Tiramisu

Daria Souvorova

1 hour
serves: 12-16 people

Everyone loves Tiramisu! I have never met anyone who doesn’t. Adults love the sophisticated mixture of cream and coffee. Kids love their first opportunity to consume some booze. What can go wrong? Tiramisu is not hard to make, you don’t even need to bake. However, I strongly discourage using white sponge cake or pre-made “Tiramisu filling” that is sold in grocery stores. That is not Tiramisu, that is closer to a trifle. The one thing you should be careful with is blending the egg yolks into the mascarpone mixture. I let my KitchenAid do it as I was kneading some baguette dough the other night, and my egg whites turned back to liquid! However, I found a way to bake that into an incredibly delicious “mascarpone cheesecake”! Stay tuned for the brand new recipe soon!

I originally created this recipe for our Venetian Dinner last year (find all of our Venetian recipes in Chez Nous: Communal Dinners)! I brought the recipe back for the book launch of my first cookbook Chez Nous: Communal Dinners this past Saturday.

Generally, we serve sit-down dinners, but for this reception, I wanted to feature recipes from the book that could be made in advance and served buffet style so I did not have to worry about anything being too cold or losing its texture throughout the event. I focused on appetizers and desserts. I served five different appetizers from the book including Baba Ganoush, Cilantro Chutney, Hummus, with Buttered Naan as well as Sardele in Saor Crostini and Fresh Mozzarella Pesto Crostini. Our desserts included a beautiful Tiramisu from our Venice Chapter, a Sweet Potato Batatada from our Macao Chapter, A Sweet Cheese Martabak from Jerusalem, and a Victoria Sandwich Cake from the High Tea Guide.

I will be posting the rest of these recipes later in the week, so stay tuned for more!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups (720 mL) coffee
• 8 tablespoons rum
• 1 1/4 cup (250 g) sugar
• 6 eggs, separated
• 1/2 cup (120 mL) Marsala
• 18 ounces (500 g) mascapone
• 24 lady fingers
• cocoa powder

1. 1. 1. 1. Combine coffee, rum, and 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar in a large bowl. Mix until sugar is dissolved. It helps if the coffee is a bit warm.
         2. In a stand mixer, whisk egg whites until firm.
         3. Separately, add remaining sugar and Marsala to egg yolks. Whisk until pale and fluffy. Add mascarpone. Carefully fold in egg whites.
         4. Dip lady fingers in coffee mixture until wet but not falling apart. There is only a second or so between a bit too crunchy and soggy mess, so don’t get distracted.
         5. Make layer of about 12 lady fingers in a large flat serving dish.
            I used a 14 inch (35 cm) shallow bowl. Cover with half of
            mascarpone mixture.
            Add cocoa, sprinkle through a sieve.
            Repeat step 5 with rest of ingredients.
         6. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. When ready to serve, dust another layer of cocoa on top.