Gelato! A food group all it's own!

Perhaps I LOVE ice cream because of my Italian blood.........and it is really gelato I am looking for every time I stop at an ice cream store.       When home in Italy each year  I taste gelato in every town I visit in Italy.   I have my favorite gelato stores and flavors that I visit every time I go home to Italy.     Yes it is different in EVERY town and EVERY store.   And I am sorry to tell my 23 million Italian American friends, nothing in the USA comes close to gelato in Italy!

Un’arte tutta italiana: il gelato, Yle

Creamy, swirls of gelato 

When clients ask me for a spring culinary experience I often suggest for them to assist in a GELATO demo and learn what Italians gelato makers do and how artisanal gelato is made. 

And when it is about making it (gelato) with some nice friends and learn this Italian art, the answer cannot be anything but positive. 

Last time I saw Luca, the gelato maker, he made me taste a gorgeous fruity gelato and that was at that time that I thought my clients would have loved it. On several occasions, during my USA visits, I have tasted gelato, but have been  disappointed by the quantity of sugar used in it.    In some cases I tought it was a bubble gum rather than a gelato and could not finish my serving.

What makes Luca’s Gelato so special, is actually the freshest products used for ingredients and the limited quantity of sugar he adds.           Actually having tasted sugar free and gluten free gelato, it is one of the best experiences and  I can recommend it.   Also, his gelato is made without preservatives and artificial additives  which made me prefer tasting this rather than others. 

In this area of Italy (Puglia)  people basically eat  healthy , so  planning a vacation for a vegetarian  is not complicated at all.      Well, as probably some of you have realized, I like all things genuine and simple. This selection does not only fit a lifestyle, but is also a guidance in my daily nutritional plan.   

It was a busy spring weekend devoted to the inspection of new lovely places to recommend for my one day or longer tour programs. I asked two friends of mine to join me in this foodie inspection and share with me the pleasure of having breakfast with a “just made” gelato. 

When I told them the factory was by the ocean, they were simply happy.         Our scheduled time with Luca was quite early in the morning and the light on the ocean at that moment of the day is simply gorgeous.

Drive in Classic Cars in Italy!

           This week Yle will share with us the excitement of speeding through the beautiful Puglia countryside with the wind blowing through your hair and the wonderful colors of the Italian sky.

           You must visit to experience the colors of Italy:    the distinctive blue of the sky and the various greens of ancient trees and new crops in the fields.      Come as a traveler not a tourist. 
Yle today shows us another wonderful adventure for your visit to Italia! 
EXPLORING PUGLIA WITH STYLE: BY CLASSIC CAR
For everyone passionate about classic cars, food and fine wine, Spring or late Summer is a perfect time for exploring Puglia.

There's no better way to enjoy the area, its landscapes, colors and smells. Sometimes people ask me what is the best way to experience the area and after having tried it myself several times in the last two years, I can undoubtedly say that travelling with style is a very unique way to explore.

Many years ago, on a beautiful sandy beach on the lonian coast (an authentic paradise called Porto Cesareo) I met Massimo, a Salento native, an engineer, who told me about his passion for classic cars.  We have stayed in touch since then and when he told me about his classic cars project I told him he had a fabulous idea!    Once he told me about a sample tour, I asked him to experience it first hand and simply adorned the time I spent in those amazing cars.   Since then, we have had many visitors explore Puglia this way and Massimo and his team are lovely people to work with.

Driving a classic car is so stylish.    During one of our recent tours, we met in the main Piazza (Square) of the town for a glorious breakfast (cornetto and cappuccino) and for an insider look at the city (centro storico) – always a good time to take some beautiful pictures – among baroque palaces, then out of town through the countryside landscapes, down narrow white washed walled streets in little villages,  past beautiful villas by the ocean and an memorable drive amidst olive groves.

It’s very hard to remember the tons of pictures we took all the time…without mentioning the stops at a winery and in very cozy bakery where they make some great bread and taralli (and pastries as well!).  

This was very much like being in a movie:   huge landascapes along the coastline, wind in our hair, sunglasses and all the countryside smells sorrounding us.