Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Raspberry Semifreddo Heart

I made a raspberry semifreddo with bittersweet chocolate for my boyfriend for this past valentine's day. I've never had semifreddo in my life before, so I have no idea what it "should" taste like, but from researching this online and reading people's comments about the texture of semifreddo, I think I pretty much got it down :)
I used recipe from Martha Stewart. This is what it's supposed to look like:

 

I made some improvisations on mine since I messed up on the bittersweet hearts lol. I'll mention later what I think MAY have gone wrong... 

 

So here's the recipe: 

Ingredients


Semifreddo:

  • 18 oz of fresh raspberries or 1 pound frozen raspberries (I used fresh raspberries)
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup light corn syrup
  • 2 tablespoons kirsch, or champagne (I used Martini's Asti champagne)
  • 3 large egg whites
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon superfine sugar
  • Confectioners' sugar, for garnish

Bittersweet Chocolate:

7 ounces of bittersweet chocolate coarsely chopped

Procedure: 

  1. prepare a pan that you would like to use. I used Wilton's Heart mold as my baking pan. You can use a regular baking pan, line it up with parchment paper and then later use a heart cookie cutter to make the heart shapes. I just thought this heart mold made things much more convenient.
  2. Place fresh raspberries into a medium skillet over medium heat. Simmer so that the raspberries can break down and some liquid is released (4-5 minutes). Transfer it to a food processor and puree (only takes a few seconds) Use a fine mesh strainer and place a bowl underneath it. Let the rapsberry pass through it and help it by stirring it with chopsticks/spoon. Leave it there to cool. 
  3. Fill a large bowl with ice and water and set aside. Fill another pot with water till it's about 1/4 way up. Let it come to a boil then let it simmer. Use a medium stainless bowl to whisk together egg yolks, 2 Tbs of sugar, corn syrup, and champagne. Place the bowl over simmering water. Whisk constantly until the mixture is thick. (The mixture should be thick but runny at the same time. When you lift the whisk up, you will see it leave a ribbon-like trail, but more fluid than you would expect it) Transfer the bowl into an ice-water bath and whisk the mixture while it cools. Add 3/4 cup of raspberry purree to mixture. Whisk to combine, set aside
  4. Use an electric mixer and beat the egg whites on high speed until frothy (30 sec). gradually add 6 Tbs of sugar as the mixer is running. Beat until very stiff. 
  5. Use another bowl to beat the heavy cream until it has stiff peaks. *Crucial: Do not overbeat the heavy cream! It can curdle in a second so make sure to keep an eye on it! The rate that it changes from stiff peaks to curdled cream happens quicker than it does for egg whites! I made that mistake and had to start over again T.T*
  6. After the cream is beat, fold it into the egg whites. Fold raspberry mixture into the egg white and cream mixture. Pour the mixture into a prepared pan. Cover with plastic wrap and set it into the freezer for at least 4 hours. 
  7. For the rest of the raspberry sauce that remains, stir in superfine sugar (2 Tbs). (You can skip this step it you want... I didn't find it necessary to add the sugar in)

 Bittersweet Heart Chocolate: 

  1. Cut parchment paper to fit a 9-by-13-by-2-inch pan. Brush vegetable oil in corners and center of the pan, pressing parchment to adhere it. Set aside.
  2. Bring a medium pot of water to a simmer. Place chocolate in a medium stainless-steel bowl; place the bowl over, the simmering water to melt the chocolate (~4 to 6 minutes)
  3. Remove chocolate from simmering water. Pour chocolate into prepared pan. Using a large metal offset (bent-neck) spatula, spread the chocolate evenly over the surface 1/6 inch thick. Freeze until chocolate sets, about 6 minutes.
  4. Working quickly, use a heart-shaped cookie cutter (3 1/4 inches across at widest point), to cut out six chocolate hearts. If chocolate begins to soften, return to freezer for several minutes. Run an offset spatula under the hearts, and place in a container. Cover and freeze until ready to use, up to 2 weeks.
    (I think I may have made a mistake when I let the chocolate set in the freezer for way more than 6 minutes. By the time I took it out to cut it with the cookie cutter, it was way to hard for me to cut it and even when I did, the chocolate shattered into random pieces. I'm thinking that you should take the chocolate out when it's in the middle of freezing but is still soft enough for you to cut through with the heart shaped cookie cutter)
    Serve this however you like :) Be creative! It doesn't have to look like the way Martha Stewart's was set up. You can place the bitter sweet chocolate off center and then the semifreddo somewhere. Garnish well with fresh raspberries and confectioner sugar! Use the raspberry sauce to decorate the plate however you want ( I may have OD'ed on that part lol but hey, this was my first try:) 

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