Spumone (from ''spuma'' or "foam"), plural spumoni, is a molded
gelato
Gelato (; ) is the common word in Italian for all kinds of ice cream. In English, it specifically refers to a frozen dessert of Italian origin. Artisanal gelato in Italy generally contains 6%–9% butterfat, which is lower than other styles o ...
(a lower-fat
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
form of
ice cream
Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as str ...
) made with layers of different colors and flavors, usually containing
candied fruit
Candied fruit, also known as glacé fruit, is whole fruit, smaller pieces of fruit, or pieces of peel, placed in heated sugar syrup, which absorbs the moisture from within the fruit and eventually preserves it. Depending on the size and type of ...
s and
nuts.
Typically, it is of three flavors, with a fruit/nut layer between them. The ice cream layers are often mixed with
whipped cream
Whipped cream is liquid heavy cream that is whipped by a whisk or mixer until it is light and fluffy and holds its shape, or by the expansion of dissolved gas, forming a firm colloid. It is often sweetened, typically with white sugar, and ...
.
Cherry
A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit).
Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...
,
pistachio
The pistachio (, ''Pistacia vera''), a member of the cashew family, is a small tree originating from Central Asia and the Middle East. The tree produces seeds that are widely consumed as food.
''Pistacia vera'' is often confused with other sp ...
, and either
chocolate
Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods. Cacao has been consumed in some form since at least the Olmec civ ...
or
vanilla
Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia'').
Pollination is required to make the p ...
are the typical flavors of the ice cream layers,
and the fruit/nut layer often contains cherry bits—causing the traditional red/pink, green, and brown color combination.
Spumone is popular in places with large Italian immigrant populations such as the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. August 21 is National Spumoni Day in the United States. November 13 is National Spumoni Day in Canada.
Neapolitan ice cream
Neapolitan ice cream (in Ireland and the U.K., sometimes colloquially mispronounced as Napoleon ice cream), also sometimes called Harlequin ice cream, is a type of ice cream composed of three separate flavors (vanilla
Vanilla is a spice de ...
, named after
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
, is a variation of spumone. Cherry was changed to strawberry and pistachio to chocolate to reflect the most popular American flavor preferences.
See also
*
Neapolitan ice cream
Neapolitan ice cream (in Ireland and the U.K., sometimes colloquially mispronounced as Napoleon ice cream), also sometimes called Harlequin ice cream, is a type of ice cream composed of three separate flavors (vanilla
Vanilla is a spice de ...
*
Spoom
Spoom is a type of frothy sorbet made with a lighter sugar syrup than that required for a true sorbet. As it begins to set, it is mixed with half its volume of Italian meringue. Like sorbet, it is made from fruit juice, wine, sherry or port and ...
, a related dessert
*
Tartufo
Tartufo (, ; meaning "truffle") is an Italian dessert of gelato (a type of ice cream) that originated in Pizzo, Calabria. The dessert takes the form of a ball that is composed of two or more flavors of gelato, often with melted chocolate insert ...
References
Flavors of ice cream
Italian desserts
{{italy-dessert-stub