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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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FB Showcases - Gusti Gelati 2021

New trends and great classics: ice cream flavors in 2021

by lorenzo in News
FB Showcases - Gusti Gelati 2021

New trends and great classics: ice cream flavors in 2021

Under the sign of sustainability, the 2021 summer season starts, between tradition and new journeys in gluttony.

Summer 2021.The journey of gluttony starts again with the first warm weather, and the master artisans of the art of Italian Gelato unleash their inventiveness, creating and recreating.

Competitiveness, essential in such a vast world, is a further stimulus to research, and the observatory of HostMilano, the professional hospitality exhibition of the Fiera di Milano (which this year will be held from 22 to 26 October), in his annual report on ice cream and ice cream parlors, he demonstrated how healthy competition leads to innovative and… largely greedy results!

In fact, HostMilano has identified 5 new artisan gelato trends for 2021.

FB Showcases - Gusti Gelati 2021

Summer ice cream trends.

First of all let’s talk about the Free Form, in which milk, which is a traditional ingredient of ice cream in general, is replaced by drinks based on coconut, oats and almonds . A more full-bodied taste, a gamble against tradition. Aren’t you curious to taste the result?

Ah la barrique is a decidedly avant-garde and bold trend, where the ice cream flavors are made with products related to the world of wine and cheese and which, in the Limited Edition line , will offer daring tastes and combinations. Definitely departing from the traditional way of understanding ice cream!

Love is in the air, they said. And, to paraphrase a well-known TV personality, Dr. House, “they say love is essential, but air is definitely more so”. So why not replace water with air when making ice cream? Decidedly ethereal ice creams will be the result of this innovative preparation, thanks to the air injected or whipped directly onto the product. Giving them a soft and delicate texture and offering an incredible sight to the eyes.

Green and supportive instead rides on the needs of our world, with a tendency towards healthy ecology and sustainability and ethical production, in raw materials and packaging. Because you can’t sacrifice our land in the name of gluttony, and you don’t even need to choose which of the two to give up.

FB Showcases - Gusti Gelati 2021

The new flavors of 2021

As for the new flavours, i.e. the gems with which the artisans will delight the palate, forecasts give the majority of those based on superfoods renewed from fermented and probiotics, with original touches such as drops of mint, vanilla, oats, honey and lavender and roasted banana, but also those derived from nature will have their place, and we can already taste the varieties with carrot, rhubarb and various types of honey, assisted by beeswax with instead of thickener and propolis for the purpose of natural antibiotic.

Not to be underestimated, then, the sweet-savory combinations.

We at FB Showcases, however, look forward to hosting these tastes in our showcases, where they will find the ideal environment and best technology to enhance the taste.

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Gelato Day 2021 - FB Showcases

A look at Ice Cream Day 2021

by lorenzo in News
Gelato Day 2021 - FB Showcases

A look at Gelato Day 2021

Gelato Day 2021 is the event dedicated to Artisanal Gelato, an ancient art and food loved by all, to which the European Parliament has named, the only food to have received this honor, a day in its honor, March 24, will be held for the ninth consecutive year.

An opportunity for rebirth

The art of artisanal gelato, in all its facets, is one of the activities that has suffered the most losses during the pandemic. But, as is appropriate in an artisan category that has lived amidst a thousand difficulties over the centuries, hope and resilience are never lacking. The Gelato Day 2021 edition really wants to celebrate these rare qualities, showing everyone that the sector is not only not in crisis, but instead points to a future full of novelties and new delicacies.
In fact, if last year’s edition was in a minor key, relegated by current events to a secondary role in a Europe conditioned, more or less, by stringent lockdown policies, and which therefore had to settle for only virtual celebration, this year the perspective is to take all the innovations that have conditioned the sector and treasure them in the organization of the event.

 

Preparations for Gelato Day 2021

It will therefore be an edition that will be divided between digital events and purely physical events, obviously within the limits allowed by an emergency that currently sets various stakes. Therefore the ice cream shops that will participate in the event, in addition to the classic on-site orders, will offer the home delivery service of their products. This initiative will also be supported in the big cities by the well-known food delivery service Deliveroo, which this year will be the promoter of the European Artisanal Gelato Day.
There will be demonstrations, promotions and events, both virtual and physical, which throughout Europe will aim to promote and spread the culture of ice cream parlors and their artisanal ice cream. A golden opportunity, therefore, to arm yourself with an ice cream cone or cup and indulge in a delicious break from the diet!

