Feb 2010 Daring Bakers Tiramisù

Tiramisù is a heavenly dessert I was glad it was this month's challenge. And every component was to made from scratch - that is the savoiardi biscuits, mascarpone cheese, zabaglione and the pastry cream - then these were assembled with whipped cream and a flavoured liquor to make the final tiramisù. Tiramisù is already a plural in Italian so it is three tiramisù not three tiramisùs.

Overall the challenge recipes are very simple and give great results. Thank you Deeba and Aparna for an excellent challenge.

The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Home and Baking Obsession.

The Savoiardi Biscuits recipe is a minor miracle the end results are wonderful and so so good, the biscuits have a crisp crust and a lovely texture inside. The only slight change I did was to beat the egg yolks until they formed a thick stable foam which makes it so much easier to fold them into the egg whites without loss of volume and even adds some more volume I think.

Unbaked biscuits


Baked biscuits



The final biscuits were lightly browned on the bottom but had a crisp firm crust and a lovely cakey inside that was delightfully. And they are so much better than the store brought ones and so easy and quick to make. The small ones took the 15 mins but the larger ones I left in the cooling oven which baked them to the right degree. They certainly do taste of eggs but I like that.

Moroccan Hot & Cold Spicy Walnut Mint Coffee Tiramisu served with a blood orange sauce
I made a quarter batch of the reveal recipe for testing the baking methods and making the tiramisù methods. I added 1 teaspoon each of cardamom and sumac and 2 tablespoons walnut meal to the cream filling, also I used mint coffee with gin to soak the savolardi biscuits, then I added cocoa powder with 1/4 teaspoon of home-made hot harissa powder on top. Yum Yum this is perfect. And the Moroccan spices add that nice touch of exoticness that is needed. The mint gives a cool fresh flavour and the cocoa with harissa powder gives a hot deep flavour. I feel this contrast is necessary for such a rich dessert. The savolardi biscuits are not soggy at all I only soaked one side which helps keep their shape. It's very hard to get good photos of this treat. This was so good great flavours. Sorry I forgot to take a photo of the blood orange sauce it is too dark now will do it tomorrow.



Powdered harissa my recipe - dried red chillies, powdered saffrron, coriander, mint, cumin, caraway, orange peel and garlic.

Blood orange sauce - juice of 2 blood oranges with 2 tablespoons of sugar simmer reduce to 1/4, add 1/2 teaspoon of balsamic vingear adjust seasoning to have a balance of sweet and sour.


Notes:-
Mascarpone – this is simple but it really does take 15 mins of gentle heating and stirring to get to 190F I used a candy thermometer. Adding the lime juice just thickens the cream slightly and draining overnight in the fridge firms it up to the correct consistency.
Zabaglione – this is so delicious I could just eat this and not worry about the rest of the challenge. Again gentle heating and constant stirring gives you a wondrously thick yet light custard great recipe.
Pastry cream – not as tasty or as rich as the zabaglione also it takes longer but it is very light and full of bubbles which remain when left overnight.
Making the tiramisu – it is much better to have an even layer of savoiardis without holes which helps the completed tiramisù maintain a better shape. The filling sets only to 'soft firm' which is what you want but makes it almost impossible to cut cleanly.

Exotic pick-me-up tiramisù

I thought I would some very refreshing tiramisù since it is a pick-me-up!

The four different tiramisù waiting to be refrigerated for 24 hours



Persian date tiramisù – Cardamom/cumin/vegemite coffee infused dates, soak the biscuits in coconut cream with powdered chilli, flavour the cream with saffron and mint. Top with moist coconut flakes. The dates are so soft and add a lovely look to the tiramisù, and the overnight soaking of the dates in the salty spicy coffee really adds a great contrast to the sweet filling.



Italian lemon tiramisù – Preserved lemon and candied citrus, finely cut up ½ preserved lemon (you need a lot to contrast with the sweet filling) add to the cream filling, soak the biscuit in lemon liquor. The salty preserved lemons adds a lovely zing to this tiramisù. Serve with blood orange sauce you can see the sauce near the bottom of the photo yum yum.



Arabian Evening tiramisù – Soured cherry preserves in the filling and and the pomegranate sauce on top has chilli, mint and vanilla bean. Soak the biscuits in hot honey with some rose water. Heavenly for people in love.



Eye-popping Egyptian Jaffa (Orange and bitter chocolate) tiramisù- make neon-orange jelly (jello) and use orange rinds without the fruit to make the jelly oranges for the topping. Bitter chocolate flavoured cream (the more bitter the chocolate the better) with orange liquor soaked biscuits.



Collage - starting at the top-left-hand corner going clockwise - Persian date, Italian lemon, Arabian Evening and Egyptian Jaffa


RECIPE SOURCE:

Mascarpone Cheese – Vera’s Recipe (Baking Obsession) for Homemade Mascarpone Cheese.
Savoiardi/ Ladyfinger Biscuits – Recipe from Cordon Bleu At Home
Tiramisu – Carminantonio's Tiramisu from The Washington Post, July 11 2007

LADYFINGERS/ SAVOIARDI BISCUITS
(Source: Recipe from Cordon Bleu At Home)
This recipe makes approximately 24 big ladyfingers or 45 small (2 1/2" to 3" long) ladyfingers.

