Tuesday, February 7, 2023

Tiramisu for your Valentine #ValentinesDay #recipe by @LeslieBudewitz

LESLIE BUDEWITZ: I adore Italian food. And what’s not to love about butter, sugar, mascarpone, coffee, and chocolate? But I admit, I’d never really liked tiramisu. Not until last fall when we spent a few days in Florence, Italy with my brother and SIL, and took a cooking class. On the menu: individual tiramisu. Tiramisus? Either way, I’m a convert. (Also on the menu: eggplant appetizers, gnocchi, ragu, and chicken a la modenese, served with a lovely chianti. Stay tuned!)

We made dessert first because it needs to chill. As the person at our worktable who accidentally got a bit of yolk into the egg whites, Mr. Right was handed the electric mixer and ordered to whip the whites. (After the chef instructor fished out the stray bit of yolk with a spoon.) He excelled. When the chef returned to our group, he peered at the bowl, then Mr. Right, then turned the bowl upside down. The two British teenagers gasped, but the sparkle in his eye needed no translation: the chef knew – as did the adults – that the whipped whites were going nowhere.

Then one of the British girls stuck her finger in one she made so she would get to eat it. We all obliged. 

But the written recipe we were given – well, let’s just say things were lost in translation. Poor us, we had to experiment so you could join the fun. No shoes or passport needed. 

We had no trouble finding lady fingers in our small grocery, Alessi “Biscotti Savoiardi,” imported from Italy. For the coffee, save a cup from your morning pot or use instant espresso as we did.

What to serve them in? The cooking school had the perfect ramekins, but we decided ours were too small, and we wanted clear glass to show off the dessert. We used two versions: 1 cup prep bowls and squat ½ pint canning jars. Both came with lids for leftovers, a bonus, and both worked equally well. 

Tiramisu is served in many varieties, some drier, some more cake-like. No matter. This one is easy and yummy. Make it for yourself, your Valentine, or your book club and everyone will love you. 

Buon appetivo!

Making a special dinner for Valentine's Day? Going out? (It can be a tough day for some folks. Know that we love you and are glad you're here.)   

Tiramisu

3 large eggs, separated

scant 1/3 cup granulated sugar

pinch of salt 

8 ounces mascarpone, softened at room temperature

6 lady finger cookies

1 cup cold, strong coffee or espresso

cocoa powder

Separate the eggs, putting the whites in your mixer bowl and the yolks in a medium bowl. Add two tablespoons of the sugar and a pinch of salt to the whites and whip to stiff peaks, about 3 minutes. 

Add the remaining sugar to the egg yolks and whisk until combined. The mixture will be a beautiful lemon yellow. Add the mascarpone and whisk or stir quickly, until most, if not all, the lumps are stirred in. With a spatula, fold in a spoonful of the egg whites, then add the remaining whites and fold, scraping up from the bottom of the bowl with the spatula, until whites are fully incorporated. 

Put a tablespoon or more of the mascarpone cream in the bottom of each serving dish. Pour the cold coffee into a small bowl. Break a cookie in half and dip the pieces in the coffee – don’t soak them -- then lay both pieces in the bottom of your serving cup or bowl. Top with the rest of the mascarpone cream.

Use a tea strainer or spoon to dust the top of each cup with cocoa powder.

Chill at least two hours before serving. If you’d like, top with mint leaves or a berry, or serve another cookie alongside the tiramisu. 












Makes 6 individual servings. 



From the cover of BLIND FAITH, written as Alicia Beckman (in hardcover, ebook, and audio from Crooked Lane Books, October 2022)  

Long-buried secrets come back with a vengeance in a cold case gone red-hot in Agatha Award-winning author Alicia Beckman’s second novel, perfect for fans of Laura Lippman and Greer Hendricks.

Two women whose paths crossed in Montana years ago discover they share keys to a deadly secret that exposes a killer—and changes everything they thought they knew about themselves. 






Leslie Budewitz is the author of the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries and the Spice Shop Mysteries, continuing in July 2022 with Peppermint Barked. She's the winner of Agatha Awards in three categories. Death al Dente, the first Food Lovers' Village Mystery, won Best First Novel in 2013, following her 2011 win in Best Nonfiction. Her first historical short story, "All God's Sparrows," won the 2018 Agatha Award for Best Short Story. As Alicia Beckman, she writes standalone suspense, beginning with Bitterroot Lake (2021) and continuing with Blind Faith (October 2022, Crooked Lane Books).

A past president of Sisters in Crime and a current board member of Mystery Writers of America, she lives in northwest Montana with her husband, a musician and doctor of natural medicine, and their cat, an avid bird-watcher.

Swing by her website and subscribe to her seasonal newsletter, for a chat about the writing life, what she's working on, and  what she's reading -- and a free short story. And join her on Facebook where she shares book news and giveaways from her writer friends, and talks about food, mysteries, and the things that inspire her.




15 comments:

  1. Oh, I does sound yummy! Thank you for the recipe which is a keeper.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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    1. Plus, mascarpone comes in 1 pound containers, so you HAVE to make this twice!

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  2. I like the glass containers too. Tiramisu is too pretty for a ramekin!

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  3. I love Tiramisu and didn't know how to make thank you so much for posting hubby is going to make dinner nothing special maybe some lobster if I get my way ...peggy clayton ptclayton2 @ aol.com

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  4. A FB comment expressed surprise at the lack of liquor. You could easily spike the coffee with a dash of liqueur -- Kahlua, Amaretto, Anisette, or Grand Marnier would all be lovely.

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  5. As the FB commentor mentioned, tiramisu often has liqueur in it.
    I thought it also had more chocolate in it.
    Maybe that is my love of chocolate speaking!

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    1. If raw eggs make you nervous, there are alternatives like this one with whipped cream. https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/easy-tiramisu/

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    2. Lots of variations. And yes, some do cook the eggs.

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  6. Tiramisu is one of my daughter's favorite desserts.

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  7. This sounds so quick and easy and I love the fact that there is at least some sort of portion control.

    BTW, Blind Faith was one of those books I just couldn't put down!

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    1. LOL -- yes, much better than having a big bowl of mousse you can just keep dipping into! And thanks for the kind words about Blind Faith!

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