Francesco Zanchetta's tiramisu

Dessert: serves 6, Total time: 1hour plus overnight chilling

Simon Hopkinson
Wednesday 09 May 2001 00:00 BST
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For the creamy bit

For the biscuit bit

1

Tiramisu is best prepared the night before, so that the "cream" binds better with the biscuits. Make a zabaglione (or sabayon) by whisking the egg yolks and whole egg, white wine, Marsala and Amaretto in a stainless-steel bowl suspended over a pot of simmering water, kept ticking over on a low heat. Continue whisking in this fashion until the mixture starts to become very thick. Once it is firm and fluffy, remove the bowl from the pan but continue whisking regardless for a few more minutes. Now add the sugar, which should melt very quickly, thus cooling the zabaglione before incorporating the mascarpone. Gently fold in the cheese with the espresso powder, and then finally beat everything together fast for a minute or so, to both lighten and fully smooth the "cream". Keep the mixture cool.

For dipping the biscuits, first mix together the espresso coffees, the sugar and Marsala in a bowl large enough to soak the biscuits. Dip a couple of them in at a time until they are moist but not breaking up; this is best achieved by having the coffee good and hot, so it soaks in more quickly. The biscuits should be soft, rather than sodden. Cover the base of a large, shallow rectangular dish or Tupperware container with a layer of biscuits, all placed tightly together in the same direction. Pour over half of the "cream" and then add a second layer of biscuits, but this time place them at right angles to those underneath (this helps to prevent the tiramisu falling apart when serving). Cover with the remaining cream and dust thickly with cocoa powder. Cover and chill overnight in the fridge.

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