Ingredients:
3 eggs, separated
6 tablespoons /75gms granulated sugar
3/4 cup/95gms cake flour, sifted (or 3/4 cup all purpose flour + 2 tbsp corn starch)
6 tablespoons /50gms confectioner's sugar,

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 F (175 C) degrees, then lightly brush 2 baking sheets with oil or softened butter and line with parchment paper.
Beat the egg whites using a hand held electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Gradually add granulate sugar and continue beating until the egg whites become stiff again, glossy and smooth.
In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks lightly with a fork and fold them into the meringue, using a wooden spoon. Sift the flour over this mixture and fold gently until just mixed. It is important to fold very gently and not overdo the folding. Otherwise the batter would deflate and lose volume resulting in ladyfingers which are flat and not spongy.
Fit a pastry bag with a plain tip (or just snip the end off; you could also use a Ziploc bag) and fill with the batter. Pipe the batter into 5" long and 3/4" wide strips leaving about 1" space in between the strips.
Sprinkle half the confectioner's sugar over the ladyfingers and wait for 5 minutes. The sugar will pearl or look wet and glisten. Now sprinkle the remaining sugar. This helps to give the ladyfingers their characteristic crispness.
Hold the parchment paper in place with your thumb and lift one side of the baking sheet and gently tap it on the work surface to remove excess sprinkled sugar.
Bake the ladyfingers for 10 minutes, then rotate the sheets and bake for another 5 minutes or so until the puff up, turn lightly golden brown and are still soft.
Allow them to cool slightly on the sheets for about 5 minutes and then remove the ladyfingers from the baking sheet with a metal spatula while still hot, and cool on a rack.
Store them in an airtight container till required. They should keep for 2 to 3 weeks.

MASCARPONE CHEESE

(Source: Vera’s Recipe for Homemade Mascarpone Cheese)
This recipe makes 12oz/ 340gm of mascarpone cheese

Ingredients:
500 ml whipping (36 %) pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized), preferably organic cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Method:

Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the skillet. Heat the cream, stirring often, to 190 F. If you do not have a thermometer, wait until small bubbles keep trying to push up to the surface.
It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating. Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. Do not expect the same action as you see during ricotta cheese making. All that the whipping cream will do is become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours.
Vera’s notes: The first time I made mascarpone I had all doubts if it’d been cooked enough, because of its custard-like texture. Have no fear, it will firm up beautifully in the fridge, and will yet remain lusciously creamy.
Keep refrigerated and use within 3 to 4 days.

Tiramisù

(Recipe source: Carminantonio's Tiramisù from The Washington Post, July 11 2007 )
This recipe makes 6 servings

Ingredients:
For the zabaglione:
2 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar/50gms
1/4 cup/60ml Marsala wine (or port or coffee)
1/4 teaspoon/ 1.25ml vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

For the vanilla pastry cream:
1/4 cup/55gms sugar
1 tablespoon/8gms all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5ml vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup/175ml whole milk

For the whipped cream:
1 cup/235ml chilled heavy cream (we used 25%)
1/4 cup/55gms sugar
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5ml vanilla extract

To assemble the tiramisù:
2 cups/470ml brewed espresso, warmed
1 teaspoon/5ml rum extract (optional)
1/2 cup/110gms sugar
1/3 cup/75gms mascarpone cheese
36 savoiardi/ ladyfinger biscuits (you may use less)
2 tablespoons/30gms unsweetened cocoa powder

Method:
For the zabaglione:
Heat water in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a pot with about an inch of water in it on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl in the pot making sure the bottom does not touch the water.
In a large mixing bowl (or stainless steel mixing bowl), mix together the egg yolks, sugar, the Marsala (or espresso/ coffee), vanilla extract and lemon zest. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture looks smooth.
Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler or place your bowl over the pan/ pot with simmering water. Cook the egg mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 8 minutes or until it resembles thick custard. It may bubble a bit as it reaches that consistency.
Let cool to room temperature and transfer the zabaglione to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the pastry cream:
Mix together the sugar, flour, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. To this add the egg yolk and half the milk. Whisk until smooth.
Now place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from curdling.
Add the remaining milk a little at a time, still stirring constantly. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, free of lumps and beginning to bubble. (If you have a few lumps, don’t worry. You can push the cream through a fine-mesh strainer.)
Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the whipped cream:
Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer or immersion blender until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside.

To assemble the tiramisù:
Have ready a rectangular serving dish (about 8" by 8" should do) or one of your choice.
Mix together the warm espresso, rum extract and sugar in a shallow dish, whisking to mix well. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese with a spoon to break down the lumps and make it smooth. This will make it easier to fold. Add the prepared and chilled zabaglione and pastry cream, blending until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set this cream mixture aside.

Now to start assembling the tiramisu.
Workings quickly, dip 12 of the ladyfingers in the sweetened espresso, about 1 second per side. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the platter, placing them side by side in a single row. You may break a lady finger into two, if necessary, to ensure the base of your dish is completely covered.
Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover the top evenly, all the way to the edges.
Repeat to create 2 more layers, using 12 ladyfingers and the cream mixture for each layer. Clean any spilled cream mixture; cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate the tiramisu overnight.
To serve, carefully remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the tiramisu with cocoa powder using a fine-mesh strainer or decorate as you please. Cut into individual portions and serve.