As I’m a great fan of a true margarita, I thought it would be fun to take the components apart and rearrange them into a dessert. This makes a lot, but leftovers will keep for a month in the freezer. I learned a version of this sponge cake, which is called biscuit mirliton, at the Hôtel de Paris in Monte Carlo. I love it for its airy/ cakey texture, which is like no other sponge. Perfumed with citrus zest, it is a great complement to the tangy semifreddo. The key to the sponge is baking just before serving. You’ll need eight to nine 1-ounce aluminum timbale molds for the cake and twenty 2 x 2-inch ring molds for the semifreddo (see Note, page 120).
You can freeze this dessert in whatever size molds you like (just be sure it’s something you can push the semifreddo out of). For tastings, I use small plastic molds for the semifreddo that I have cut to order at a plastics store on Canal Street. The tubes have a 3⁄4-inch opening and they’re cut in 1 3⁄8-inch lengths. If you are freezing the semifreddo in plastic, make sure you line the molds with acetate first. Muffin tins lined with plastic wrap would also work.
