April 2015 CookBook Club Wrap-Up

Whew! This month really flew by. I don’t know what happened, but here we are, about to enter May, and I didn’t get nearly everything I wanted done. But I DID make a lot of delicious treats from Lesley Stowe’s Desserts from My Kitchen!

This book is gorgeous–you all know that. But it’s so pretty it could almost seem intimidating. Luckily, the instructions are fabulous and I was making brand new dishes that all turned out delicious! You can see the pictures and reviews of all the recipes by searching for #GHCookBookClub on Instagram.

The recipe I loved the best (and will be making ALL spring and summer long) was Lesley’s vanilla semifreddo (on page 219). According to Lesley: “A semifreddo (which translated means ‘half cold’) is a partially frozen Italian dessert that has the texture of frozen mousse and is slightly richer than ice cream.”

This cookbook has 5 different semifreddo recipes and variation suggestions in addition to those. I thought I’d start simple and I may work my way to the other ones next time I whip up a batch. This recipe is quicker and easier (in my opinion) than regular ice cream and tastes SO much better. But it does require that you have an electric mixer and a LOT of bowls. Lesley Stowe was kind enough to let me share this recipe below!

Vanilla Semifreddo 

Ingredients:

• 4 large free-range eggs, separated
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1 cup heavy or whipping cream
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Line a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap or parchment paper.
2. In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat yolks and 1/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Set aside.
3. In another mixing bowl, beat cream until it holds soft peaks. Add vanilla and mix until combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.
4. In a third mixing bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and continue mixing until firm (but not dry) peaks form.
5. Fold whipped cream into yolk mixture, then fold in half of the egg whites and mix until well combined. Gently fold in remaining egg whites. Pour into prepared loaf pan and freeze for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight. Slice with a hot knife to serve.

Once you’ve got the hang of that, you can check out her book for the other flavors! Or just fold some Nutella in it and eat it straight out of the loaf pan like I may have done. I’m classy like that.

One embarrassing and fun fact about semifreddo: I always accidentally say “semi-frodo” when I read it. I may have also accidentally written that a few times. But I like to think it’s a desert a hobbit would enjoy. Speaking of hobbits, stay tuned for May’s cookbook club book: I think it’ll be an unexpected culinary adventure for many of you! 😉

One last piece of business before I say goodbye to April’s GH Cookbook Club pick: Lesley Stowe’s giving away a copy of the book and some Raincoast Crisps to one lucky Geeky Hostess reader! Enter below for your chance to win:

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