Taste of the Year: Mantecado

This year the choice of flavor of the year fell to Spain, and the Iberian nation did not fail to promote its culinary delights with a variety of exceptional flavors and stories enclosed in the Mantecado flavour. An anthology of varieties and tastes, led by a tasty old vanilla cream variegated with orange sauce and dark chocolate decorations.
A set of flavors that want to represent, as mentioned, segments of history and food and wine typical of Spain and the immense Iberian empire which was a crossroads of culinary discoveries and innovations in every field. Here then dominates vanilla, a spice imported by the conquistadors from distant Mexico, with its unmistakable scent, passing through chocolate, which had enormous commercial importance thanks to the Spanish merchants who imported it from the new continent, and finally oranges, produced among the most characteristic of Spain which currently holds the production record at European level.
A combination of sweet and bitter, which wants to play on the union of differences, a characteristic trait of the Spanish people.
A characteristic flavour, a worthy substitute for the Flavor of the Year 2020, the yogurt ice cream with strawberry variegation proposed by the Netherlands.

Who participates and how to participate

The European Artisan Gelato Day was born from an idea of Longarone Fiere and Artglace.
The 2021 edition sees, among others, as partners the Italian Gelato Makers Association, CNA, Confartigianato, Conpait Gelato – Confederation of Italian Pastry Chefs, the Italian Gelato Makers Federation, Masters of Italian Gelato, Ilgelatoartigianale.info, SIGEP – International Gelato and Pastry Exhibition , Italian Exhibition Group Artisan Bakery and Coffee.
Naturally we at FB Showcases also support the event by inviting you to participate.
Gelato shops that want to take part in the event simply need to register on the site www.gelato-day.it< /a>, indicating the initiatives they want to comply with in order to celebrate the most delicious day of the year in the best possible way!

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Ice cream shop furniture: good resolutions for 2020

by lorenzo in Ice cream shop

Ice cream shop furniture: good resolutions for 2020

Between a cup of vegan ice cream and a unicorn-flavored cone, we have reached the end of 2019. How has the artisanal ice cream sector in Italy been in these twelve months?

In 2018 the sector had reached 2.7 billion euros. In a survey conducted among members of the CNA (National Confederation of Crafts and Small and Medium Enterprises) the sector in 2019 could invoice up to 3 billion in total.
The entire agro-food chain will benefit from this increase, from milk to sugar to fresh fruit thanks to the demand for increasingly refined and quality flavors such as Bronte pistachio and hazelnuts from Piedmont, Lazio and Campania, Sicilian almonds and lemons from the Sorrento and Amalfi coasts.

According to another survey of June 2019 by the Chamber of Commerce of Milan and Brianza, there are 19,000 ice cream parlors in Italy. The city with the most ice cream parlors is Rome, followed by Naples, Turin, Milan, Salerno, Bari, Palermo, Brescia, Venice. Comparing the data of the ice cream parlors with the number of residents, it can be seen that there is a greater consumption of ice cream by tourists rather than by local consumers (except for Turin and Brescia), with a demand for “emotional” consumption.
For ice cream, the trends of this 2019 have paid particular attention to health and well-being, with the origin of the raw materials and the search for taste as the main marketing levers.

For inspiration on tastes and processes, look forward to the first appointments of the new year with trade fairs and sector events, such as Sigep in Rimini from 18 to 22 January 2020.
What could be the good resolutions for the new year for the decor of your ice cream shop?

1) Give greater prominence to tastes

Ice cream is the absolute protagonist of your business.
Behind the display of taste in the window there is all the care in the choice of ingredients, the processing made of studies and experience, the creativity of proposing new and delicious combinations.
This is why the flavors of your gelato shop deserve the right prominence.

For 2020, you could give your tastes more attention by choosing windows that illuminate your products, enhance their importance, enliven their colour, enhance their flavour. The goal is to highlight them to convey to the customer with a single glance the desire to touch them, taste them and savor them intensely. Ice cream is your work of art, so it must be displayed in a showcase that integrates perfectly with the furniture of the ice cream parlor to offer customers an emotional journey that will lead them to order their cone or cup.

2) Find or improve your own

For some, 2020 will lead to the opening of their first artisanal gelato shop. For others who have already been working in the sector for years, it could be the year of renewal to relaunch their business. In both cases, a good intention is to find a style and a personality for your gelato shop, to become memorable and recognizable by customers and on the market.

