LA DOLCE VITA
Lisa Valmorbida travelled to Italy from Australia to learn the art of making gelato
‘Gelato was always there – it just took me a while to notice it,’ says Lisa Valmorbida of her unexpected career move. After giving up an interior-design course to pursue her culinary passion, she became increasingly conscious of her Italian roots, remembering fondly her childhood visits to Vicenza’s local gelaterias with her grandparents (‘Nonno and Nonna’). Inspired, she left Melbourne to study at the Carpigiani Gelato University in Bologna, where she learnt how seriously the Italians take their craft, then travelled to Turin and the Amalfi Coast to sample every flavour under the sun. Now the owner of her own café, Pidapipó in Melbourne, she has collated her favourite recipes – from classic chocolate to fruit granitas – in a beautiful new cookbook. ‘Pidapipó: Gelato Eight Days a Week’ (£20, Hardie Grant Books) is published on 14 June.
WATERMELON AND MINT GRANITA
INGREDIENTS 500g seedless watermelon, cut into small chunks 300ml filtered water 10 large mint leaves 200g caster sugar
METHOD
Add the watermelon, water, mint and sugar to a bowl and blend with a hand-held blender until completely smooth. Pour the mixture into a pre-cooled stainless-steel tray and put into the freezer. Every 30 minutes, remove and break up the crystals with a fork. Do this until icy and easy to scoop (this should take about two hours). Serve.