Nothing is scrummier than berry fruit, biscuits and something creamy.
Jam fever has taken over my house. Once the domain of aunties or grandmothers whose recipes and methods seemed intuitive rather than prescriptive, the domestic art of jam-making seems to be in decline. But summer berries are spread out on our garden table for picking over and, as jam is best made in small quantities, the jam pot seems never to be off the stove.
The results of my wife’s labours are the jars of deep-crimson raspberry jam piled on the kitchen bench. Many will be given to friends; others may be sold at the local Saturday market. To make them, she buys trays of jam-quality fruit from the local grower, much of which is fit for use in other desserts.
And that’s the only connection these dessert recipes have with jam – I recommend that you use fruit of a similar standard. It makes no sense to turn expensive premium fruit into ice-cream.
Semifreddo is an Italian term that essentially means “half-frozen”. And that is what this superb dessert is – a semi-frozen ice-cream, made without an ice-cream machine. It’s rich and creamy, and you can substitute pretty much any fruit for the raspberries (plums are splendid).
RASPBERRY SEMIFREDDO WITH GINGER BISCUITS
200g raspberries
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 tbsp water
9 egg whites
400g sugar
zest of a lemon
670ml cream, whipped to soft peaks
100g raspberries to serve
Line a loaf tin with plastic wrap, leaving it hanging over the sides. In a food processor, blend the raspberries, icing sugar and water. Strain the purée into a bowl. Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then add the sugar and resume whisking back to stiff peaks – about 3-4 minutes. Carefully fold the raspberry sauce and lemon zest into the whipped cream. Fold the cream into the egg whites with a metal spoon. Pour the mixture into the tin, fold the plastic wrap over to cover and freeze overnight. Turn out the semifreddo, cut into slices and serve with the ginger biscuits and a bowl of raspberries.
Serves 8 to 10.
BISCUITS FRESH FROM THE OVEN bring out everyone’s greedy inner child, so always make more than you need. Crisp on the outside but deliciously chewy, these are the perfect partner for ice-cream – or a cup of tea.
GINGER BISCUITS
100g self-raising flour
pinch of salt
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp sugar
50g unsalted butter
3 tbsp golden syrup
Preheat the oven to 180?C. Grease and flour a baking sheet. Sift the dry ingredients together and add the sugar. Melt the butter, add the golden syrup and combine with the dry ingredients to form a smooth dough.
Place tablespoonfuls or walnut-sized pieces of dough on the baking sheet about 5cm apart and flatten slightly. Bake until they are golden brown with crisp edges – 12-15 minutes. The centre will be slightly soft. Cool on a wire rack.
Makes about 15-20 biscuits.
THIS NEXT RECIPE IS like making your own fresh sweet cheese. Although it is based on the French recipe Coeur a la Crème, which uses heart-shaped, perforated ceramic moulds lined with wet muslin to allow the whey to drain away, I simply let the cheese drain in a damp muslin bag, then spoon it out and serve it with fresh berries.
MASCARPONE CREAM WITH BERRY SALAD
150g mascarpone
100g cream cheese
125g caster sugar
1 cup cream
½ cup thick plain yoghurt
Blend the mascarpone, cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the cream and yoghurt and blend briefly.
Cut a big piece of muslin and wring it out in cold water. Line a large strainer with the muslin and suspend it over a clean bowl. Spoon in the cheese. Tie the ends of the muslin to form a bag, suspend it from a wooden spoon over the bowl and refrigerate overnight. Unmould the cheese and serve with berry salad spooned over the top.
Serves 6.
BERRY SALAD
150g blackberries or boysenberries
150g raspberries
150g strawberries
3 basil leaves
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp water
Put all the ingredients into a saucepan. Bring to the boil and remove from the heat. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
Serves 6.
SERVE THE SAME BERRY SALAD with these delicate and fragrant shortbread biscuits. This dessert was quite common on restaurant menus last century, but modern chefs now consider it unfashionable – possibly because it’s so simple.
POACHED BERRIES WITH LEMON SHORTBREAD
SHORTBREAD
250g unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup caster sugar
2 cups flour
½ cup cornflour
pinch of salt
zest of a lemon
mascarpone or crème fraîche
Preheat the oven to 180?C. Grease and flour a baking sheet. In an electric mixer with a beater attachment, cream the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. This usually takes 5-7 minutes – the longer you leave it the better the shortbread.
Turn the mixer to the lowest setting and add the flour, cornflour, salt and lemon zest. Be careful not to over-mix. Roll the dough into logs and refrigerate. Cut the logs into biscuit-sized slices and place on the baking sheet 5cm apart. Bake for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the slices to a wire rack to cool – take great care, as they are extremely fragile.
To assemble, you will need 3 shortbreads per serving. Place a biscuit on each plate and put a teaspoon of crème fraîche in the centre. Arrange a circle of berries around the perimeter. Place another biscuit on top and repeat the crème fraîche and the berries. Finally, top with the third biscuit and dust with icing sugar.
Place spoonfuls of the berry syrup around the biscuits.
Makes 15-20.