Tortoni is a classic Italian frozen dessert traditionally made with raw eggs and heavy cream, much like a custard-based ice cream. It often contains chopped maraschino cherries and almonds or crumbled macaroons. It is also usually flavored with rum, brandy or some kind of liqueur. The dessert is believed to have been named after a famous Italian café owner of the same name in 19th century Paris.
Sadly, I have rarely ever seen tortoni on a restaurant menu since those days at Johnny's. It’s a shame really, because it is a truly lovely and elegant little dessert. Several years ago I decided to try and recreate the dish for an Italian-themed dinner party I was hosting. I wanted to somehow get the same dreamy, creamy effect without using having to use the raw eggs. I did a little research and some experimentation, and came up with what I thought was a pretty good interpretation.
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I use vanilla ice cream, freshly whipped cream, toasted almonds and amaretti, which are Italian almond cookies. Sometimes, I go all out and make my own ice cream, but any good quality, premium vanilla ice cream will work just as well. Amaretti can be found at most Italian specialty stores, as well as many supermarkets. Instead of using rum or brandy, I add some amaretto liqueur to carry the almond theme through.
My tortoni is light and creamy, with a delicate almond flavor. The amaretti give it just a touch of crunchiness too. You can serve the tortoni in small paper pastry cups or ramekins, but sometimes I just make it in a big bowl and serve it family-style. No matter how you scoop it, tortoni sono buoni!
Tortoni
Ingredients:
3/4 cup cup blanched almonds
2 1/2 cups amaretti cookies
1 quart homemade or premium quality vanilla ice cream, softened
2 tablespoons amaretto liqueur (You can use more or less to taste.)
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
1 teaspoons almond extract
Maraschino cherries, drained for garnish
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place chopped almonds on a pie plate or small baking sheet and toast in the oven until lightly golden, about 7-8 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. Crush the amaretti cookies into small nuggets. You can do this by putting them in a zip lock bag and smacking them with a rolling pin or meat mallet. Be careful not to turn them into crumbs. Place crumbled cookies in a medium bowl and toss with the almonds. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat cream with an electric mixer until thickened. Pour in the almond extract and whip until medium peaks form. Spoon the cookie mixture into the whipped cream, reserving 1 cup or so for the topping.
4. Add the amaretto to the softened ice cream and stir until blended and very smooth. Fold cookie/whipped cream mixture into ice cream.
5. Spoon into little pastry cups or ramekins. Sprinkle each cup with some of the reserved cookie mixture and top with a cherry. Freeze until firm.
Makes about 12 individual portions.
Enjoy!
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