Some facts about me: I love pasta, garlic, tomato sauce, wine, and bread. I’m always late to things no matter how hard I try to be on time. (Honestly... if I have something big one day, I have to dedicate the whole day to getting ready... otherwise I’ll be at least 30 minutes late, if not longer.) I’m Italian, these things seem to be in my blood.
Another fact: one thing that I’ve never been fond of is Tiramisu. I don’t like the taste of coffee, so I think that’s the problem. Tiramisu contains coffee as a flavoring ingredient. The big bummer here is that it’s one of my dad’s favorite desserts. I typically order him a cake from one of the local bakeries for his birthday. But I really like being in the kitchen, and feel like I’m cheating him out of something special when I just order it.
So I thought, “How hard can it be to make a Tiramisu?”
Of course, just like every project I start, I bite off more than I can chew. But I was bound and determined to make a delicious cake for my dad’s birthday. Oh, and I wanted the cake to be pretty. Because it’s his birthday and he deserves a pretty cake at the very least.
Just so we’re keeping track here, I (1) probably didn’t pick the best cake for a beginner; (2) wanted this cake to be delicious, not that I was planning on having any myself; and (3) wanted it to be pretty.
So I started my recipe research. I couldn’t believe how many things differed between recipes. Some actually baked cake, others used lady fingers. Some used wine, some used rum, while some didn’t use any alcohol at all (which is just absurd!) Eventually I took a few different recipes and did what made the most sense to me, and what I thought my dad would like most.
So here’s what I came up with (I used a springform pan because I wanted it to look pretty... this could all be layed out in a 7" x 11" pyrex dish):
Another fact: one thing that I’ve never been fond of is Tiramisu. I don’t like the taste of coffee, so I think that’s the problem. Tiramisu contains coffee as a flavoring ingredient. The big bummer here is that it’s one of my dad’s favorite desserts. I typically order him a cake from one of the local bakeries for his birthday. But I really like being in the kitchen, and feel like I’m cheating him out of something special when I just order it.
So I thought, “How hard can it be to make a Tiramisu?”
Of course, just like every project I start, I bite off more than I can chew. But I was bound and determined to make a delicious cake for my dad’s birthday. Oh, and I wanted the cake to be pretty. Because it’s his birthday and he deserves a pretty cake at the very least.
Just so we’re keeping track here, I (1) probably didn’t pick the best cake for a beginner; (2) wanted this cake to be delicious, not that I was planning on having any myself; and (3) wanted it to be pretty.
So I started my recipe research. I couldn’t believe how many things differed between recipes. Some actually baked cake, others used lady fingers. Some used wine, some used rum, while some didn’t use any alcohol at all (which is just absurd!) Eventually I took a few different recipes and did what made the most sense to me, and what I thought my dad would like most.
So here’s what I came up with (I used a springform pan because I wanted it to look pretty... this could all be layed out in a 7" x 11" pyrex dish):
Ashley's Tiramisu
(Adapted from Allrecipes: Tiramisu II)
(Adapted from Allrecipes: Tiramisu II)
Ingredients:
- 6 Egg Yolks
- 3/4 c. white sugar
- 2/3 c. Whole milk
- 1 1/4 c. heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 lb. mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 c. instant espresso (room temp)
- 4 Tbsp. Meyer's dark rum
- 1lb package of ladyfingers
- 1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
Directions:
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until well blended. Whisk in milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Boil gently for 1 minute (mixture should be a custard at this point.) Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Cover tightly and chill in refrigerator 1 hour.
While custard is being chilled, in a small bowl make the espresso by following the directions on the label to equal 1/2 cup. Leave out so it can sit and become room temperature.
- In a medium bowl, beat cream with vanilla until stiff peaks form. (I used a stand mixer for this)
- Once yolk/custard mixture is COMPLETELY cool, whisk mascarpone into yolk mixture until smooth. (Yup, I used the stand mixer for this too!)
- Combine espresso and rum.
- Cut ladyfingers to proper height for the spring form pan. Stand the ladyfingers on the cut edge in the pan around the edge of the pan.
- Use the smaller cut pieces to dip into espresso mixture and arrange them on bottom of the pan.
- Spread half of mascarpone mixture over ladyfingers.
- Then half of whipped cream over that.
- Repeat layers and sprinkle with cocoa. Cover and refrigerate for at least 48 hours.
After my sister and I sung “Happy Birthday” to our dad (in both the traditional way and the Northwoods Inn way) he blew out the candles and the moment of truth was upon us! We cut the cake and it looked right on the inside! Then the taste... well... lets just say, I like Tiramisu now. Not super sweet and the rum compliments the espresso very well. Dad gave it 2 thumbs up, and my sister decided she wanted one for her birthday too!
I am now expected to make Tiramisu for all our special occasions now. It’s my own fault. But I’m glad I was able to accomplish what I set out to do.
Ciao
-AD
I am now expected to make Tiramisu for all our special occasions now. It’s my own fault. But I’m glad I was able to accomplish what I set out to do.
Ciao
-AD
