Notwithstanding the lack of popular demand I venture into the world of the sweet, leaving the savory aside for a moment. You see my carbohydrate input is restricted by my physician (Guido Santini MD) to pasta dishes and pizza – no sweets. So I rarely make desserts except for special occasions or on request. When the call comes I often select the well known Italian dessert that translates into “pull me up.” I have playfully added the phrase “throw me down” in Italian to the title above.
Pull me up you say? Where on earth did this name originate???
Roaming around the sites one discovers that Tiramasu’ has a murky past. At one extreme the origin is believed to go back only to the 1980’s. At the other it is alleged to have been born in the northern Italian town of Treviso back in Renaissance times and named after an amateur pastry chef whose maiden surname was actually Tiramisu’. Francesca “Franny” Tiramisu’. Remember her? Another theory is that because the ingredients include espresso coffee one experiences a sort of boost, or pick-me-up from it.
Whatever the origin this item shows up on the dessert menus of thousands of Italian-themed restaurants throughout the world. The good news is that at only 350 calories per bite one can easily work off a serving by running the Boston Marathon.
First some trivia: The one controversy surrounding Tiramisu’ is whether to add a liqueur to the recipe or not. The web sources claim liqueur was never part of the original, but the vast majority of current recipes that I have pulled up so far call for Cognac, Amaretto or something similar (Kahlua maybe?).
All of which allows us to get down to the particulars:
Authentic (or not) Tiramisu’
For 8-10 servings:
- 5 eggs separated
- 5 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 1 lb. mascarpone cheese at room temperature
- 1/4 cup Amaretto liqueur
- 1/4 cup Cognac
- approx. 30 lady fingers, dry or soft
- 2 cups sweetened espresso coffee or any strongly-flavored coffee
- cocoa powder for dusting
Whip egg whites until very stiff and set aside. Whip the egg yolks with the sugar until pale and thickened. Add the mascarpone a little at a time until fully incorporated with the yolks. Add half the amaretto and half the cognac. Mix and then fold in the egg whites. Add the rest of the liqueurs to the coffee. Place the coffee in a pan suitable for dredging the lady fingers. Have two 5×9″ loaf plans ready.
Dip the lady fingers one by one quickly in the coffee. If they break the pieces can still be used to create the layers. Arrange the first layer to cover the bottom of the pan. On top of the first layer place three or four heaping tablespoons of the egg/mascarpone mixture and spread evenly. Repeat this procedure til you reach the top of the pan. Three layers should fit. Finish with a topping of the egg/mascarpone mixture, dust cocoa powder over the top and refrigerate for 6-8 hours, or take a short cut and let the freezer do some of the work.
Serve with amaretto cookies on the side or a scoop of coffee ice cream. Dust additional cocoa powder around the plate. Since you fasted all day you can eat a 6 oz. serving without feeling guilty. Otherwise join up with the marathon contestants in Boston.
P.S. I was struck by the tasty version produced by a not-yet-well known Italian trattoria located in Rehoboth Beach DE called A Touch of Italy. Note the lady fingers in this version cannot be doused in espresso coffee otherwise they would not stand up to look like the Stonehenge monument. Hence we classify this version as ‘druidic’ and non-traditional.