Ginger Matcha Semifreddo with Coconut Black Sesame Brittle
I’ve been toying with the idea of vegan ice cream since March but was trying to find a more approachable way to it; not everyone has an ice cream maker… After some research I found out that semifreddo isn’t actually a churned ice cream, its more of a ‘frozen mousse.’ The mixture is light and airy and then it freezes, becoming solid but still creamy. Finding a way to make this dessert without any cream, or eggs was quite hard, but I managed to substitute the base ingredients with coconut milk and cream.
The inspo for the flavour comes from one of my favourite drinks from the Moon Juice cookbook: sesame ginger matcha. The sesame gives is a gorgeous depth of nutty flavour, the ginger is refreshing but not spicy, and the matcha brings everything together. When using matcha I only buy and use ceremonial grade; it has no bitterness and isn’t astringent or grassy.
Most ingredients I use in this recipe are straightforward, the only maybe ‘bizzare’ one is aquafaba also known as canned chickpea water. All you have to do is drain a can of chickpeas, reserving the liquid (you only need 1/4 cup.) The liquid should be slightly viscous and that’ll whip up just like egg whites. I promise that even if the liquid may smell very beany, you won’t be able to taste it at all in the final product. It’s there to bring some air into the mixture. Lastly, make sure to refrigerate your coconut cream overnight before making this dessert.
Tip: If you don’t like ginger, feel free to not use it. heat the milk up for 5-10 minutes and then whisk in your matcha off the heat. This would also work perfectly in ice lolly moulds instead of a loaf tin.
Makes: 1 12x26cm loaf
prep time: 25-30 minutes
freezing time: 10-16 hours (overnight)
Ingredients
For the black sesame coconut brittle:
1/3 cup (70g) caster sugar
3 tbsp toasted black sesame (or toasted white sesame)
2 tbsp dessicated coconut
Method:
Before making the caramel, prep all the needed ingredients as well as an oiled spatula or offsest spatula, a silpat or oiled parchment paper.
In a pan, pour the sugar in an even layer, turn the heat to medium high and let the sugar slowly melt. Do not stir or touch the sugar during this moment.
When all the sugar granules have melted and the mixture is turning amber, that is when you can swirl the pan to evenly distribute the sugars, making the mixture 1 homogenous colour. Cook the caramel until amber brown, then take it off the heat.
Working quickly, stir in the coconut and sesame seeds until everything is evenly coated, pour the seed mixture onto the silpat or oiled parchment and press down with your spatula until the mixture is flat and around 0.5-0.7cm thick. Let cool down completely.
For the semifreddo base:
1 3/4 cups (400ml) coconut milk
1/3 cup (70g) caster sugar
1/4 cup (73g) honey or another liquid sweetener like agave, brown rice syrup, date syrup….
1 tsp tapioca flour
1 1/2 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
2 1/2 tbsp ceremonial grade matcha
3 tbsp (23g) coconut oil
400ml can of coconut cream, refrigerated overnight (this should give you approx 360g of solid product and a few tbsps of liquid to discard)
1/4 cup (57g) aquafaba
3 tbsp (41g) caster sugar
Method:
1. Line the loaf pan with cling film, leaving enough overhang to be able to wrap the top of the dessert.
2. In a pot, add coconut milk, sugar, honey (or other liquid sweetner) and tapioca flour. Whisk everything together until there are no lumps visible. Add the ginger to the liquid, and turn the heat up to medium low. Let the ginger infuse in the coconut milk for 15-20 minutes. It’s done when the milk significantly tastes like ginger.
3. Take the pot off the heat and sift in the matcha powder. Whisk the mixture until it turns green and most of the matcha clumps have dissolved and broken, mix in the coconut oil. Let the mix cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, scoop the solid part of the coconut cream into a bowl discarding the liquid, and with an electric whisk or manually, whip it until it becomes fluffy, and increases in volume. It should resemble whipped cream.
5. In another bowl, whip the aquafaba until foamy and then slowly pour in the 3 tbsp of sugar. Whip the mixture until it becomes glossy and stiff peaks form. Fold it into the whipped coconut cream.
6. Strain the matcha ginger liquid into a large bowl so that only a smooth mixture is left. Fold in the coconut cream aquafaba mixture into the matcha gently as to not lose a lot of air, until everything is even and thoroughly combined.
7. Break the prepared and cooled brittle into bite size pieces and place on the bottom of the prepared loaf pan, you will have extra brittle, store it in a jar and eat it with the dessert once set.
8. Pour the matcha mix into the prepared loaf pan, cover the top with the overhanging cling film and place in the freezer for a minimum of 10 hours. When the semifreddo has fully set, take it out, unwrap, and cut into slices. It’s easiest to cut with a hot knife: run the blade under some hot water, and it should easily cut into the dessert. Eat as is or garnish with the extra brittle.
For storage: wrap it back in the clingfilm or a fresh piece of parchment paper, and store in the freezer for up to 2 months