di Matteo in Torchiara

    In this tiny bar – ice cream parlor hidden in the province of Salerno, master Raffaele Del Verme enraptures the palates of customers with the simple and genuine tastes of local specialties.

    Elena D'Ottavi - FB showcases

    Arch. ELENA OTTAVI

    Marchigiana lover of numbers, Art and its history. Curious, sensitive and above all interested in issues related to urban regeneration, the protection of the territory and the architectural-artistic-landscape heritage, sustainable planning and design, she works as a free-lance architect and collaborates with blogs of some companies in the sector.

    She is in love with books and the sea, she dreams of being able to travel to discover the world and the places where good Architecture and Design have been able (and will be able to) give life to living and sustainable urban spaces, from all points of view. And, of course, to design them!

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      Sunday dessert: journey of the senses between taste and tradition

      by lorenzo in Pastry

      Sunday dessert: journey of the senses between taste and tradition

      Ours is a country with a thousand faces and a thousand realities and of which it is difficult to summarize, in a few strokes, the main characters and multiple nuances. However, there is one aspect, a ritual capable of overcoming regionalisms and which, albeit with different variations, brings everyone together: it is the tradition of the Sunday cake .

      Obviously there is no a Sunday dessert: every region, every city and every town has its own recipe, to which it is closely linked, partly out of parochialism, partly for reasons of the heart.

      Heart, yes: because the Sunday dessert is not simply a matter of quantity, weight, temperature, procedure. On the contrary, its value also and above all lies in its ability to evoke in us the images, smells, sensations, happy memories of our childhood. Like when on Sunday morning you were woken up by the scent of the cake baking in the oven and you couldn’t wait for it to cool down so you could taste a slice, before your mother or grandmother intervened to appease your hopes and enthusiasm by saying: “No, not now. It’s for lunch”!

      Beyond this, it is the aromas and that expectation that we are fond of and that today are evoked every time we go back to taste the sweets typical of our places of origin and of our childhood and every time that the Sunday dessert ritual is renewed.

      To each his own

      Italy, as we well know, is a country with strong and consolidated traditions, especially in the kitchen and pastry. There is to be amazed in front of the number and the infinite variety of sweets and other delicacies from which we can choose.

      For example, in the Marche custom dictates that it isn’t Sunday without the donut to be soaked in wine or without the cream (a sort of trifle), while in Tuscany it is forbidden conclude the lunch without castagnaccio or cantuccini.

      In Bari the day of celebration is honored with donuts, the real ones: be wary of imitations! In Naples, on the other hand, there is a dessert for every occasion, but the sfogliatelle, to be enjoyed with coffee, are a must.

      In the Northern regions, on Sundays strudel, sbrisolona, torte di latte and bònet (the typical Piedmontese chocolate pudding and amaretti biscuits) are prepared.

      And then there are all those traditions which, in a transversal way, are found well rooted and consolidated in kitchens and pastry shops throughout Italy. Like tiramisù in its many variations: classic based on ladyfingers and coffee, with strawberries, chocolate, pistachio, like the famous one from Bar Pompi in Rome.

      And like the timeless, as well as very Sunday, tray of pastries. Depending on the place, they are called differently, pastas, pastarelle, pastries, etc., but the substance remains more or less the same: a selection of assorted mignons such as puffs with various flavors, millefeuille, lobster tails, tarts and tartlets of fruit, cannoli, dry biscuits, meringues, to be enjoyed in company at the end of the lunch.

      Journey of the senses, mind and heart

      The artists of Italian pastry making these strong and appreciated traditions their own, enhancing them and making them a real world heritage site! They have been able to undertake and successfully carry on a path that from the past and through innovative choices has led them up to today for the joy and delight of our palates, but not only. In fact, a dessert is not simply the final course of lunch but a complex and multifaceted experience capable of making us travel 360° in space, history and culture and telling a story made up of flavours, colours, aromas and experiences.

      And, above all, the dessert represents beauty, happiness and sharing: it is what, perhaps unconsciously, our mind associates with those moments of celebration and relaxed serenity in company and that our heart guards.

      For this reason, those who make the sweets must know how to tell about themselves and transmit love , as well as the place. The pastry shop represents the origin of the journey, so it cannot be limited to being just a laboratory or a simple place: on the contrary, it must show its history and soul and be able to arouse the emotions of those who are looking for a moment of happiness.

      Is all this possible? What are the characteristics and aspects that can make a pastry shop capable of making us travel with the senses, with the mind and with the heart?

      How can a pastry shop arouse emotion?

      Being able to arouse emotions means being able to stimulate and make the strings of the customers’ hearts play. But how? Let’s try, below, to collect three suggestions to make the trip to your own pastry shop unforgettable.

      1. Telling about oneself without becoming fossilized

      The pastry shop must tell itself and its history, whose roots are deeply anchored in traditions, without however crystallizing in the glory of the past. The past is important and constitutes that essential element that binds us to memories and memories, but equally fundamental is the ability to innovate, both in design and in recipes, so as to always be ready to satisfy desires of customers of all ages.

      1. Identify yourself without distorting yourself

      Pastry making must represent a unique experience, so it is important to identify which are the aspects, characters and peculiarities that make up its identity and make the most of them. Without however losing sight of one’s own nature and personality, made up of recipes but also of style, aesthetics, rituals and attention to detail.

      1. Fall in love

      As we have already seen before, dessert evokes moments of happiness and transmits love. So every aspect inside the pastry shop, the place where these feelings are born, must do the same: everything must be tidy, serene, relaxed, the design balanced, the staff smiling and calm, the music in the background enveloping but not intrusive, the bewitching but not overpowering aromas.

       

      The pastry shop must like itself and give itself and its products the kind of attention reserved for a lover: and when love is in the air, everything is wrapped up in it.

      It is among these objectives and needs that the experience and commitment of FB Showcases move every day, leading us in search of maximum performance and perfect design, through a sweet journey of the senses between taste and tradition.

      Come and discover our shop windows!

      Elena D'Ottavi - FB showcases

      Arch. ELENA OTTAVI

      Marchigiana lover of numbers, Art and its history. Curious, sensitive and above all interested in issues related to urban regeneration, the protection of the territory and the architectural-artistic-landscape heritage, sustainable planning and design, she works as a free-lance architect and collaborates with blogs of some companies in the sector.

      She is in love with books and the sea, she dreams of being able to travel to discover the world and the places where good Architecture and Design have been able (and will be able to) give life to living and sustainable urban spaces, from all points of view. And, of course, to design them!

      Write to us and ask for more information about FB showcases

        Read More