by Brenna
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A&M's Testing Notes:
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5
large egg yolks
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1/2 cup
granulated sugar
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1/4 teaspoon
saffron threads
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1 tablespoon
sweet vermouth
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Prepare a small sauce pot of boiling water or a double boiler and bring water to a gentle simmer. Also have an ice water bath big enough for the base of the double boiler or mixing bowl ready.
Ask the hotline about this step!In a medium mixing bowl or pan of a double boiler, combine egg yolks, sugar, and saffron threads. Place the bowl or pan over the gently simmering water and whisk constantly until the mixture is thick and doubled, about 5 - 6 minutes.
Ask the hotline about this step!Remove from heat and submerge in the ice water bath, continuing to stir to bring down the temperature. *If the mixture gets too cold and is sticking to the bottom of the pan, it will release easily if you run hot water on the outside of the bowl.
Ask the hotline about this step!In the bowl of an electric mixer and using the paddle attachment, whip the egg yolk mixture with the sweet vermouth until it becomes thick and pale in color, 4 - 5 minutes.
Ask the hotline about this step!As the mixer is going, beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form (this can also be done ahead of time).
Ask the hotline about this step!With a spatula, add a third of the whipped cream to the egg mixture and stir together gently to lift the base. Fold the remaining whipped cream into the egg mixture. When this is done, you can spoon the mixture into 6 individual ramekins, or leave it in the mixing bowl. Cover the ramekins or bowl with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours. To serve, run a butter knife under hot water and cut around the edge of the ramekin to invert the semifreddo onto individual plates. Or, if you prefer, use a hot spoon to scoop the semifreddo from the mixing bowl. Serve with cherry-cardamom syrup and salted honey-hazelnuts (recipes to follow).
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1/2 cup
dried, unsweetened cherries
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1/4 cup
granulated sugar
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1 teaspoon
ground cardamom, toasted
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1/2 cup
dry white wine
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1/4 cup
fresh lemon juice
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1/4 cup
filtered water
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1/2 cup
hazelnuts
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1 teaspoon
extra virgin olive oil
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1 teaspoon
sea salt
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2 teaspoons
honey
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Combine cherries, sugar, cardamom, wine, lemon juice, and water into a small sauce pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the syrup has reduced by half and coats the back of a spoon. Set aside to cool.
Ask the hotline about this step!For the hazelnuts: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Ask the hotline about this step!Place hazelnuts in a small mixing bowl and toss with olive oil and sea salt. Add honey and toss once more to coat.
Ask the hotline about this step!Transfer nuts to a lined baking sheet and bake, stirring at least once, until the nuts are golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
Ask the hotline about this step!Once the hazelnuts have cooled, roughly chop the nuts and serve alongside the semifreddo.
Ask the hotline about this step!Hi Lisa! I am so happy you loved the dessert. About your question, the recipe calls for ground cardamom, so the work is already done for you! But-- if whole pods are all you have, you can toss the whole pod right into the syrup and remove them (without fussing with the seeds) once the syrup is reduced. I'd say about 2 or 3 pods should do the trick.
I like the salty with the sweet, the crunch with the creamy semifreddo.
Another great thing about this semifreddo is that if you leave it out to soften a little bit before serving, and then forget about it until it's almost room temperature, like I did tonight, it's still terrific. It becomes mousse-like and very delicate. I'd happily serve it either way.
Mmm, saffron mousse! I also took to making lots of extra salted honey-hazelnuts on their own, and I'm dreaming of ricotta pancakes doused in cherry-cardamom syrup. The trio I save for show stopping moments; the ones where the flavor combination is ultra impressive. I'm thinking warm summer nights on the deck--dessert and wine for a meal. I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe again; I haven't made it since I devised it back on the East Coast. I'm just so happy! I'm just now getting back to cooking since all of my moving and traveling. Where to start? Thank goodness food52 is here to solve any food need.
I made this for Easter dinner dessert. It was fabulous for me because I could make all of the different bits of this recipe on Saturday and just assemble it once we'd digested our lamb a bit on Sunday afternoon. Rave reviews from everyone at the table (it was an 18-0 vote, with one abstention for health reasons), even the three-year-old who passed up the sugar cookies in favor of the the "yellow ice cream"! The flavors in this combination are exceptional.
