The Tiramisu Twist:

How many of you have had or heard of this classic Italian dessert? The word Tirami su in Italian literally means "cheer me up". Now if that isn't enough reason to make it, this is also a no fuss version that does not have eggs and takes less than 10 minutes to create thereby making it one of the simplest exquisite desserts that I love to prepare. This no bake recipe is made up of alternate layers of coffee soaked spongy ladyfingers and mascarpone cream. It can be made ahead of time, stays for up to a week and actually tastes better with every passing day. I think I have managed to talk you into trying this one out soon.

TIRAMISU

Servings: Serves 6-8

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time:10 mins

Ingredients:

◻ 2 tbsp instant coffee/espresso

◻ 1 cup boiling water

◻ 2 tbsp rum/ marsala/kahlua (optional)

◻ 1 cup Heavy whipping cream

◻ ½ cup sugar

◻ 1 tbsp vanilla extract

◻ 240 gms Mascarpone cheese/Cream cheese(room temperature)

◻ 1 pack of Ladyfinger biscuits (can be found in the cookie isle in grocery store or online)

Preparation:

1. Take a glass bowl and the beater of the hand mixer and cool it in the fridge for 10-15 minutes. Keep the mascarpone/ cream cheese out at this time.

2. Take 2 tbsp coffee powder in a bowl and add 1 cup of boiling water to it, stir gently until well dissolved, add 2 tbsp rum/ marsala (this is optional). Allow it to cool completely. You could also keep it into the fridge/freezer to quicken the cooling process.

3. Add the heavy whipping cream into the cool glass bowl, add ½ cup of sugar and whip until you get stiff peaks(4-5 minutes).Take the mascarpone/cream cheese, vanilla essence in another bowl and mix it just until creamy(around 30 seconds), do not overmix it or it may get grainy. Now fold in the whipped cream into the mascarpone cream with the rubber spatula until soft, fluffy and combined.

4. Make sure you dunk the ladyfingers quickly without making it soggy (key step) in the cooled coffee syrup and arrange it in the serving bowl (I used a 9×5 inch rectangle dish) with the rounded side facing up, the biscuits can be cut to fit along the shape of the serving bowl, add a few dollops of the cream mousse and alternate the layers with the cream mouse right on top. I used a piping bag to pipe in a layer of the mascarpone cream to make it look fancy.

5. Cover it with a cling film and chill the desert overnight or for a minimum of 4-6 hours to be able to get perfect slices.

6. Dust the dessert with a dense layer of unsweetened cocoa powder through a sieve just before serving.

P.S: Ladyfingers(Savoiardi in Italian) are finger shaped sponge cookies that can also be made at home, they are the main ingredient to many trifles and desserts. They soak up a lot of liquid, so make sure you give it a really quick dunk in the coffee. For those who do not find lady finger biscuits, you can substitute it with angel food cake/ pound cake, cut it into 4 inch oblong slices and dry it in the oven for 10 minutes to get the biscuit consistency. Mascarpone cheese gives the Tiramisu its unique flavor, it is comparatively higher in fat and can be substituted with cream cheese for those who are cautious about indulging or if unavailable at a store near you . This is traditionally an adult dessert made with raw eggs and alcohol, but since I have little children who would line up for every sweet treat, this is my simple " good for all" recipe. Once you have mastered this recipe, you can also experiment it with a chocolate mascarpone cream(Chocolate Tiramisu) or berry sauce dipped ladyfingers (Berry Tiramisu) and give a twist to this classic flavor.

A little bit of flour, a sprinkle of sugar and tons of love...