Italian Newlyweds Spurn Wedding Cake For Ice Cream

words by Carol King Italian brides and grooms are foregoing buttery pastries and sugary cakes in favour of ice cream and sorbets, according to the Istituto del Gelato Italiano (Italian Ice Cream Institute). The institute says that the hot summer and the increase in lavish wedding receptions have led newlywed couples to conclude their wedding receptions with an original and “fresh” ice cream buffet, rather than with the traditional wedding cake. The organisation says the idea was imported from the USA. Italians are adding their own twist to the so-called "Wedding Ice Cream" concept ensuring that ice cream is presented in an attractive and creative manner. Sometimes, it arrives in a retro-style cart as once used to sell ice creams on the street, accompanied by an ice-cream maker dressed in white, and the icy desserts comes as tiny lollies, popsicles, sorbets, and with cones or biscuits. Institute consultant, doctor and nutritionist Andrea Ghiselli said: “Ice cream is... nice to see and perhaps more rewarding as a traditional sweet. But it is much lighter and has less calories compared to traditional wedding cake; it is therefore more suitable to close a big meal that is heavy to digest, such those at wedding parties. Its cold temperature makes it also much more popular on hot summer days. Ice cream and sorbets refresh with an immediate effect because the contact with the cold immediately sends a signal to the brain that the body temperature is lowered. The presence of water is another advantage: fruit ice creams have more than creamy ones while sorbets, popsicles and granite have the most water and are the most refreshing.”