In the Oven: Milk Chocolate Malt Semifreddo with Chocolate Syrup

Bakers, are you ready for a nice cool summer treat?
The next posting date is Sunday, August 3rd.

Yield: Two 9-by-5-inch semifreddi
10 ounces (about 1 3/4 cups) malted milk balls (such as Whoppers or Malteasers)
1/2 cup sugar, divided
1/3 cup malted milk powder
5 large eggs, separated*
2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt

*The eggs in this recipe are not cooked, which may be of concern if salmonella is a problem in your area.

Simple Chocolate Syrup, warmed (optional, below)

Line two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with plastic wrap and allow generous overhang on all sides. Spray a paper towel with nonstick cooking spray and wipe the plastic wrap with it so that the plastic wrap is nonstick but not oily.

In a food processor, pulse the malted milk balls until they are coarsely chopped. (Do not process until powdery—you want some decent sized chunks.) Sprinkle the bottom of each loaf pan with approximately one-quarter of the chopped malted milk balls.

In a large bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon of the sugar, the malted milk powder, and the egg yolks fairly vigorously until the mixture turns pale, 1 to 2 minutes.

In a chilled medium bowl, vigorously whisk the cream for 1 minute, sprinkle the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar and the vanilla over top of the cream, then continue beating until soft peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the egg yolk mixture. Set aside.

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites with the salt just until stiff peaks form. Do not whip past the stiff peak stage or the whites will become dry and unusable.

Fold one-third of the egg white mixture into the egg yolk base. Add half of the remaining egg whites and gently fold until almost incorporated. Fold in the remaining egg whites.

Use a large spoon to fill each loaf pan halfway with the semifreddo. Smooth out the surface with the back of the spoon and place in the freezer for 10 minutes.

Remove the loaf pans from the freezer and sprinkle the remaining chopped malted milk balls over the semifreddo in each pan. Then cover each malted milk ball layer with the remaining semifreddo. Smooth out the top with the back of the spoon. Cover the pans tightly with the plastic wrap overhang and freeze until firm, about 6 hours.

To serve, invert the semifreddi onto a platter and remove the plastic wrap. Drizzle some of the chocolate syrup over the tops. Using a hot knife (dip in hot water and dry thoroughly), slice the semifreddi into 1-inch (or slightly larger) slices. Serve the remaining chocolate syrup on the side.

Simple Chocolate Syrup

Excerpted from Baked Elements: Our 10 Favorite Ingredients by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Copyright © 2012 by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Excerpted by permission of Stewart, Tabori & Chang, an imprint of Abrams. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.