Semifreddo (,

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

for 'half cold') is a class of frozen desserts similar to

ice cream Ice cream is a sweetened frozen food typically eaten as a snack or dessert. It may be made from milk or cream and is flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit such as ...

. The main ingredients are

egg yolks Among animals which produce eggs, the yolk (; also known as the vitellus) is the nutrient-bearing portion of the egg whose primary function is to supply food for the development of the embryo. Some types of egg contain no yolk, for example be ...

, sugar, and

cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

. It has the texture of frozen mousse or cake. The dessert's Spanish counterpart is called '' semifrío''. It was created around the 19th century, but did not gain popularity until the early 20th century. The

parfait Parfait (, also , ; meaning "perfect") is either of two types of dessert. In France, where the dish originated, parfait is made by boiling cream, egg, sugar and syrup to create a custard-like puree. The American version consists of layers ...

differs in that the Italian

meringue Meringue (, ; ) is a type of dessert or candy, often associated with Swiss, French, Polish and Italian cuisines, traditionally made from whipped egg whites and sugar, and occasionally an acidic ingredient such as lemon, vinegar, or cream o ...

is missing, which is replaced with ''

pâte à bombe The pâte à bombe is a base used in pastry from pasteurized eggs to be used in cold preparations (tiramisu, mousse, semifreddo). It consists of a whipping of egg yolks to which a syrup of water and sugar Sugar is the generic name for swe ...

''. The biscotto ghiacciato instead contains Italian meringue, semi-whipped cream and fruit puree.

References

Frozen desserts Italian desserts Custard desserts {{Italy-cuisine-stub

See also

References