Dessert with couscous and ricotta cheese

Have you been longing for something sweet but light? Something cold and delicious but not high in calories? Don’t fall for those shelf-ready sweets and ice creams full of saturated fats. We have the perfect cool semifreddo dessert for you and your whole family!

Today we bring you an alternative to ice cream cake that the kids will love and you will cherish how simple it is to prepare and how healthy it is! All you need for this recipe are the most simple ingredients that certainly are in every kitchen: some fresh whole milk, fresh ricotta, sugar, and cocoa powder!

Here is how to prepare this amazing summer dessert with couscous and ricotta cheese:

Preparation: 10 minutes + 3 hours of freezer Minutes
Difficulty: Very easy
Portions: 4-6

Recipe by Simona Novarini

 

Ingredients

• 180 ml of whole milk
• 1 tablespoon of a mix for cocoa drink
• 150 grams of Martino’s Couscous for Kids
• 300 grams of Ricotta
• 70 grams of confectionary’s sugar
• 80 grams of chocolate chips
• Unsweetened cocoa powder as needed

Preparation

Hydrate the Couscous:
In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, pour 180ml of whole milk and add one tablespoon of a mix for a cocoa drink and stir well. Bring the milk to a simmer so the milk is warm and the mix for cocoa drink completely dissolved.

Turn off the heat and pour evenly 150 grams of Martino Couscous. Cover with a lid and let the couscous absorb all the milk slowly for about 4-5 minutes. After the necessary time, fluff the couscous with the help of a fork.

Prepare the ricotta cream
In a medium mixing bowl add grams of fresh ricotta. Add the icing sugar and the chocolate chips and mix well with the help of a spoon until you obtain a creamy and amalgamated mixture.

Prepare the couscous semifreddo cake
Use parchment paper to line a rectangle cake mold. When ready use a spoon to add some of the rehydrated couscous in the mold. Use your spoon to spread it evenly so that you have a nice couscous layer. Top it with a layer of evenly spread ricotta cream. Keep creating layers of couscous and ricotta until you use up all the ingredients. It is up to you how many layers you want to create depending on how thick you want the final result to be.

When you are ready to place the cake mold in the refrigerator and let it cool down for about 2-3 hours.

Serve the Couscous and Ricotta semifreddo
Once the layers of couscous and ricotta have cooled down in the refrigerator you can prepare for serving this mouthwatering dessert. Remove from the refrigerator, and then remove the mixture from the mold together with the parchment paper. In a serving plate place it upside down and remove the parchment paper. Now you can sprinkle the cake with unsweetened cocoa powder and decorate with fresh strawberries or any other fruit you like.

Notes and alternatives:
If you are looking for a taste more similar to tiramisu you can replace the cocoa powder with instant coffee in this recipe. On the other hand, if you are looking for a more cheesecake taste try using fresh strawberry jam! Finally for a more fall alternative maybe you can mix up some spices and add a few ground apples to the ricotta cheese! In any case, the recipe is so versatile you will use it all year round for all sorts of cold desserts.

Couscous is extremely versatile and makes a great alternative to processed cereals, sweet snacks, and even desserts. It is perfectly suitable to cook sweet treats for you and your family either as breakfast, mid-morning or afternoon snack or even an organic unprocessed delicious cold dessert after lunch. If you are looking for more healthy sweets like this one subscribe to our newsletter and we will keep inspiring you directly in your inbox.

For the adventurous, don’t miss this opportunity to add your personal touch to this simple yet delightful cake. The traditional recipe must taste each home it is cooked in. So give it a try. Add maybe some nuts or try it with all kinds of toppings but don’t forget to leave a comment to tell us all about it.