The style is declined both in the offer of ice creams and products and in the furnishings. There are many styles to choose from: vintage, shabby, boho, modern, industrial. The important thing is to identify a style that represents the owner of the ice cream parlor and his business, and then personalize it </ strong> with the choice of materials, furniture and details.
Finding your own style and making your own ice cream parlor unique allows you to create that experience for the customer which, from entering the shop to consuming the ice cream, will lead him to live
memorable moments. This satisfaction will lead him to come back and tell his experience to relatives and friends.

3) Be inspired by the masters

The Maestri ice cream makers and pastry chefs can inspire both for the creativity of their ice creams and desserts and for the approach to the furnishing style of their premises.
For the new year, therefore, one could peek into their ice cream parlors and pastry shops to get some insights.

Maestro Iginio Massari, for example, opened the second branch of his pastry shop in the spring of 2018, to be precise in Milan in the premises of Banca Intesa San Paolo.
A sophisticated and welcoming environment has been created in the pastry shop that expresses the flavors and colors of the Master’s great experience in a contemporary key.

The ultimate goal was to create an art gallery of taste, in which the refined aesthetic taste would draw the attention and care of the raw materials in Massari’s kitchen: the choice therefore fell on precious materials and an innovative showcase and functional.

4) Give more importance to the details

When you make homemade ice cream, it’s often that extra bit of ingredient in the recipe that makes it delicious and irresistible. An extra gram of sugar, an addition of milk
at the end, a sprinkling of a spice. Magic comes from small gestures.

The same goes for furnishings: it’s the details that make the difference. When furnishing an ice cream shop, the choice of lighting of the windows, the finishes of the furniture, the
color combinations, accessories. It’s the little touches of style that make the furniture and therefore the ice cream parlor truly unique and memorable. For this reason, for 2020 we could strive to give more importance to details, with the same care and diligence with which we choose the best materials
raw materials and ingredients to create the flavors of your own ice creams.

5) Don’t make any more compromises between functionality and design

When choosing the furniture for your restaurant, do you think you are at a crossroads: functionality or design?
Aesthetics and comfort seem to be two opposite parameters to choose from when identifying furniture, display cases and furnishing accessories for your ice cream shop.

In reality, there is no need to compromise between functionality and design, and this should be one of the warnings for 2020.
The windows FB Showcases manage to combine an exclusive design
with cutting-edge technological solutions.
Class and elegance are expressed in the lines of the showcases of the eleven collections, which ensure high performance and efficiency for those who work in ice cream parlors without having to make compromises or sacrifices.

Have you chosen your good resolutions for 2020?
We wish you to realize them, for a happy new year.

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    Ice cream at Christmas: Christmas desserts revisited

    by lorenzo in Ice cream shop

    Ice cream at Christmas: Christmas desserts revisited

    Christmas means gifts, love, family and food. Lots of food, especially  sweets. December is that month of the year in which gluttony sins weigh a little less and we willingly give in to an extra slice of pandoro or an extra piece of nougat.

    For sweet artisans such as pastry chefs and ice cream makers, December means creations that combine   tradition and experimentation.

    Maestro Iginio Massari, for example, makes changes to his panettone every year, especially in the aromatic parts, those that give it more palatability and greater enjoyment. In fact, the master claims that “The quality of the product is not static, because needs are always changing”.

    An element that allows you to renew Christmas sweets by giving space to creativity is the   ice cream , which candid as the ideal ingredient to enrich Christmas delicacies.

    Ice cream in winter: good even at Christmas

    Ice cream is no longer just a summer love. Thanks to the use of seasonal ingredients it is possible to enjoy a cone or cup even during the coldest months of the year.

    Tastes therefore accord with climate and temperatures: here is the orange with walnuts, chestnut with bay leaf, ginger and cardamom, persimmon and pears, marron glacé.
    In winter ice cream changes its consistency and becomes even more velvety on the palate while maintaining its nutritional properties unaltered.

    Even in winter, the master ice cream makers show their creativity and professionalism. Last year, during the Christmas period, Master Paolo Brunelli offered ice cream bars in his temporary store in Ancona. A pocket-sized chocolate in the most requested flavors in his ice cream parlor in Senigallia, from Crema Brunelli to Dark to Portonovo and Cioccoriso.

    And it is precisely at Christmas that winter ice cream has its most magical moment. Let’s find out how ice cream can give new life and flavor to classic Christmas desserts.

    Panettone

    Panettone is the Christmas cake par excellence. It is the warmth of Christmas, it evokes family, friends and conviviality. Its most traditional recipe calls for sultanas and candied fruit, but there is no shortage of reinterpretations and gourmet flavors elaborated by master pastry chefs in their laboratories.

