Strawberries & Cream Semifreddo

The recipe, step by step

This heavenly strawberries and cream semifreddo is super creamy and full of fresh strawberries, picked from the garden. The perfect cooling dessert to prepare and eat on a hot summer’s day.

While homemade ice cream is delicious, it is not without its complications and most of us just go and buy some. Semifreddo is the easy answer, skip churning ice cream and try an easier dessert. It takes 15 minutes to prepare and then it just needs to be poured into a suitable container and frozen for a minimum of 6 hours or overnight.

Make sure to use good quality, ripe strawberries. You should be able to smell their sweet scent from across the room. Bite into one of these plump, juicy red berries and you’ll get a big burst of sweetness in your mouth. Farmers’ markets are a great place to find fresh ripe strawberries. If you’re making this in the autumn or winter, you can use frozen ones.

RECIPE HIGHLIGHTS

• EASE: easy.
• FREE FROM: this recipe is free from gluten.
• TASTE & TEXTURE: a light, creamy, fruity ice cream.
• SERVING: delicious served with additional fresh fruit or a summer berry coulis.
• QUANTITY: 6 portions

INGREDIENTS

For this recipe, all you need are these ingredients:

• Fresh strawberries – are the summer hero of this recipe. Look for good quality, ripe ones from farmers’ markets.

• Caster or granulated white sugar – sweetens the semifreddo just a little.

• Strawberry liquor (optional) – adds an extra boost of flavour.

• Double cream or whipping – strawberries and cream, one of the best combinations.

• Vanilla – I use Taylor & Colledge vanilla products, they add a delicious taste to your recipes and enhance the other ingredient flavours: pure vanilla extract, vanilla paste or vanilla pods.

• Eggs – add lightness and structure to the semifreddo.

• Salt – I highly recommend adding a good pinch of salt to your sweet creations. Salt helps balance out the sweetness and richness. It also elevates the other ingredients, bringing out the best characteristics of the recipe. In a seemingly absurd or contradictory way, salt intensifies the mouth’s ability to taste sweetness. Sodium sends signals to move glucose into the sweet taste receptor cells in our tongue, triggering the cells to register sweetness. The result is that salt not only alerts our ‘salt sensitivity’, but also our ‘sweet sensitive’ taste buds. I recommend Maldon Sea salt flakes or Cornish sea salt.

WHAT VARIATIONS CAN I MAKE?

• Spices and herbs – try adding 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, cardamom or nutmeg to the cream. Basil or mint also adds a nice alternative flavour.

• Citrus fruit – for a bit of zing, add lemon, lime, or orange zest to the sugar.

• Try different fruits – this recipe works well with many other fruits. Try blueberries, raspberries, peaches, cherries or whatever’s in season.

• Serve it with a berry coulis – simply wash, hull and quarter 250g strawberries or other soft fruits. Add 50g icing sugar and a 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice (optional). Leave to sit for 10-15 minutes then blend into a smooth sauce using a hand blender. Finally, pass through a fine sieve for an extra smooth finish.

Nutrition

Serving: one slice

Nutrition information is provided as an estimate and may vary depending on the ingredients and portion size used.

STORAGE AND FREEZING

Freezing: This semifreddo is best eaten within a month. It’s still perfectly edible after that, but it might start to form ice crystals through it.

TOOLS YOU’LL NEED

Here is a list of some kitchen equipment that I use and recommend for this recipe.

• Breville Classic Combo Stand and Hand Mixer | 3.7 Litre Stainless Steel Bowl | Swivel Control, Whisk, Dough Hooks and Beaters

I like this model of electric hand mixer because it comes with a large stand, meaning you don’t have to always hold it.

• Braun MultiQuick 5 Immersion blender Black 1000 W

This is one machine that I use almost everyday. I find its multifunctional abilities very useful. I can use it to mix batters or cream liquids together and because its small I can use it to ground nuts and make fruit puree.

• Loaf Pan 2lb, Professional Gauge Carbon Steel with Eclipse Non-Stick Coating, 24.6cm x 14.5cm x 6.95cm high

Perfect for banana bread, lemon drizzle, pound cake and traditional loaves.

RECIPE TIPS

Avoid over-mixing the cream, as we want a nice light cream with soft peaks.

When folding in the egg whites, gently turn the mixture in on itself with a cutting motion, not stirring. I tend to use a large spoon or spatula to do this. This way, you won’t lose all the air that you have spent time whisking into the eggs.

A recipe worth keeping

Save this recipe for another day

Pin it to one of your boards and keep it close for the next time you are ready to cook or bake.

Save to Pinterest

Made it?

Share it from your kitchen

Save the recipe or share it with someone who would enjoy making it too.

Facebook Pinterest Email