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Articles - english version

Nuts offer a wide selection of delicious options - especially when you start processing your own nuts. There are many kinds and varieties, each with their own distinct taste. When nuts are processed into ice cream that is made well in advance, as part of ice cream cakes, for example, it is better to coat the garnishing with a layer of chocolate to keep moisture out. Of course, nuts are perfect as a decoration on top of an ice cream coup, but do not forget that whole nuts will become rock-hard on ice cream cakes in the freezer. More tips and tricks in the complete article.

Ice cream and chocolate go hand-in-hand. Many ice cream parlours have expanded their assortment with chocolate and bonbons, but even for those ice cream makers who prefer to just stick to ice cream and ice cream cakes, chocolate is a wonderful - and maybe a must-have? - ingredient! The Dutch master ice cream makers who form IceTOP recently paid a visit to Belgian Chocolate manufacturer Barry/Callebaut.

An ice cream maker, a technologist, and a specialist teacher illustrate a spotlighted ingredient with a recipe. This time it’s cocoa that will be highlighted, and Riccardo Talamini (Gelateria Talamini, Enschede) shares two delicious recipes with us: one for milk chocolate ice cream and one for dark chocolate ice cream. Elke Scholten, teacher in food physics at the Wageningen University, and Jacques Vos, Manager of the Ice Centre in Wageningen, offer more insight into the way in which cocoa works in ice cream. Some highlights: chocolate should contain at least 18% cocoa fat. And: Chocolate with a high amount of cocoa fat - at least 31% - is known as couverture.

In September 2007, the Association for Artisanal Ice cream Makers (AAICM, VAIJ in Dutch) took the initiative for the VAIJ entrepreneurs’ club (VEC). Ever since, ten ice cream makers meet three times a year: twice in the fall and once in the spring, just before the season starts again. The meetings take place at a different location each time but are always in the company of one of the participants. All the members of the VEC have their own ice cream parlour. The associated companies are spread widely throughout the Netherlands, and so there is no direct competition amongst members. “Mutual trust and openness are important conditions for the VEC”, says Willy Rooswinkel, Chairman and Secretary of the entrepreneurs club. A great deal of knowledge and experience is exchanged, with the most important aim of the VEC being to learn from and with each other. “Within the VEC they can really see how they perform and what their position is compared to colleagues. Sometimes that can be quite an eye-opener.”