The Polish-Italian food feud saga continues. We came for their pizza, pasta… And now, it’s time for gelato (and ice cream in general). Because who doesn’t like ice cream? To cite the classic song, “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream”.
Ciepłe lody (warm ice cream) appeared, like many other weird-ish dishes, during the PRL times. According to a Wprost article, nutritionists invented it as an ersatz food, or a substitute good.
In principle, warm ice cream is not really ice cream, but rather a tooth-rotting dessert that consists of three parts: an egg-white-based mousse, a thin layer of chocolate or another topping, and a waffle cup. Because of the way it is served, it resembles a bit of soft-serve ice cream, hence the name. The taste of the whole concoction reminds some of a soft marshmallow, and others of softened meringue with a chocolate-like ganache.
Children loved their almost overwhelming sweetness. Mothers allowed the sticky warm ice cream to be consumed even during winter since they posed no threat to the delicate throats of their young ones.
If you are a die-hard fan of ice cream, this cheap treat is for you. You can eat it no matter what the temperature outside is! However, do be careful with eating this treat because it is very calorie-dense.
International versions
Poland is not the only country in which such marshmallow-like treats are produced. For instance, in Germany, they have Schokoküsse, in Denmark Flødeboller, and in Israel, Krembo. A similar dessert also exists in Hungary where it is called télifagyi which could be translated into winter ice cream.
Where to buy it
In the PRL stores, they were placed in cardboard boxes lined with grey paper. Nowadays, it is actually not that easy to find warm ice cream. I have surveyed some of my friends looking for some tips, but no one was able to spot this dessert anywhere. Some sources claim that the production is still ongoing, however, the product can be found only in small, family-owned grocery shops. Maybe it is the PRL nostalgia that keeps this good on the shelves there, who knows?
Recipe
Since it is not easy to find them in stores, maybe you could make them at home. Especially since it is not a very difficult dish. The following recipe is translated from this site.
When it comes to the special equipment necessary for this recipe, it would be helpful to own a sugar thermometer.
Ingredients:
- 10 tbsp of sugar (for the syrup)
- 50ml of water
- a dash of salt
- 2 egg whites
- another 10 tbsp of sugar (for the meringue)
- waffle cones or cups
Preparation:
- First of all, we need to prepare the sugary syrup. To do so, place water and sugar in a saucepan and put it on medium heat for about 10-12 minutes. Make sure that no sugar is stuck to the edges of the saucepan. Leave the sugar to dissolve, don’t stir. In the meantime, start whipping the egg whites with a dash of salt in a separate bowl. The sugar syrup is ready when it reaches a temperature of about 120 °C. If you don’t have a thermometer to check the temperature, simply put some of the syrup into cold water – it should harden then.
- Let’s continue with the egg whites. Now it is time to add sugar to them, one spoonful at a time, while constantly mixing at the highest speed. When the foam is shiny and thick, mix it with the sugary syrup, pouring it in a very thin stream and whisking continuously until the meringue mass is cool.
- Put the mixture into a confectionery sleeve and pipe it into the wafers. Place the dish in the refrigerator to cool down and set it. And it’s ready! If you want, you can also prepare a simple chocolate ganache to go on top of the dessert. Just melt some finely chopped chocolate over a bain-marie and add a bit of warm cream after you take it off the burner.
Enjoy!
Have you heard about this simple treat? Or maybe you have a similar one in your own country? Share your thoughts in the comments!
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