Description
A festive and creamy Christmas semifreddo featuring roasted almonds, walnuts, and raisins, delicately spiced with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and vanilla. This no-bake frozen dessert is creamy, nutty, and perfect for holiday celebrations.
Ingredients
Scale
For the semifreddo
- 4 egg yolks
- 60 ml water
- 60 g granulated sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- pinch nutmeg
- 1 tsp vanilla paste or seeds from 1 vanilla pod or 1 tsp vanilla extract or 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 40 g almonds
- 40 g walnuts
- 30 g golden raisins, chopped
- 30 g regular raisins, chopped
- 250 ml whipping cream, cold (whip with 4 tbsp icing sugar if skipping raisins)
To garnish
- Almonds, walnuts and raisins, chopped
- Icing sugar
Instructions
- Roast nuts: Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F. Roast the almonds and walnuts for 8 minutes or until lightly golden. Let them cool, then chop.
- Prepare the pan: Line a 22x11 cm bread pan with baking paper cut to size. Lightly grease the pan with vegetable oil using kitchen paper to help the paper stick.
- Beat egg yolks: Place the egg yolks in a bowl and begin beating on low speed to prevent a skin from forming on top.
- Make sugar syrup and combine: Boil the water and sugar over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and syrup boils vigorously (do not thicken). While beating the egg yolks on high speed, slowly pour the hot syrup down the side of the bowl.
- Whip yolks and cool: Continue beating the egg yolks mixture on high speed until it increases in volume and cools to room temperature. Fold in the chopped nuts and raisins gently.
- Whip cream and combine: In a clean bowl, whip the cold cream until foamy and glossy but not fully firm. Fold the cream into the egg yolk mixture gently using folding motions.
- Freeze semifreddo: Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and freeze for at least 8 hours until firm.
- Serve and garnish: Use the paper to lift the semifreddo from the pan. Unstick the paper from the sides, return it to the pan, and flip onto a serving dish. If no paper was used, dip the pan in warm water briefly to loosen, then invert. Garnish with chopped almonds, walnuts, raisins, and dust with icing sugar.
Notes
- Ensure the sugar syrup is boiling strongly before adding to egg yolks for best volume and texture.
- Roast nuts carefully to avoid burning and to highlight their flavor.
- Whipping cream to the correct consistency (foamy and glossy, not stiff) is crucial for the perfect semifreddo texture.
- Use parchment paper in the pan for easy removal, or warm water dipping if you skip that step.
- If omitting raisins, increase icing sugar when whipping cream for sweetness.
- Allow enough freezing time (minimum 8 hours) for the semifreddo to fully set.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (approx. 100 g)
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 20 g
- Sodium: 40 mg
- Fat: 25 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 14 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 160 mg
