Soft fruits and thrupenny cones

There have always been Italians in my life, my first loves being the Italian ice cream cafés in Peebles High Street and Morningside Road in Edinburgh. Before the days of home freezers, a large, half-crown tub of ‘proper’ ice cream from the local café was one of the best of all childhood treats. Being sent to collect it was half the fun. I would rush home clutching my tub of icy white gold wrapped in newspaper and help to dish it into the pudding plates quickly, before it melted. Served with the first punnets of fresh Scottish strawberries from the greengrocer, this was one of those taste sensations that made summer very special.