What a lovely tale! I definitely appreciate anything that can be made ahead and enjoyed just as heavenly the next day. I'm very happy everyone raved. Did you triple the recipe?
I made the 18 serviings in three batches. I don't think my Kitchenaid mixer bowl would have held three pints of whipped cream.
Congratulations, Brenna!
Thank you so much. It was an honor competing alongside your family tradition; I am making Italian Rice pie for my good friends for Easter in Washington DC and hope I can adopt it as my own Spring tradition.
Congrats! I'm actually having two friends from India over for dinner on Friday night who both have a penchant for saffron. They will love this! (And I'm going to love looking super impressive whipping this thing up - so thank you.)
Take photos! I hope they adore it; I do like that this recipe seems a little fancy, but the sneaky thing about it is that it's all fairly simple (and it's nice to be able to put it in the freezer and then not worry about pulling it out again until dinner is done--phew). Thank you very much, I can't wait to hear how it turns out.
Congratulations on a well-deserved win!
Wow! What a combination of flavors. I have never made anything like this but I will certainly try now! Thanks.
Wow-wow-wow. This seriously gives me goosebumps. A & M need to add a button that makes this magically appear at my workspace.
Congrats indeed - you already have my thumbs up -
i love saffron in desserts. and cardamom is my favourite spice in the whole wide world! a beautiful one, congrats on being short-listed!
Thank you very much, Shayma! I hope you try it and love it as your tastes suggest you will. I am extremely excited.
Sweet vermouth and saffron? What an intriguing combination. This must be wonderful.
Thank you, Food Blogga! And congratulations to you. It looks like there will be no shortage of custard at my house this week.
This looks wonderful and exotic.The salty-sweet flavor you describe has my mouth ready for this incredible treat. Thumbs up!
Thank you, Liz! The hazelnuts add the salty crunch as the semifreddo melts in your mouth. Mediterranean divinity, would probably go lovely with some vino bianco.
Aldo Sohm is the award-winning Chef Sommelier at Le Bernardin in NYC.
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Starting at the top: saffron, egg yolk, hazelnuts, heavy cream, cardamom, lemon, sugar, dried cherries, white wine, honey and sweet vermouth.
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Saffron messing up the yolks' clean and tidy look.
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First we began with the semifreddo base, whisking together the yolks, sugar and saffron.
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Next, Merrill whipped the mixture over a double boiler -- a good workout, if you're looking for one.
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This is the consistency you're looking for -- it gets elastic and sticky.
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To make the cherry sauce, you combine dried cherries, sugar, toasted cardamom, wine, and lemon juice in a pan, then boil it down to a syrup. (To toast cardamom, a step we resisted but were later glad to have done, we spread the ground spice in a small pan and placed it over medium-low heat until we could smell the cardamom.)
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In goes the wine.
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Brenna warns you that the egg yolk mixture will be sticky but we didn't expect it to be this sticky. Here, we ponder starting over, but then decide we'll forge ahead, and we're glad we did because the mixture loosened as soon as vermouth was added.
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See just how sticky it was!
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Here, sweet vermouth performs its magic.
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Whipped cream -- what's not to love!
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Merrill folds the cream and yolk mixtures together.
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You'll probably use 4 ramekins of the same size and color -- here, we've given ourselves 4 alternative dishes for the finished dish photo. Which one will it be?
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Freezer time: yes, Amanda likes to mix her chocolate and mint ice creams. And no, that frozen pink lemonade isn't something she'd usually buy -- it was for a recipe test for the Times. And lechef, that's your Zesty Herbed Chicken Broth on the right, beneath the pie doughs.
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The hazelnuts, dressed with olive oil, honey and salt, before toasting in the oven.
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Here, we make it pretty for its close-up!
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This was amazing and spectacular - maybe my favorite dessert ever! One question about the cardamom - I got green cardamom and toasted that, then pulled out the seeds [tedious], then briefly toasted those. Is there an easier way to go with this part of the recipe?