Mustard With Mutton

Semifreddo is an Italian ice cream dessert which literally translates as “half-cold” and is basically a partially frozen ice cream. I really enjoy the texture which is softer and more mousse like than normal ice creams and unlike traditional ice cream, semifreddos have the added advantage of not requiring an ice cream machine. Whilst I do own an ice cream attachment for my Kitchenaid I need to be quite organised to use it as the bowl, which takes up a fair amount of freezer space, needs to be frozen overnight which means traditional ice cream is not something I whip up on the spur of the moment so when I want to make ice cream pronto a semifreddo is what I choose. This is a great dessert for entertaining – it’s a cinch to make, can be prepared in advance and can stand on its own without the need for any extra accompaniments. This particular semifreddo is a favourite. You can’t really go wrong with anything that combines coffee and chocolate but the added crunch of the caramel peanuts (from a Snickers bar – told you it was easy) really makes it pop. If you’re serving this to children who enjoy coffee flavour just use decaffeinated coffee.

Ingredients – Serves 4 -6 

1 egg
4 egg yolks
½ cup sugar
1 ¼ cups cream
1 tablespoon instant coffee powder
1 tablespoon coffee or  chocolate liqueur (optional)
2 Snicker’s bars (you could also use Mars bars or Toblerone)
Grated dark chocolate or chocolate sprinkles to decorate (optional)

Method
Line a loaf tin with cling film. Chop the chocolate bars into small-medium size chunks and set aside. Put the coffee, liqueur (if using), egg, egg yolks and sugar in a heat proof bowl and mix to dissolve. Beat the mixture over a saucepan of gently simmering water until it is pale and thick. You can use a hand held electric whisk if you like. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until thick.