Tiramisu
Executive Chef Romano Resen
Hotel Principe di Savoia, Milan, Italy
Makes 8 to 10
Servings
In Italy, the filling for a traditional Tiramisu is made
by blending mascarpone cheese with raw egg yolks
and then lightening the mix by blending it with
whipped egg whites. Because raw eggs carry the risk
of salmonella, in our filling, we have omitted them
entirely and added a bit more whipped cream for
volume and lightness.
1 cup water
6 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons "instant" espresso coffee
1/4 cup sweet Marsala wine or orange juice
1 cup (8 ounces) mascarpone cheese or
other mild cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup dark rum or Cognac or orange juice
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces lady fingers, Italian "Savoiardi"
cookies, or sponge cake, or angel food cake
cut into pieces about 1/2-inch thick,
2 inches long and 1-inch wide
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1.TO MAKE THE ESPRESSO SOAKING SYRUP: Set
aside a 13 x 9-inch glass baking pan. In a small
saucepan, bring the water, 3 tablespoons of the sugar,
and the instant espresso coffee to a boil. Remove the
saucepan from the heat and cool to room temperature.
When cool, add the Marsala wine and transfer the
mixture to a shallow plate.
2.TO MAKE THE FILLING: In a bowl, blend the
mascarpone together with the remaining 3
tablespoons of sugar, vanilla and rum and 2
tablespoons of the espresso soaking syrup. Beat until
smooth. Whip the cream until stiff and fold it into the
cheese mixture.
3.TO ASSEMBLE THE TIRAMISU*: Quickly dip the
lady fingers or cake pieces (don't saturate them) on
both sides into the espresso syrup and make one
layer of dipped cake in the baking pan. Top with half
of the mascarpone and whipped cream mix. Dip the
remaining cookies in the espresso syrup and create a
second layer. Evenly spread the remaining half of the
mascarpone and whipped cream mix over the top.
Cover the baking pan with plastic wrap and
refrigerate for at least 2 hours. The Tiramisu can be
prepared a day or two ahead. Right before serving,
dust the top of the Tiramisu with unsweetened cocoa
powder. Serve cold.
4.To make individual servings of Tiramisu, first create
some steel ring molds by removing the tops and
bottoms of tuna fish cans and washing the remaining
rings well. Set the rings on individual plates and line
each one with some soaked sponge cake, then a layer
of mascarpone, a layer of soaked sponge cake and a
layer of mascarpone. Cover and refrigerate for at least
2 hours. Right before serving, carefully remove the
steel ring and dust the top with unsweetened cocoa
powder.
* To make individual servings of Tiramisu, first create
some steel
ring molds by removing the tops and bottoms of tuna fish
cans
and washing the remaining rings well. Set the rings on individual
plates and line each one with some soaked sponge cake, then
a
layer of mascarpone, a layer of soaked sponge cake and a
layer of
mascarpone. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Right before
serving, carefully remove the steel ring and dust the top
with
unsweetened cocoa powder.
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