May 10, 2006
Italian Custard
Our very popular “Italian Custard Dessert”. It is the most asked for Recipe in our arsenal.
A little background is that the dessert is a semifreddo which is: Italian for “half cold,” semifreddo culinarily refers to any of various chilled or partially frozen desserts including cake, ice cream, fruit and custard or whipped cream.
**You’ll need:**
2 tsp gelatin + 1/3 cup cold water – set in a bowl over a double boiler until clear
3 egg yolks
12 oz ricotta cheese
4 oz cream – or mascarpone cheese
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup whipping cream
**Preparation**
When gelatin clears – whisk it into the egg yolks and continue to whisk over the double boiler for a few minutes to pasteurize the yolks. (do not over cook)
Cool slightly before adding to cheese mixture : Blend ricotta cheeses in food processor or in a large mixer. Add sugar and vanilla. Beat well. Next – Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and also use vegetable spray or a little butter to grease cups or small bowls to mold the custard in.
You want everything ready to go at this point – because when you add the gelatin to the cheese mixture – it will start to set up and you want to get it in the molds right away. So whisk or add the slightly cooled gelatin mixture to the cheese mixture and then fold in the whipped cream until smooth.
Now pour or using a spatula put mixture into your cup molds (we use coffee cups.) Allow to set for an hour or overnight.
For sauces: you can thin a little sour cream with cream and add a bit of sugar to sweeten. For the Fruit sauce – you can purchase your favorite or puree up your favorite berry with a little orange or lemon juice and sugar to taste.
When ready to serve – unmold custards onto individual plates – by rimming cup with knive an inverting custard onto the plate. Drizzle with sweetened sour cream and fruit sauce.
Enjoy!
