Strawberry Semifreddo

I’ve never seen or ate a semifreddo before. After seeing it on the internet, it seems like a cuter alternative to ice cream, so Boyfriend and I experimented on one of our Sunday baking sessions.

(This photo was taken using Boyfriend’s Nokia N82! I think the phone is cool.)

Strawberry Semifreddo
adapted from Dessert First

makes about 24 oz

1 pint strawberries + 2 tbsp sugar + 1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup milk
2 large egg yolks + 1 3/4 oz sugar + pinch of salt
1 large egg white + pinch of cream of tartar + 1 tbsp sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream, chilled

Wash, hull, and slice the strawberries in half. Combine them in a large bowl with sugar and lemon juice and let sit for about 20 minutes.

Puree the strawberries in a food processor or blender until smooth. Set aside.

Bring the milk to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat on the stove.

While the milk is heating, whisk the eggs, sugar and salt together in a bowl.

When the milk is boiling, pour about half of it into the egg mixture while whisking vigorously.

Pour the tempered eggs back into the rest of the milk and place the saucepan back on the stove.

Heat the milk and egg mixture over low heat, stirring constantly until the mixture reaches 170F. The mixture should thicken into the consistency of heavy cream, and if you draw your finger down the back of the spoon coated with the mixture, you should leave a clear trail.

Remove the saucepan from heat. Stir in the strawberries and mix with the spoon to combine.

Pour the mixture into the bowl which contained the strawberries and place into a ice bath (made by filling a larger bowl with ice cubes). Let the mixture cool to about 40 degrees F.

While the strawberry mixture is chilling, whip the egg white in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment until frothy. Add a pinch of cream of tartar and sugar, and continue whipping until medium peaks form.

Scrape the whipped white into a bowl and set aside.

Place the heavy cream into the mixer bowl and whip with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form.

When the strawberry mixture is cool, fold in the whipped egg white very gently with a rubber spatula.

When the egg white is almost incorporated, add the whipped cream and gently fold to combine. Be as gentle as possible to avoid deflating the mixture and losing air.

Pour the mixture into a large container or moulds of your choosing, cover, and place in the freezer for about 4 hours or until firm.

The semifreddo will keep covered in the freezer for about 2 weeks.

Verdict? Tastes like icy ice cream. I think it might have been my folding technique and everything deflated. And it wasn’t sweet enough. Should have tasted the strawberries before proceeding with the recipe. Bah.

It was still rather tasty with some chocolate sauce though!