Holiday Semifreddo

Why not surprise your guests this holiday season with a heavenly Italian dessert? Lets make it with slices of fruitcake, homemade ice cream with candied fruit, and cherry liqueur? The preparation is quick and simple, just wait a few hours for the dessert to cool and set in the freezer.

Details

  • Preparation Time: 260 minutes
  • Cooking Time: 10 minutes
  • Difficulty: 2
  • Spiciness: 0
  • Number of Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 4 pieces Egg, fresh

  • 80 g Sugar, white

  • 250 ml Sweet cream

  • 250 g Cheese, creamy

  • 100 g Candied fruit

  • 20 ml Alcohol, Coffee liqueur

  • 8 slice Bread, wheat

Steps

  1. First, prepare the baking dish. For the dessert, you'll need a deep rectangular baking dish (1.5 liters capacity), lined with several layers of food wrap. Make sure the pieces of wrap are large enough to hang over the edges of the dish. Cut the candied fruit into small pieces.

  2. Beat the egg yolks and sugar over steam until the mixture becomes slightly thicker and creamy. Remove the bowl with the egg mixture and let it cool for 10 minutes.

  3. Lightly whip the cream. In a bowl with an electric mixer, mix the mascarpone well, then gently and slowly fold in the whipped cream and the cooled egg mixture. Finally, beat the egg whites. Beat them until stiff peaks form. Fold the beaten egg whites into the mixture in two or three additions. At the end, mix in the pieces of candied fruit.

  4. Line the bottom of the baking dish with slices of fruitcake. Drizzle or sprinkle them with a little liqueur to moisten them well. Then, spread half of the egg-cream mixture over the slices and smooth it evenly with the back of a spoon. Add another layer of fruitcake slices. Moisten the slices again with a little liqueur. Follow with the second layer of the mixture and finally the last layer of fruitcake slices, which you moisten with liqueur one last time. Fold the excess food wrap over the top layer and press lightly with your palm to remove any air between the layers.

  5. Store the dessert in the freezer for at least 4 hours. About 10 minutes before serving, take it out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature to warm up slightly. Then, place it on a platter, cut into slices, and serve immediately.

Nutrition Information (Per 100g)

  • Calories: 265.61 kcal
  • Fat: 12.31 g
    • Saturated Fat: 5.79 g
  • Carbohydrates: 29.78 g
    • Sugars: 18.73 g
  • Protein: 7.26 g
  • Fiber: 0.84 g

Advice

If you dont have time, you can use ice cream instead of the egg-cream mixture, slightly thawed so its easier to spread over the slices of fruitcake. Even in this case, store the dessert in the freezer for a few hours so the ice cream can freeze again.