I've been wanting to make a savoury semifreddo for some time and, as it's the cherry season in Italy, invented this one a few days ago. It makes an interesting starter for a summer meal and a semifreddo is a lot less hassle to make than a sorbet!
First, peel and deseed a cucumber. Then chop it finely, sprinkle it with salt and leave it on a saucer for about 30 mins. Meanwhile, lightly oil a 2lb, long loaf tin with groundnut or sunflower oil. Then put 250 gr digestive biscuits in a clipped plastic bag and crush them to crumbs with a rolling pin. Stone and halve about 30 cherries. After 30 mins, rinse the cucumber very well in a sieve and pat the pieces dry with kitchen paper. Sprinkle about 1 tablesp of the biscuit crumbs into the base of the loaf tin. Whip 500 ml panna da montare or whipping cream to the soft peak stage, then mix in all but another tablesp of the crumbs, the cucumber pieces, the cherries and any of their juice from the chopping board. Spoon the mixture into the loaf tin, level it with a palette knife and sprinkle the rest of the crumbs over. Wrap the whole tin in clingfilm and then in foil and put it in the freezer overnight. When you are ready to serve the semifreddo, unwrap it, run a knife around the edges to loosen it and dip the base quickly into very hot water. Then - keeping your nerve! - invert it onto a long serving dish. Decorate with cucumber slices and some more cherries.
3 comments:
This sounds easy and doable!
That's an interesting recipe, Pat. Cherries are in season around Christmas/New Year here. Sometimes imported ones are available other times of the year, of course.
I love cherries.
Hi, Rosaria. Yes, it's very easy. Hi, Lee. Thanks. I love cherries, too - we get the dark ones here.
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