    How is panettone transformed when it meets ice cream?
    There are different interpretations and recipes. First of all, the panettone stuffed with ice cream. In this preparation, the panettone is left whole, hollowed out inside so that it can accommodate the ice cream. You can enrich the presentation with a coating of chocolate icing.

    Then there is what is called panettone ice cream: a classic panettone that becomes a Sicilian brioche to be filled with stracciatella or extra dark chocolate ice cream.
    Creative proposals come from Italian master ice cream makers, who suggest a version of panettone with candied ginger and chestnuts, filled with marron glacé ice cream and 70% dark chocolate, or what is called the “Panettone with landscape”, with pieces of milk or dark chocolate, glazed with chocolate, crowned with a Christmas landscape.

    Pandoro

    The pandoro is considered the antagonist of the panettone in the Christmas challenge of the best dessert, creating real sides at the table and in the family.
    In its classic version, pandoro is a particularly soft dessert made with flour, eggs, butter, vanilla and covered as desired with a light layer of icing sugar.

    The encounter between ice cream and pandoro allows the versatility of the Veronese dessert to emerge.
    In the pandoro cake, the dessert is broken down into horizontal layers that create a tall star-shaped cake. Ice cream is used to fill this cake, choosing from the creamiest flavors such as chocolate, stracciatella and vanilla.
    Pandoro and ice cream can also create a Christmas version of zuccotto. The pandoro is decomposed and becomes the “shell” of the zuccotto, which is then filled with a semifreddo and then left to cool in the freezer for a few hours.
    Finally, we have the flavor of Pandoro.
    An ice cream with a simple flavor made with cream, milk, sugar, vanilla, acacia honey, lemon peel for an unmistakable aroma. The touch of tradition given by the Veronese leavened product recalls that unique sensation of a slice of cake, inebriated by the scent of icing sugar.

    Nougat

    The almond nougat is one of the typical desserts of the Christmas period. Its traditional recipe calls for egg whites, honey and sugar and is stuffed with toasted almonds, walnuts, peanuts or hazelnuts. Often covered with two layers of wafer, it can be hard, soft, with chocolate, almonds, hazelnuts or candied fruit.

    The nougat flavor is born from the union between this specialty and ice cream. An original and mouth-watering creamy dessert spoon, perfect for the Christmas table.
    Alternatively, the nougat can lend itself to other interpretations, becoming a delicious semifreddo.

    The Yule log

    The Christmas log or buche de Noël is a traditional French dessert.
    In its classic version, it is made up of a stuffed and rolled Savoyard biscuit base that recalls a tree stump thanks to its shape and decoration.
    The making of this dessert refers to the ancient tradition of the European countries of the Yule log, that is the custom of burning a log of wood, starting from Christmas night until the new year, as a sign of good luck.

    The ice cream lends itself to being a delicious filling for the Christmas log.
    There are many variations and choices.
    From fillings with dark chocolate to fruit ice cream, from versions with a softer texture to frozen desserts, from classic Christmas decorations with marzipan hollies and meringue mushrooms to more modern and structured versions decorated with macarons.
    Noteworthy are the Christmas logs of the French master Pierre Hermé. Real masterpieces of taste, with an elegant shape and essential decorations.
    The French master offers different flavors and combinations, from the one with rose, raspberry and lychee to the one with milk chocolate, passion fruit and toasted pineapple up to the one with lemon and hazelnut pralines.

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      The evolution of ice cream: from a walking cone to a work of art

      by lorenzo in Ice cream shop

      The evolution of ice cream: from a walking cone to a work of art

      In its long history, ice cream has evolved in shapes and flavours. From a simple cone with two flavors to a starred dessert as a small gourmet art sculpture.

      Consumers have remained faithful to ice cream beyond eras, fashions and tastes. And it was precisely this sweet passion that pushed the master ice cream makers and pastry chefs with their talent to experiment new combinations of flavours.

      Homemade ice cream from a simple dessert to be consumed in
      trusted ice cream parlor in moments of conviviality has become a gastronomic specialty in all respects, earning a leading role in the Italian food scene among
      trade fairs and specialized guides.

      How we got from the cone or cup with chocolate and fiordilatte to masterpieces such as Gelato con Meringa of the master Iginio Massari?
      Let’s retrace the main stages of this delicious evolution together.

      In the beginning there was the cone

      We are at the end of the 19th century. On the streets of towns and cities, men dressed in white push strange carts to the sound of a bell, while shouting: “Ice cream! Who wants some ice cream?”. It is the beginning of ice cream as food for walking.

