28 Worst Rated Ice Creams
in the World

Gelato alla liquirizia is a licorice-flavored gelato. It is made with a creamy base of milk, cream, and sugar, while the flavoring is attained from soft or powdered licorice. This ice cream typically has a light brown color, and it is usually garnished with soft licorice or licorice roots. Licorice gelato is mainly associated with Calabria, the biggest licorice producer in Italy, but it is also available in other Italian regions. Expand

Spumoni is an Italian layered dessert consisting of ice cream, whipped cream, nuts, and candied fruits such as cherries. It's also often described as a layered and molded custard-based ice cream on the outside and a semifreddo or parfait inside. Originally, spumoni was made as a combination of ice cream, nuts, and fruits surrounding a sponge cake, but today the term can denote any layered ice cream. The most popular flavors used in spumoni are cherry, pistachio, and vanilla (or chocolate), with red, green, and white colors representing the Italian flag. The dessert is widely enjoyed in Italy, but it is also popular in Argentina and the United States of America due to a large number of immigrants who popularized spumoni in those countries. In America, spumoni is usually accompanied by butter cookies on the side, especially during wintertime.Expand

Buontalenti is a gelato flavor named after a 16th century Florence architect Bernardo Buontalenti, who is often credited as an inventor of gelato. This flavor is made with a combination of milk, sugar, cream, and eggs, as well as some additional secret ingredients. It was modeled on Buontalenti’s version that he allegedly created for the inauguration of Grand Duke Cosimo I de Medici in 1559. His version also included dessert wine, and it was flavored with bergamot, lemons, and oranges. It is said that Buontalenti was also the first to think of an efficient way of storing ice cream. In 1979, there was an initiative to honor Buontalenti by recreating his version of gelato. The competition was won by Gelateria Badiani. They eventually included the flavor on their menu and went to trademark the name. The flavor is still available at their gelateria. Expand

Gelato al torrone is an ice cream flavor made with nougat. Italian nougat is known as torrone, and it is traditionally made with whipped egg whites, sugar or honey, and toasted almonds, though it can also be studded with other nuts, such as walnuts, peanuts, hazelnuts, or pistachios. There are several variations of this gelato flavor. The base is always neutral, typically based on milk, cream, and sugar or whipped egg whites and honey. The flavoring comes from chopped-up nougat (which can be homemade or store-bought) or chopped caramelized almonds.Expand

Modeled on the traditional Italian trifle dessert named zuppa Inglese, meaning English soup, this classic gelato flavor combines the sweet custard base with bits of cookies, lady fingers, or sponge cake. As the original dessert, which employs Alchermes herb liqueur, the gelato is also occasionally elevated with the addition of various liqueurs which are used to coat the sponge pieces before they are folded into or layered with the creamy custard base. Similar to the modernized versions of the cake, the ice cream can also include various additions such as candied fruit, and it is occasionally topped with a drizzle of melted chocolate.Expand

Banana split is a classic dessert consisting of a lengthwise-cut banana topped with scoops of strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate ice cream. Typical garnishes include nuts, fruits, whipped cream, and a cherry on top. The dessert is traditionally served in a long dish called a boat. It was invented in 1904 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania by David Strickler, who wanted to make something "different" for a college student who had one day entered the pharmacy where he worked as an apprentice. The pharmacies often featured a soda fountain where customers could indulge in a soda or a frozen treat for just a few cents. Banana split has remained popular ever since, and there is even the annual Great American Banana Split Festival held in Latrobe, where the original soda fountain is still kept.Expand

Gelato al melone is a refreshing Italian gelato flavor made with fresh melons (cantaloupes). It is usually made with milk, eggs, sugar, and cream. The melons are pureed before they are added to the base. Variations sometimes leave out eggs or include condensed milk or mascarpone cheese. This light and refreshing gelato is available in many ice cream shops in Italy, and it is typically a seasonal summer flavor.Expand

Gelato all'amarena is a traditional gelato flavor that incorporates amarena cherry preserve. The base is neutral, usually made with vanilla-flavored ice cream or with fior di latte flavor made with milk, cream, and sugar. This neural base is then streaked with amarena syrup and cherries. Amarena cherries are native to Emilia-Romagna. These dark, wild cherries are usually preserved in syrup and are then used as a topping or garnish. Expand

A mystery in the world of desserts, Blue Moon is an unusual, smurf-blue colored, sweet ice cream that tastes different to everyone who has ever tried it, and to make matters worse, its ingredients are trademarked and heavily guarded. There is a huge list of possible flavors: vanilla, lemon, pistachio, coconut, almond, marshmallow, bubblegum, pineapple, ginger, cotton candy, blue curacao, licorice, berries, or Froot Loops with milk. Its flavor might be a mystery, but so are its origins. There are two theories - one claiming that the ice cream was invented in the 1940s or 1950s in Milwaukee, and the other places it in Michigan, crediting the Sherman Dairy Products company in South Haven. Sherman had declined the honor, and the Milwaukee version trademarked the product. Whatever its origins may be, all agree that it is an original Upper Midwest treat with a unique flavor of its own.Expand