Tiramisu Recipe

We love home made Tiramisu. I think we make it more than any other dessert. This Tiramisu recipe will definitely rock your world. I researched the origin of this treat and found a lot of different information about it. A very interesting one came from my sister Kamola, who knew the wife of an Italian ambassador in Uzbekistan. According to her, Tiramisu was first prepared by wives of soldiers. They would prepare this desert for their husbands because it was filling and contained ingredients (eggs, cream, strong espresso) that kept soldiers energized and ready to fight and protect. Most likely by now you have already tried some type of tiramisu recipe, or maybe you’ve tried it in some Italian restaurant. I urge to give my tiramisu recipe a try!

The original recipe of Tiramisu always includes a small amount of alcoholic beverages like liqueur, wine or rum. Since we do not consume alcohol, I do not add anything of that sort to any of the food I make. Some argue that Tiramisu is not good enough without alcohol, but I beg to differ here :)

This is a very simple recipe and if you decide to make it I am sure you will not have a hard time making it all by yourself.

Ingredients:

• 1 box of store bought ladyfingers (you can always substitute these for the ones you make at home or you can simply use thin layers of sponge cake)
• 1-1/2 glass(200 ml or 8 oz) of heavy whipping cream+4 Tbsp sugar
• 4 egg yolks
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 2 – 8z containers of mascarpone (Italian cream cheese)
• 2/3 cup of warm espresso or a dark coffee of your choice. I use 3 Tbsp of a regular coffee into 1/2 cup of boiled water or simmer 3 Tbsp. of coffee with 2 cups of hot water until 1 cup of water left. Let it cool down a little and use as much needed.

*To reduce the risk of salmonella, I stopped using raw eggs and decided to use bain-marie (water bath) method. Bain-marie is when you put your mixing bowl in a pan of hot water and whisk the zabaglione (egg mixture). This helps in speeding up the cooking process+virtually no salmonella issue, which is very important if children are going to partake in eating process. You can also use a double boiler if you have one.

*You will also need a ca an 12″X8″ casserole dish OR you can use little cups to make individual serving potions. For whisking eggs and cream use two seperate medium bowls.

*If you prefer, use grated semi sweet dark chocolate for decoration.

*In this if you have a bigger family you might just double the ingredients and use a bigger casseole (or any container you prefer.)

Directions:
Using the bain-marie method beat the eggs and 3/4 cup sugar until thick ribbon is formed (with my cuisine art electric mixer it takes me about 15 minutes in speed 6).

In a medium bowl beat heavy whipping cream with sugar. When ready slowly add beaten eggs to the ready whipped cream. Add mascarpone cheese, use the smallest speed of your electric mixer to make a smooth and fluffy cream and stop just as mascarpone is well blended (takes seconds).

Arrange ladyfingers at the bottom of a casserole dish. You can snap ladyfingers to fit into particular container you choose. Play with it, believe me you will waste nothing. Gently drizzle coffee over ladyfingers. Divide the cream mixture into two half and spread the first half on top of the ladyfingers evenly. Continue the same procedure with the second layer. Decorate it with grated/chopped/shaved chocolate or with cocoa powder if you wish. Wrap the casserole with the plastic/cling wrap or a lit and refrigerate it for at least a half a day in order to make the cutting much easier.

While serving scoop with spoon or cut into even pieces and with spatula place portions into small plates or bowls.

Enjoy!