The New Yorker's A to Z of NY Food: I is for Italian Ice

I IS FOR ITALIAN ICE! The mouth, shirt and sometimes sidewalk-staining frozen dessert of many a New Yorker’s youth is made like ice cream but without dairy. What’s in it? My go-to rainbow flavor contains: water, sugar, corn syrup, citric acid, cellulose gum, soy protein, artificial flavor, red 40, blue 1, caramel color. Maybe not the greatest ingredients but it’s gluten-free! Summer is over so you might be hard pressed to find an italian ice push cart. Never fear, most pizza by the slice shops should have some almost empty tubs of various freezer-burned flavors from which they’ll struggle to extract a scoop. The best part of an italian ice? When it’s running down your fingers and the waxy paper cup that holds it has started to disintegrate in your mouth as you’ve repeatedly crushed it flat to get out the last drop of artificial goodness. Don’t forget to tag your I food photo with #TNYeats. #italianice #food #newyork Photo: @jamespomerantz
I is for Italian Ice

I IS FOR ITALIAN ICE! The mouth, shirt and sometimes sidewalk-staining frozen dessert of many a New Yorker’s youth is made like ice cream but without dairy. What’s in it? My go-to rainbow flavor contains: water, sugar, corn syrup, citric acid, cellulose gum, soy protein, artificial flavor, red 40, blue 1, caramel color. Maybe not the greatest ingredients but it’s gluten-free! Summer is over so you might be hard pressed to find an italian ice push cart. Never fear, most pizza by the slice shops should have some almost empty tubs of various freezer-burned flavors from which they’ll struggle to extract a scoop. The best part of an italian ice? When it’s running down your fingers and the waxy paper cup that holds it has started to disintegrate in your mouth as you’ve repeatedly crushed it flat to get out the last drop of artificial goodness. Don’t forget to tag your I food photo with #TNYeats. #italianice #food #newyork Photo: @jamespomerantz