It is hard to convey the sensation on your tongue as you place a luscious, ultra-silky, smooth Gianduiotto in your mouth. It sits there for a few seconds, melting slowly before it explodes over your taste buds. You lean back in your chair, savoring every last drop, smacking your lips and — reaching for another one. It is hard to stop!

But what, you ask me, is a Giandu, Giandu, Giandu What? Gianduiotto (jan-du-yotto)!! Gianduiotti (jan-du-yotti) if you have more than one (and I guarantee you will).

According to legend, in the 1850s, taxes on imported cocoa beans were raised to such an extent that chocolate — long a favorite in this elegant northern Italian town — was beyond the reach of most people. The resourceful chocolatiers looked for another solution and came up with the idea of replacing a percentage of the cocoa beans with a smooth hazelnut paste (hazelnuts are a staple in Piedmont). And ecco! A new chocolate was born!

Again according to legend, one chocolatier decided to hire someone to hand out samples of the new treats on the streets of Torino during festivals. The person wore the costume of the Gianduja, a character from the Commedia d’Arte, who represents the Piemonte (Piedmont) region.

The name stuck and Gianduiottos are now almost synonymous with Torino, where the smell of chocolate and hazelnuts wafts from nearly every part of the city. Shaped like an elongated triangle and wrapped in gold paper with the words “Gianduiotto di Torino” stamped on it, this bite-size taste bomb is available at every chocolate shop in town. If you can’t get to Torino, you can buy them around the world in most stores that carry gourmet Italian imports or by mail order.

And if you are ever in Torino (home to the “Slow Food” movement), be sure to stop by the ultra-gourmet store, Eataly (now also open in New York and Chicago) where, in addition to the chocolates, you can get a gianduiotto gelato that will make you swoon!

IF YOU GO
Eataly Torino is at Via Nizza 230; 
In New York it is at 200 5th Avenue; and 101 Liberty Street in south Manhattan near Freedom Tower. 

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