Five Minute Mango-Coconut Semifreddo

Up until a few days ago, we’d been enjoying some amazingly warm and sunny spring weather here in Ireland.

Warm breezes, new blooms in the garden and sunny skies greeted us day after day in a stretch of uninterrupted beautiful weather. Everyone in Ireland knows to take advantage of good weather while you can – my dairy farmer father-in-law got his fields fertilized and between he, my husband and even a little help from me, we got lots of necessary jobs done around the farmyard.

We’re still waiting for two babies to make their appearance, but mostly the calving season has come to an end. We can all calm down a bit until silage season (gulp) starts in June.

A few weekends ago Pat, Maeve and I strapped ourselves into the car and took off for Lough Derg; a large lake which borders counties Tipperary, Clare and Galway. It’s pretty big. Actually, it’s the second largest in the republic – and boy, is it beautiful.

Coming from Cape Breton, Lough Derg really reminded me of the Bras D’or Lakes – especially on this particular, sunny day, as it was dotted with sailboats and sea-doos. We drove to the picturesque village of Killaloe (pronounced kill-a-loo) in County Clare and took a walk with Maeve along the shoreline. We then drove to the village of Garrykennedy (yup, a village named after some dude, I’m guessing) for lunch at Larkin’s Pub.

Fish and Chips at Larkins

Larkin’s is a great spot for lunch on a sunny day. They’ve won multiple awards for their pub-grub; the patio is ENCLOSED which means when your kid is finished eating (way before you are) she can run around on the grass and you don’t have to worry about her escaping; they have great, local craft beer on tap and, last but not least: they are also home to an artisanal ice cream company, meaning you can grab dessert to-go and take a walk around the beautiful village.

The ice cream company is fairly new, but are already doing really well. They’re called Boyle & Co. and they make their ice cream from Tipperary cows, just down the road, near the town of Roscrea. If you’ve tasted Tipperary butter (which is rich, creamy and so much better than any butter I’ve ever had) then you’ll have an idea of how amazing this ice cream tastes.

I ordered a few cones for us, as well as some ice cream in tubs to take home. I thought I’d make a semifreddo.

Lots of semifreddo recipes involve making the ice cream base from scratch, which is GREAT if you have time.

But I don’t. Have time, that is. I have no time.

And anyway, why make your own base when you have such an amazing product at your fingertips? This recipe is a bit Caker Cooking (love this guy’s blog; click on the link!) – meaning it’s mostly assembly, with very little skill required.

It would be a fun recipe to make with your kids but, at the same time, the results are fancy enough for a summer dinner party dessert. I made this semifreddo with coconut ice cream and mango sorbet, but you can use any flavour combination that tickles your fancy.

And yes, it really takes five minutes to make. Longer to freeze, but definitely five minute to make.

Five Minute Coconut-Mango Semifreddo

Ingredients: 

500g Boyle & Co. mango sorbet

500g Boyle & Co. coconut ice cream

125ml spiced rum OR mango/orange juice

12 store-bought (or home-made, if you’re feeling wild) ladyfingers

1 orange, peeled and sliced whole (garnish)

1 mango, peeled and cubed (garnish)

Directions:

• Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap, leaving plenty of overhang (you’ll want to cover the semifreddo entirely in plastic when it’s assembled).
• Allow the ice cream and sorbet to soften at room temperature. When soft, spread the mango sorbet on the bottom of the lined loaf pan. Top it with six ladyfingers that have been lightly dipped in rum or juice.
• Then spread the softened coconut ice cream over the ladyfingers. Again, dip the remaining six ladyfingers in run or juice, then press them lightly into the coconut ice cream layer.
• Cover the semifreddo tightly with the overhanging plastic wrap and then put the whole thing into the freezer. Freeze for at least four hours or overnight.
• When ready, gently remove the semifreddo from the loaf pan and unwrap. Garnish the top with the sliced orange, cubed mango or any other fruit you like (a few mint leaves wouldn’t go amiss here, either).
• When ready to serve, slice with a sharp knife that has been dipped in very hot water, then quickly dried. The hot knife will slice through frozen things more cleanly.
• Serves 6-8, depending on how thick you slice.

An Afternoon at Tramore Beach

This past weekend was busy for us.

Our very close friend, Aidan, recently moved home to Limerick after five years in South Korea. It was in Korea where we met – me and Aidan, Patrick and Aidan, even me and Patrick. Maybe someday I’ll jot down the hazy memories of the night Pat and I first met, but this post is not the place.

We had the best group of friends in Korea. Every Friday night we would gather at Now Bar in Yeongtong, Suwon and drink, laugh and plan the weekend’s mischief. Whether we’d take the 6 am train to the beach the next day or simply drink in the park (you can do that in Korea!) there would always be something fun planned, and generally Aidan would be at the center of it all. Needless to say we’re delighted to all be in the same country again.

Things have definitely changed since we last saw each other in 2009. I am as big as a house, he’s actually gotten slimmer, Pat is a super-duper professional and none of us can handle the all-night drinking binges that personified our weekend lives in Korea (during the week we were strictly business – teaching kindergarten with a hangover just doesn’t work).

In addition to trying my best to fatten him up, we had a great weekend in Waterford. On Friday evening we dined at Sabai, which specializes in high-end Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. Patrick’s coworkers assured us it was the best place in the city for Asian food and, although it can be pricey (entrées alone up to 25 euro, in some cases), they have an excellent early bird special that leaves you full and content.

For 21 euro, you can get an appetizer and entrée with tea or coffee. If you want to splurge, you can get dessert thrown in for 25 euro. In the beginning we thought we could handle three courses, but after our entrée we were so very full. I couldn’t even finish my green curry (the leftovers made a great midnight snack).

On Saturday we packed up some towels and blankets, put on our bathing suits and headed for Tramore Beach. We hadn’t yet been to Tramore, but we knew it was just a few minutes down the road. Sure enough, ten minutes from our house, we found ourselves at the beach.

This beach is huge. The town? Cutesy and quaint. There is a small amusement park next to the beach as well as several surfing schools.

It was a great day to be outdoors – there were dogs and children running all over the place. We found a little spot to spread out our blankets and relaxed in the sun for a few hours. The boys actually jumped in the frigid water. I stuck my feet in and decided not to.

We finished the day with fresh battered cod and chunky chips, followed by a 99 ice cream cone (or a 99 Flake). Don’t know what a 99 is? It’s an ice cream cone (generally soft serve, vanilla) with a stick of wafer-ey chocolate stuck in for good measure. It cost 1 euro, not 99 cent. Must be the inflation.

It’s great to know the beach is so close to my house. Hopefully the wind gets less chilly as the summer goes on and I’ll actually get in the water. A girl can dream.