      With a selection of flavors to choose from from the pozzetti present on the cart, young and old alike enjoy this dessert which comes with one or two scoops of ice cream placed on a cone or cup of waffle.

      Over the years the first ice cream parlors begin to appear in Italy and the techniques for serving ice cream are increasingly refined. A spatula is used for cones and baskets while the scoops of ice cream become the protagonists of delicious cups with decorations such as banana split or exotic compositions with fruit.

      From dessert to main course

      In its evolution, ice cream begins to meet other flavours. Initially, it approaches its own kind, giving new nuances of taste to sweets. They range from the classic croissants and brioches filled with ice cream to the famous ice cream cakes up to the revisited cupcake with the addition of creamy ice cream that surmounts or fills it.

      Later the ice cream also joins the salty flavors making its appeared on restaurant plates. The watchwords are contamination and innovation: different textures intertwine to create unusual combinations of flavors designed to amaze the palate. And here we have, for example, fried pasta with Parmesan ice cream, donkey burger with cheese, anchovy mayonnaise and mustard sorbet, cous cous fish and tomato and basil sorbet.

      In Italy ice cream has seen its triumph over other courses, going from co-protagonist to absolute protagonist on the table. In fact, the restaurant in Rome is located where all the dishes on the menu are based on ice cream, from appetizers to desserts. Among vegetable dishes, meat dishes and fish dishes, ice cream goes from decorative element to main ingredient< span style=”font-weight: 400;”>, dictating the rules for combinations and compositions.

      Ice cream as a work of art: the work of pastry chefs

      Ice cream lives its highest expression thanks to the precious work of master pastry chefs and ice cream makers. Sweets that look like paintings, compositions that recall sculptures. The creations of the pastry chefs give life to real sweet works of art.

      Over time, ice cream has become an increasingly pre-eminent element in confectionery both to take advantage of its versatility and to seasonally adjust a product that many still consume only in the summer. Pastry masters have jumped at this opportunity to express their talent in a creative way, focusing not only on flavors but also on design< /b> and structure of the cake.

      There are numerous examples, for the joy of sight and palate. First of all, the master Iginio Massari. Many of his creations such as the pistachio millefeuille or the meringue ice cream are a perfect </ span> balance </ b> between shapes and textures for a true and own taste experience. For Alberto Marchetti the winning key was the combination of raw material quality and innovation. Starbucks, the famous international chain of coffee shops has chosen him to create the nitrogen ice cream to be served in the Milan store. Nitrogen makes it possible to serve freshly prepared ice cream, which Marchetti has declined in three flavours: a fiordilatte, a coffee sorbet prepared with a cold brew and a coffee ice cream obtained from a classic cream with eggs and milk in which infused coffee.

      Paolo Brunelli he is an ice cream maker, a chocolatier, but most of all an artist of the dessert. His creations represent the avant-garde of ice cream and the creative contamination between cooking, pastry, enology and ice cream. In addition to in-depth research on flavors and raw materials, the creations of master Brunelli are small masterpieces of sweetness. An example? The “Panino Dolce”, a naturally leavened barley sandwich that can be filled with flavors of your choice.</span >

      What will be the next evolution of ice cream?

      In its history, ice cream has undergone continuous evolution. From walking food it has come to conquer even high-level cuisines and dishes.

      What will be its next evolutions?

      The challenge for pastry chefs and master ice cream makers is to continue to innovate by proposing new combinations or revisiting traditional recipes to amaze customers more and more.

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        Between confirmations and novelties, ice cream trends for winter 2019

        by lorenzo in Ice cream shop

        Between confirmations and novelties, ice cream trends for winter 2019

        Ice cream is increasingly a dessert for < b>all seasons.

        The classic pairing ice cream – summer gives way to seasonal adjustment and even with the cold you love to enjoy a good homemade ice cream.

        Eating an ice cream during the winter months is not just a cuddle for our taste buds but it is also good for the health of body and mind.

        In fact, ice cream makes us happy because it stimulates the production of serotonin, the “happiness hormone”, and is also a source of energy with many useful nutrients especially during the winter , a period in which the immune system is put to the test.

        For an artisan ice cream shop, vary the assortment of flavors based on seasonality is essential not only to offer customers new tastes but above all to testify to the freshness and quality of the ingredients.

        Proposing customers in your display window an offer of tastes that varies between summer and winter is a sign of creativity and authenticity.

