A family story tells that my great-grandmother used to put the ice cream in the oven for a while before eating it. According to her, it was too cold. A few decades later when somebody asked me “What is your favourite food?”, my reply was simple and secure: “Ice cream, even in winter!”. I consider it as a sort of way for my eccentric relevant to make peace with ice cream for good.
As an Italian expat abroad, one of the hardest gastronomy tasks is to find a truly satisfying ice cream. After a two months fieldwork research, experimenting all the kind of different ice cream shops in Barcelona’s city centre, a friend eventually introduced me to this little icy jewel called, indeed, Gocce di Latte.
You can find it in Pla de Palau, a little square located in the city centre between the popular Barceloneta and the historic neighbourhood called Born. Once you enter the shop, the first things you will see are an open window on the workshop (the place where the magic happens!) and an illustrated wall where you will easily recognise a comic version of the shop and its dwellers. Besides the selection of ice creams, they offer also others sweet deli: Tiramisú, crepes and pan brioche filled with ice cream, between others I cannot count as my eyes were filled with tears. Around the corner, there is also a little dependence of the shop, where they make veggie-friendly ice cream, providing one of the better ice cream in town for vegans.
The selection of the perfect, creamy combination it´s challenging, as you can go there as many times as you wish to find always different flavours. I´ve proudly tried all of them, including the beetroot ice cream, which was unexpectedly delicious!
Here the ice cream has all the essential features that actually defines what this holy food is: creamy and soft as a Sunday morning; the rich taste warms up your heart, while the freshness reliefs you from the hot Spanish sun. The ingredients are genuine: you won’t find any industrial base that makes everything taste the same. The texture it´s smooth, also because the fridge it´s kept at the right temperature (not everyone knows that ice cream cannot be too cold…otherwise it would be called simply ice, isn’t it?).
The must try, oh my! that you cannot miss are: dates; dark chocolate and olive oil; lemon and cardamom.
Good news dear ice cream lovers: summer has come!
Freaky Foody 