Strawberry Key Lime Curd Semifreddo
In Italian, semifreddo (say-mee-FRAYD-doh) means “half cold.” In the food world, it can refer to any cold or partially frozen dessert. The semifreddo most of us know and love looks like a very fancy ice cream cake. It’s traditionally made with a base of cream, sugar and egg yolks, so it feels warmer on the palate, tastes a bit like frozen custard — and has the delicate, airy texture of mousse.
Here we’ve done away with the eggs, which makes the recipe a lot less fussy. Instead, we beat Greek yogurt into our whipped cream, which yields a fluffy batter with a lovely tang to it. Swirled through with a lightly sweetened strawberry sauce and a little Key Lime Curd, it tastes like a bright, fresh strawberry mousse. After freezing, the semifreddo is garnished with a bit more lime curd — the perfect complement to all that creaminess.
This semifreddo is an easy yet elegant dessert, the kind of showstopper you can lean on when the boss, your favorite aunt or the book club is coming for dinner. It’s make ahead, so you can roll it out with the greatest of ease, and its clean lines, marbled fruit and dots of curd never fail to impress.
8-12 servings
Preparation time: 30 minutes (plus 2 hours for cooling)
Freezer time: 3 hours
Ingredients
2 cups strawberries, hulled and chopped
2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 ½ cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 tablespoons Key Lime Curd, plus more for garnish
1 teaspoon lime zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup Greek yogurt
1 Key lime, sliced, for garnish
Directions
- In a small saucepan, combine the strawberries and granulated sugar and cook on low for 20 minutes, or until the strawberries begin to break down.
- Mash the strawberries with a potato masher and cook for another 20 minutes, until a chunky sauce forms. Remove the strawberry sauce from the heat, allow it to cool, and then cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge to chill for 2 hours. Tip: You can do this step a day ahead.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice and lime curd.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the cream and powdered sugar on high until stiff peaks form.
- Set the mixer on low and whisk the lime mixture into the whipped cream.
- Add the lime zest to cream and, with the mixer set on low, whisk until just incorporated.
- Remove the bowl from the stand mixer and fold in the vanilla, Greek yogurt and ¾ of the chilled strawberry sauce.
- Line a glass dish measuring 4×8 inches with plastic wrap, leaving an overhang of 4 inches on all sides.
- Spoon the semifreddo mixture into the pan and fold the plastic wrap over it. Put the pan in the freezer for at least 3 hours.
- Lift the frozen semifreddo onto a cutting board using the overhanging plastic to transfer it. Remove the plastic and cut the semifreddo into 8 squares.
- Serve on plates, topped with the remaining strawberries, slices of Key lime and a drizzle or dot of lime curd.