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Christmas Pudding Semifreddo

The great thing about a semifreddo is that it requires no special equipment, like an ice-cream churner. Easy to put together, it is perfect for entertaining as it can be prepared weeks in advance and kept in the freezer until ready to slice & serve.

Be really prepared for your Christmas celebrating this year, by making this deliciously festive Christmas-themed semifreddo up to four weeks before the big day!

(Serves 10)

Conventional Method (Semifreddo)

3 large eggs (59g), separated
300ml whipping cream
1 tsp pure vanilla essence
60 g (3 tbsp) sugar
pinch of salt

150g Christmas Pudding, crumbled coarsely
2 tbsp (40ml) brandy or liqueur of your choice (optional)
130g (1/2 cup) pitted and halved cherries, fresh or frozen
60g (1/3 cup) pistachios, coarsely chopped
60g (1/4 cup) candied mixed citrus peel

  1. If using brandy or liqueur, place crumbled Christmas pudding onto a shallow plate and drizzle over liqueur to soak for a few minutes.
  2. In one mixing bowl, whisk together egg yolks, vanilla and sugar until fluffy & pale and tripled in volume.
  3. Add the whipping cream to the egg yolk & sugar mixture and continue to whip until thickened (but not firm). The texture should look more like a pouring custard. Set aside while preparing egg whites.
  4. In another large mixing bowl, whisk egg whites with pinch of salt (with very clean beaters) until stiff peaks form.
  5. Pour whipped cream & egg mixture into bowl with egg whites. Add soaked Christmas pudding, cherries, pistachios and mixed peel to bowl and, with a large metal spoon, gently fold in, until all the egg white is just mixed through, keeping as much air as possible in mixture.
  6. Line preferred 1.5L capacity shaped mould (I use a triangular mould, but a small loaf tin will work) with plastic wrap and pour mixture in. Cover with another piece of plastic wrap and place in freezer. Freeze overnight or for at least 8 hours.
  7. To serve, cut into slices and serve with Cherry Cranberry Sauce.

Thermomix Method (Semifreddo)
3 egg yolks
300ml whipping cream
1 tsp pure vanilla essence
60 g (3 tbsp) sugar
6 egg whites*
1 tsp cream of tartar
50g caster sugar

150g Christmas Pudding, crumbled coarsely
2 tbsp (40ml) brandy or liqueur of your choice (optional)
130g (1/2 cup) pitted and halved cherries, fresh or frozen
60g (1/3 cup) pistachios, coarsely chopped
60g (1/4 cup) candied mixed citrus peel

*TM Tips:

– Double the amount of egg whites, plus the addition of cream of tartar & caster sugar, are required in the TM method to achieve a similar volume of firm egg whites that 3 egg whites would achieve in the Conventional Method. Please ensure that your TM bowl, butterfly & lid are super clean & dry before whisking egg whites.

– Two TM bowls for making desserts is worth having. For this recipe, one will be used to whip the egg yolks and cream mixture, while the other one can be super clean and ready to whisk the egg whites. If you don’t have two TM bowls, whisk the egg yolks/cream mixture first, then set aside in a chilled mixing bowl. Clean and dry TM bowl & Butterfly well and proceed with whisking egg whites.

  1. Place egg yolks & sugar in TM bowl and whisk with butterfly for 2 min | SP4 until thick & pale.
  2. Add whipping cream and continue to whisk for approximately 1:30 min | SP4 until thickened and the consistency of a pouring custard. (The fresher the cream, the quicker it will thicken but you might need to continue to whisk the mixture for longer than the 1:30min, being very careful to not over-whip it or it will split).  Pour into a mixing bowl.
  3. Place egg whites and cream of tartar into a clean and dry TM bowl with butterfly and whisk until egg whites are just set – about 1:30min to 2min | SP4.
  4. With the motor running at SP4, slowly sprinkle in sugar and continue to whisk until the egg whites are stiff & firm. (The egg whites are ready if a dessertspoon of the mixture will stay on the inverted spoon.)
  5. Add set egg whites into bowl with cream/egg yolk mixture. Add soaked Christmas pudding, cherries, pistachios and mixed peel to bowl and, with a large metal spoon, gently fold together until all the egg white is just mixed through, keeping as much air as possible in mixture.
  6. Line preferred 1.5L capacity shaped mould (I use a triangular mould, but a small loaf tin will work) with plastic wrap and pour mixture in. Cover with another piece of plastic wrap and place in freezer. Freeze overnight or for at least 8 hours.
  7. To serve, cut into slices and serve with Cherry Cranberry Sauce.

Cherry Cranberry Sauce

100g (1/2 cup) frozen cranberries
80g (4 tbsp) caster sugar
juice from one orange
100g (1/2 cup) pitted & halved fresh or frozen cherries

  1. Place cranberries, caster sugar and juice into a saucepan. Cook over a medium heat until sugar is dissolved then simmer for 10 minutes or until sauce thickens.
  2. Add cherries and continue to simmer for 2 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat and cool.