        For those looking for inspiration to update the flavors to offer in their ice cream shop, let’s discover some of the ice cream trends among news and confirmations< span style="font-weight: 400;"> for this winter.

        The trends that are confirmed: ice creams “without”, seasonal products

        Let’s start with the trends that are also confirmed for this winter.

        Some are closely linked to seasonality while others have been establishing themselves for a few years and seem to know no arrest.

        In winter, homemade ice cream reinterprets some of the typical flavors of this season , to offer an always genuine product.

        This is how combinations are born that match the climate and temperatures: orange with walnuts, chestnut with bay leaf, ginger and cardamom, pear and cinnamon, marron glacé.

        With the arrival of winter, moreover creamy flavors are preferred with a “return” to the great classics such as chocolate, perhaps in an extra dark version or combined with orange peel, dried fruit, chestnuts, spices, persimmons and pears.

        The trend relating to km 0 is also confirmed, therefore the origin of the raw materials used for artisan ice cream. In fact, the awareness continues to spread among many consumers that the use of local raw materials equals higher quality.

        Some examples in Italy are the Prosecco or fregolotta flavor in Veneto, the myrtle flavor in Sardinia, Vin Santo ice cream in Tuscany and those with walnuts and figs from the Cilento in Campania.

        Another increasingly growing trend is that of “without” ice cream: gluten free, vegan and lactose free.

        Flavors that no longer represent a niche in Italy but a consolidated reality to satisfy customers who request ice creams made with vegetable ingredients or with alternative preparations due to intolerances or ethical issues.

        Fruit and vegetables, together for a healthy ice cream

        An ice cream that combines fruit and vegetables. This is one of the new trends, halfway between innovation and well-being.

        Unpublished flavors rich in character, which respect health and physical shape, two fundamental elements that meet the needs of a consumer who is increasingly attentive to what he chooses to eat.

        The main ingredients are fruit such as mango, papaya, pineapple, which meet vegetables such as carrots, celery, lemon. Local spices also play an important role in creating a healthy mix but at the same time really tasty.

        Together with vegetables, flowers are proposed in combination with classic fruit flavors to create new and tasty mixes.

        This is how lemon and carrot ice creams (and sorbets), chamomile flowers, violet, lavender, tomato, basil and strawberry, pumpkin are born.

        Aromatic herbs and essential oils: ice cream becomes aromatic

        Another strong trend this year are flavors made with herbs – fresh or in infusions – spices and essential oils to fill a food that for its temperature rarely gives intense smells.

        The goal is to experiment to amaze customers more and more. So a simple coffee taste is transformed with the addition of lemon essential oil, a mix of tropical fruit is enriched with new nuances with vanilla, ginger juice and Timut pepper and the dark chocolate becomes more persuasive through the meeting with truffle honey and lemon zest. Whatever taste, the great constant is the care in the search for raw materials and the desire to prefer local products.

        Mixology meets ice cream

        The desire for contamination emerges from the trends of this 2019 between the world of ice cream and that of food & beverage elements, among which we also find alcohol and cocktails.

        The mixology, which is experiencing its moment of glory, expands its influence and also enters the universe of ice cream.

        Very interesting, especially at the end of a meal, a distillate-based sorbet such as gin and tonic or the inclusion of gin in a raspberry and rosemary flavour. Another growing trend is ice cream pairing, i.e. ordering gourmet ice creams to be enjoyed during happy hour and paired with your favorite drink such as a sour beer-based spritzbeer, which creates an interesting contrast with the savory aftertaste of the ice cream .

        There is no lack of ice cream reinterpretations of some classic drinks such as the Americano and Negroni or even the Milano-Torino.

        Creativity wins among the ice cream trends

        Given the considerable consumption of ice cream even in winter, it is important to know what the market trends are, to be inspired and have guidelines to follow in creating flavors for your own artisan ice cream parlor . Beyond fashions, the rewarding factor is as always creativity and experimentation. Especially during the colder months of the year, when ice cream is experienced as a moment to pamper yourself, study and try new flavor combinations, it allows every ice cream parlor to stand out compared to the competition to earn a special place in the hearts of consumers.

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          Ice cream: a moment to share with taste

          by lorenzo in Ice cream shop

          Ice cream: a moment to share with taste

          Summer is coming to an end, but there is a pleasure we can still fully enjoy: enjoying a good ice cream in good company.

          Among the moments of conviviality that of ice cream has always been the sweetest. In the question – “Shall we have an ice cream?” – there is a request to spend time together lightly and carefree.

