Let me just get this out there, I LOVE lemons! I love the colour, the flavour, how it enhances other dishes. I have lemon scented candles, body lotions, soaps, perfumes, etc. I think you get the point.
Naturally my love for lemons would also extend to desserts. I decided to take one of my favourite classic italian desserts, semifreddo, and give it a little twist.
Semifreddo literally means partially frozen in Italian and there are so many variations that the sky’s the limit when it comes to this scrumptious dessert.
In my family, we like to use pavesini cookies and build the semi-freddo like a tiramisu. If you research semifeddo, you will mainly find a layered cream cake, but I find the cookies add a little texture in between.
This recipe calls for egg whites, when you combine the egg whites with the whipped cream it becomes this fluffy, yummy goodness (yes I write exactly how I feel). Here comes the best part, I replaced the traditional Nutella chocolate centre with lemon curd and wow, is it a pop of flavour!
Just pop it in the freezer and in a little while you will have a great refreshing dessert. Make these ahead of time if you won’t have to worry about dessert and your guests will not be disappointed.
Scroll down for the recipe.
Semifreddo al Limone
Ingredients:
- 2 cups of heavy cream
- 1 cup of lemon curd
- a package of Pavesini cookies (thinner version of italian lady fingers)
- 3 egg whites (I used the leftover egg whites from my lemon curd)
- 1-2 cups of lemon simple syrup (recipe on website-look up syrup)
- zest from 1 lemon
Instructions:
- In a mixing bowl add the egg whites, beat until firm peaks form, set aside.
- Beat heavy cream until firm peaks form.
- With a spatula fold over the egg whites into the whipped cream.
- Take a cake dish or about 6-8 small cups (depends on the size)
- Dunk the Pavesini cookies into a bowl of lemon simple syrup and create one layer at the bottom of your cup/pan.
- Spread a layer of the cream mixture
- Add a layer of lemon curd
- Repeat steps 5-7.
- Once complete, add some lemon zest to finish off the dessert.
- Pop the cups/pan into the freezer overnight. When you are ready to serve, let it thaw for 10-15 minutes prior.
Enjoy!
Antonietta xo
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