Part I
Tonight's tea was a bit of a disaster and I'm just drinking a glass of wine because...well, it's Friday. I'm drinking a Portuguese Chardonnay from Asda, called
Tagus Creek which is very tasty. I'm no wine critic, I
either like it or I don't, basically.
After two mouthfuls of Italian Chicken & Mozarella melt, I had to put my plate back in the oven to keep warm. My parents have gone away for a few days and left a family friend in charge of looking out for my lovely gran, who has dementia, but forgot that they'd had the locks changed since she last went round. Her key didn't work. By the time I got back - after bumping into a friend I hadn't seen since about 1993 on the way - my lovely green sugar snap peas had turned up at the corners. Bugger.
I did sneak a couple of bits of Co-op Brunswick Ham from the fridge beforehand as I was so hungry. I had a garlic and herc ciabatta roll with it to soak up the tomato sauce and I can still taste it now...
Have got berries and Carte D'Or Cinnamon Waffle ice cream for dessert. It's one of my top three ice creams of all time so perfect for a lacklustre Friday evening. So looking forward to seeing the man tomorrow. I'll be wearing my new crochet top and rocking the black leggings and tunic look for the day.
Meanwhile - I dug out a luscious summer recipe for you to be going on with!
Part II Strawberry Ripple Marscapone Parfait
A parfait or semifreddo is just a frozen pudding, and a very simple way of making a very delicious type of ice-cream without too much stirring!
Mascarpone cream cheese, from the north of Italy, goes very well with strawberries. The crunchy Amaretti biscuits and Amaretto liqueur in the recipe add a delicious bitter almond flavour to cut through the creaminess of the pudding. All ingredients can be found in a good supermarket or delicatessen.
Serves 6 - Preparation time: 15 minutes - Freezing time: 12 hours (or overnight)
You’ll need:
- 100g soft Amaretti biscuits
- Splash of Amaretto liqueur
- 400. Sweet Eve strawberries
- 4 fresh free range eggs, separated
- 100g caster sugar
- 250g Mascarpone cream cheese
What to do:
Carefully line the base and the sides of a 1 litre plastic lunch box, or plastic Tupperware container with cling film that overlaps down the side.
Crush the soft Amaretti biscuits all over the base of the lunch box, and drizzle some Amaretto liqueur over them.
Hull the strawberries and crush them in a bowl, using a fork. Spoon half of the crushed strawberries all over the Amaretti covered base of the lunch box.
Using an electric whisk, beat the egg yolks with the sugar, till light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites till they form soft peaks. Fold the egg whites into the egg yolk and sugar mix, carefully retaining the air inside the mix.
In a roomy bowl, whip the Mascarpone cream cheese until it is softened, then fold the egg mix into the Mascarpone cheese, a little at a time, until it is fully blended.
Spoon half the Mascarpone mix over the crushed strawberries in the lunch box, and level the top with a spatula. Spoon the remaining half of the crushed strawberries on top of the Mascarpone cream, and then spoon the remaining half of the Mascarpone cream on top, as the final layer. Take a metal skewer, and very gently insert it into the mix, turning it around to create a “ripple” effect of red and white.
Bang the Tupperware box gently on the work surface, to evenly distribute the mix, and top with a few halved strawberries to decorate. Then cover the parfait mix with the overlapping cling film.
Freeze the parfait overnight. Just before serving place the open Tupperware box on the table, and place an upturned serving plate on top of it. Now turn the Tupperware box upside down, gently, so that the frozen parfait and the cling film slide down on the serving plate. Remove the cling film, turn the parfait over onto another plate to right it, and slice the parfait into individual portions. Serve. Enjoy!
