PrintSpumoni: Love It or Leave It?
When it came to ice cream, I thought I had tried it all: gelato, sorbet, low-fat, super-premium, soft-serve, frozen yogurt, sherbet, scoops, cones, sandwiches, sundaes—the list goes on and on. But last week, for the first time in my life, I had spumoni.
I was blown away—it tasted like a cross between ice cream and Italian ice, with tiny bits of fruit and nuts mixed in. The cup I had, at Brooklyn's legendary L & B Spumoni Gardens, was a combination of chocolate, vanilla, and pistachio. After all that pizza I was only intending on eating a bite or two, but it was so delicious that I devoured the entire thing.
The next day I did a little research. Where had this delicious dessert been all my life? According to Wikipedia, spumoni originated in Naples and is the ancestor of Neapolitan ice cream (think layers of chocolate, cream, and fruit). Today spumoni has all but vanished in Italy but is prevalent in the United States in places with large Italian immigrant populations. Classic spumoni is a blend of three flavors: chocolate, pistachio, and cherry. Sometimes whipped cream is folded in. Often, it is frozen into a mold and served in thick slices. That was about all I could come up with. The history of spumoni, it seems, is a bit shrouded in mystery.
What I found most surprising was that people seemed wildly divided when it came to the merits of spumoni. Some loved it while others loathed it, citing the fact that it is even sweeter than ice cream and can be much too sugary. Others claimed that the versions of spumoni they had tried tasted largely artificial, especially the fruit layers.
I'm curious to know what the Serious Eats readers think. Is spumoni great or gross? Where are the best kinds found? And in this era of fancy frozen yogurt, are old-fashioned ice cream treats on the way to extinction?
About the author: Lucy Baker is a graduate student in the writing program at Sarah Lawrence College. Before returning to school to pursue an MFA, she was an assistant cookbook editor at HarperCollins. She lives in Brooklyn and is currently obsessed with all things fennel.
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14 Comments:
I adore it. Those are my three favorite flavors, and putting them together is genius!
When I was younger, this flavor would only show up around Christmastime, so I figured it was a seasonal treat.
Lauren Krueger at 9:48AM on 03/21/08
Yes, real spumoni is great... it doesn't seem to be something that non-Italians know much about. And L&B's is awesome all around... my father-in-law moved upstate from Brooklyn decades ago, and he has made it a Steingarten-esq mission to recreate the pizza in his house. He's gotten pretty close by buying a par-cooked sicilian crust from a local pizzeria, and then adding sauce and cheese to match L&B's.
dmorriso at 10:17AM on 03/21/08
My buds and I used to hang out in Spumoni Gardens back in my college days (late 60's). It's such a kick to see that it's been "discovered".
Spumoni was always a treat - never felt it was anything special. In fact, back in the day, if you went out to eat "italian food" - usually spaghetti in clam sauce, veal or chickent parmgiana, or baked ziti - spumoni was always offered as dessert.
Where's the best? You're probably there... and it certainly is the classic! :)
JeffsInTheKitchen at 11:13AM on 03/21/08
To dmorriso -
Unknown to non-Italians!? Per my comments above, we were a bunch of Jews from Brooklyn hangin' there! :)
Although hanging out in the likes of Bensonhurst was sort of exotic...
JeffsInTheKitchen at 11:16AM on 03/21/08
I love it. It was something I would beg for after an good Italian dinner when I was a child. During the Christmas season Dreyers /Edys makes a special Spumoni flavor. It's not that good though.
jdolanie at 11:22AM on 03/21/08
I love it! I use to live like 5 minutes away from L&B. Now I get a pint to go.
mchow at 12:18PM on 03/21/08
Love it. Reminds me of being a little kid.
Kerosena at 12:54PM on 03/21/08
Love it. Best combination of flavors. Yum!
heathercore at 12:58PM on 03/21/08
Have adored spumoni--and L&B--since I was a child. It's a Brooklyn thing, not solely an Italian thing (although some of my Italian friends claim that an Italian couple left the infant me on my parent's Irish-Norwegian doorstep).
BaHa at 3:52PM on 03/21/08
JeffsInTheKitchen-
I mean outside of the NYC area... heck, in Brooklyn, the Jews and Italians live next door to each other, right? But ask someone here in New Mexico (or even in upstate NY) about spumoni and see what they say...
dmorriso at 5:30PM on 03/21/08
I love it, although I hardly ever eat it.
My parents encouraged me to order it whenever it was on the menu, so it evokes memories of childhood.
I don't think it's too hard to get here in New Orleans -- Angelo Brocato's sells it here (and they ship)
http://www.angelobrocatoicecream.com/
UrbanPug at 6:00PM on 03/21/08
Doh! further review says they dont ship spumoni, only cookies, etc.
UrbanPug at 6:02PM on 03/21/08
DMorriso--Where I grew up in Brooklyn (Marine Park), it was Italians and Irish on the side streets, and the Jewish population on the avenues. I have no explanation for this.
BaHa at 7:22PM on 03/21/08
Hey Baha:
Nostrand Avenue (especially in front of Senior's) and Kings Highway with the low spark of high heeled boys were the hangouts. Can't say much about the Italians and Irish but we certainly mixed it up around Marine Park.
Dang if this ain't makin' me nostalgic...
JeffsInTheKitchen at 10:11PM on 03/21/08