          Consuming an ice cream with someone is more intimate than drinking a coffee: the choice of flavors helps us understand the personality of who we are dealing with and get to know them better.
          Each of us has a happy memory lived in front of a cone or a cup: a moment of his childhood in the company of his grandparents, a first date, a meeting with a best friend to confess secrets and dreams .
          According to the survey “The role of ice cream in the experience of Italians” conducted at the beginning of 2019 by the Fipe Study Office – the Italian Federation of Public Establishments – 94.2% of Italians habitually consume artisanal ice cream.

          But what are the favorite places to enjoy an ice cream with friends, family or a loved one?

          For lovers of homemade ice cream: the independent ice cream shop

          The small artisanal ice cream shop is the favorite place to consume ice cream by Italians, with 95.4%.
          Behind every independent ice cream parlor there is a philosophy, a story that culminates in the sweetness and creaminess of the flavors offered.

          In fact, each of these places is unique, both in terms of furniture and style of the place and for the variety of tastes strong>. From liberty to modern style, from classic to design furnishings. From the strudel or apple flavor from Val Venosta in Alto Adige to the one with cherries from Vignola in Emilia Romagna, from the Pettole or prickly pear flavor in Puglia to the mulberry sorbets from Etna or the Cerda artichoke in Sicily .
          You go to an artisan ice cream parlor when you walk with friends on a summer evening. Between a selfie, a laugh and a chat, the ideal is to eat an ice cream together to cool off.
          Or when you want to try that new artisanal ice cream parlor that you hear so much about in company.

          What leads Italians to prefer this type of ice cream shop?
          Consumers today are increasingly attentive to the origin of ingredients and their quality. Furthermore, for 42.6% of those interviewed, the presence of a production laboratory influences the choice of an ice cream shop.
          Even sight plays a decisive role in the choice: 75.9% of Italians prefer tubs of homemade ice cream in view, while only 19.2% of the sample prefers tubs with lids instead.

          For those who combine business with pleasure: the Bar Gelateria

          66.6% of ice cream lovers prefer ice cream bars to enjoy a cone or cup.
          In an ice cream bar, the clinking of cups alternates with the crunchy sound of a bite of a wafer. This type of establishment offers cafeteria services together with a variety of flavors of ice cream, even if not all of them have production laboratories inside.

          The ice cream bar is preferred when in the office or near the house the moment for a coffee intertwines and exchanges with that for an ice cream.
          The coffee break at work becomes sweeter with colleagues or a quick coffee with a friend turns into a stracciatella flavored chat.

          For 34.8% of Italians, the location of an ice cream parlor is in fact one of the discriminating factors in choosing one place over another, with 11.4% preferring one near their home or office.

          For those with a sweet tooth: the pastry and ice cream shop

          According to Fipe data, 73.7% of Italians enjoy their ice cream in a pastry shop.
          In the ice cream confectionery the sweetness is in plain sight.
          The lights of the display case for sweets enhance the delicious colors of macarons and pastries next to the ice cream display case with soft flavors or near the pozzetti.

          The pastry shops and ice cream parlors give the consumer a guarantee in terms of craftsmanship and quality of the raw materials.
          In fact, those who choose this type of ice cream are very attentive to the genuineness of the ingredients and appreciate, for example, the lava Pistachio from Bronte, the round hazelnut from the Langhe or the pasteurized fresh whole milk from South Tyrol.

          You go to these ice cream parlors when you want to eat a dessert in company and you want to choose which sin of gluttony to give in to, a chocolate and strawberry cup or a cream-filled pastry.
          The ice cream parlor is also the ideal destination for those who, like 77.4% of Italians, consider ice cream the “ideal dessert to offer when you have guests”.

          For those who don’t like change: ice cream chains

          According to Fipe data, 25% of consumers choose the ice cream shops of a chain. These ice cream parlors have standard furniture in each store and a homogeneous offer of flavours.

          What kind of ice cream do we find in these outlets?
          A product that is prepared in advance and then kept on site with milk, chocolate chips, biscuits, nougat according to taste or delivered directly for sale to the public.

          You choose a chain ice cream parlor when on Sunday afternoon, during a walk with the family in a shopping center, the desire for a sweet break arises.
          Or when on holiday abroad with friends you have the desire for an ice cream and you want to rely on a well-known Italian brand.

          These ice cream parlors are preferred by a public that finds confirmation and psychological safety in the faithful and unchanged replication of an image and a flavour. In this way, however, the possibility of discovering an independent ice cream parlor with a particular style and offering innovative flavors is lost.

