Today I decided to make a real Italian Tiramisu! The word 'tiramisu' means 'pick me up' in Italian. I've always wanted to believe that this has something to do with the deliciously smooth texture of this dessert that makes you feel as if you were flying maybe. But it seems that the real sense of the expression is much less sophisticated as it is simply a reference to the idea dessert itself talking and saying "eat me...pick me up and eat me!". Anyways, I've only made this dessert once in my life so I don't yet have a favorite recipe, but today I'm going to try the recipe below for you!
WARNING: This recipe has to be prepared 6 hours before being served.
So here is the recipe I am going to test AND taste for you! (4-6 people)
Ingredients:
- 3 large eggs
- 100g of brown sugar
- 1 packet of vanilla sugar
- 250g of mascarpone
- 25 to 30 ladyfingers
- half a liter of unsweetened black coffee
- 30g of unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 table-spoon of Amaretto (optional)
Preparation:
1. Separate the white and yolks of the eggs.
2. Mix the yolks with all of the brown sugar and the vanilla sugar.
3. Add the mascarpone to it and whisk together (also add the Amaretto if wanted).
4. In a different container, beat the egg whites, and gently stir them with a spatula to the above mixture.
5. Make the coffee and wet the ladyfingers in it. As you go, fill the bottom of a dish with the wet ladyfingers.
6. Cover the ladyfingers layer with a layer of paste that you have previously made.
7. Continue to fill the dish with alternate layers of wet ladyfingers and paste but make sure to finish with a layer of paste.
8. Sprinkle the dessert with cocoa powder and keep in the fridge for 5 to 6 hours before eating.
Variations: If you find the unsweetened cocoa too strong, you could replace it with sweet cocoa such Nesquick powder, or even create a mix of sweetened and unsweetened powder.
If you don't like coffee, the same kind of techniques could apply in making a different kind of tiramisu such as a red fruits tiramisu.
I'll now go bake it, and run back for the results!! I kind of feel like a scientist doing an experiment actually!
VOILA!!
Tips:
- The tiramisu should be made with rather fresh eggs. It can thus only be kept for 24 hours as the eggs are raw. To verify if your eggs are fresh, you can plunge them in salt water: if they sink completely, they are fresh, if they float completely, the eggs are rotten. If the eggs stand vertically, they are fresh enough but not extra fresh.
- To make it easier to beat the egg whites, add a bit of salt to the egg whites. You can then use an electric whisk to beat the egg whites, or you can do it by hand, what I did today (it is, by the way, rather tiring).
Opinion: This recipe is, in my opinion, delicious. It is very sweet and very soft. I however think that I should have wet the ladyfingers even more in the coffee as they were a bit too dry still when I ate it. Also, a negative point about this recipe is that it is not extremely presentable. You do not end up with a perfectly regular tiramisu like would be served in a restaurant.
I Cook For...: Family and friends, but maybe not at a fancy dinner due to the lack of aesthetic. I cook for fun though, definitely. Wetting the ladyfingers in the coffee was definitely entertaining!
Hope you like it! Don't hesitate to leave comments, feedback and questions!! :)