          The ice cream shop: a choice of heart and belly

          Eating an ice cream represents a moment of sharing and conviviality experienced with one’s loved ones.
          This makes us understand how important it is to take care of every aspect of the place, from the genuineness of the ingredients to the variety of tastes, from the furnishings to the atmosphere in the store.
          In fact, when Italians find their favorite gelateria, they remain faithful to it: 62.9% of those interviewed by Fipe declare that they have their own trusted gelateria.
          The final goal is then clear: to give the customer a memorable taste experience and guarantee his sweet return.

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            Ice cream according to Giuffrè

            by lorenzo in Ice cream shop

            Ice cream according to Giuffrè

            Not only ice cream but tradition, innovation and many emotions that can be hidden behind the processing of a product that is a symbol of Italian gastronomic excellence, well represented, also, by professionals capable of combining experience, familiarity and craftsmanship, creating the perfect mix as Alessandro explains Giuffrè, a Roman with Sicilian origins, owner of the homonymous brand present in Rome.
            Alessandro Giuffrè of the art of knowing how to make ice cream has made a lifestyle made up of simple but, at the same time, refined elements to create that particular atmosphere that he also wanted to bring back to his shop.
            Looking to the Italian territory, enhancing the flavors of a rich and varied country just like the flavors of ice cream that customers can find in ice cream shops. This, Alessandro tells us, is his goal and so, together with him, we try to better understand the work that develops behind the design of the business and of a recently renovated shop in which nothing has been left to chance.

            The experience of savoring excellent quality artisan gelato begins the moment you enter the gelateria.
            How important is it to design the ideal space and what characteristics should it have?
            Today ice cream parlors need large rooms capable of giving the customer a particular experience that is not only linked to taste but also visual, for example. A complete sensory experience at 360 degrees.
            For this reason the furniture chosen is minimal, clean, tidy.
            The raw material must be and remain the protagonist, which is valued while remaining at the center of attention.
            The spaces must be welcoming, furnished with elements built with natural materials, with the aim of once again bringing back to the customer the sensation of attention, care and craftsmanship which are, undoubtedly, elements also present in the preparation of the proposed product.
            Being supported, then, by the Clabo group with its experience and professionalism was important and fundamental to obtain the result we aspired to.

            Technology and craftsmanship, a distant union only in appearance.
            What unites the best furnishing structures and product maintenance with the manual processing technique typical of this activity?
            The ice cream masters teach us the importance of values.
            Short supply chain products and the search for the best raw materials, for example, must not and cannot go against the most modern final processing techniques which are necessary to have an even tastier and higher quality product.
            In our case, technology helps by becoming an indispensable ally.
            For example, the innovative cooling technique that characterizes the showcases or the pozzetti allows us to keep all the characteristics of the ice cream unaltered, guaranteeing the maximum satisfaction of our customers.

            Custom design. How was the preparatory work organized from the ordering phase to the final set-up?
            The idea comes from personal and life experience, followed by the emotions you want to share with customers.
            Being able to collaborate with qualified, prepared and specialized professionals is the secret.
            In our case, the Clabo company was invaluable by helping us select the best solutions from a structural point of view, coordinating optimally, during the design phase, with the presence of an architect.

            What feeling or message did you want to convey thinking about the end customer?
            Familiarity. That sense of welcome that you find when you have the people with whom you have the pleasure of sharing the best moments next to you.
            This is important to us. Knowing that, in our ice cream shop, you can have moments of serenity and harmony. Obviously tasty.

            No longer simple ice cream but, today, much more to meet the careful and sophisticated needs of customers. What are the main trends for the sector?
            Trends are diversified also in reference to our territory and our country which has made variety its main characteristic.
            Thinking of Rome, the trend is to look for an artisan figure revisited in a modern key and this is why we must be able to guarantee a product with careful selection and labeling, a recipe that speaks of short-chain ingredients, a comfortable environment adequate communication.
            The value of simplicity becomes essential for living a unique experience.
            In our case, the presence of an excellent pastry shop that is usually more combined with the cafeteria. A different and particular but equally refined choice that we want to offer to our customers.
            Dry but also fresh products to experience a moment that can be truly special and unique.

            A world, that of ice cream, which can reserve truly great surprises. Surprises made of ingredients of a different nature but skilfully combined, dosed and calibrated to create the recipe that everyone would like to have but only a few can keep.

            ROSSANA CAVALLARI

            Journalist and storyteller in constant balance between analogue and digital, I live between notebooks, colored pens and PCs, uniting the red thread of the words I seek to tell what I see and observe.

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