Tiramisu – This dessert will cheer you up

I received an email from a reader requesting information on how to prepare tiramisu at home.

She also told me that she couldn’t find an essential ingredient anywhere: Marsala. To respond to Grace’s query, I have decided to devote an article on this delicious dessert called Tiramisu.

Tiramisu is a dessert of Italian origin. It generally means “pick me up”, and not only does a serving of tiramisu cheer you up, but once you taste it, you want more.

Tiramisu is typically made using finger biscuits dipped in coffee, layered with a whipped mixture of egg yolks and mascarpone cheese, flavoured with liquor, and dusted with cocoa.

Main ingredients:

1. Ladyfingers are light and sweet sponge cakes shaped like a large finger. They are readily available at most leading supermarkets or Italian food stores in Kenya.

2. Mascarpone is an Italian cheese made from cream, coagulated with citric acid or acetic acid. It is milky-white and is easily spread.

3. The liquor used to soak the finger biscuits is traditionally Marsala wine, a fortified wine from the city of Marsala, Sicily. It is a sweet, heavy wine that is used in cooking and to drink as one would port or Madeira.

If you can’t get your hands on Marsala wine, you can use dark rum, a sherry, or a port. If you like the taste of coffee liquor like Tia Maria or Kahlua, then you can add that, but it will alter the taste of the tiramisu altogether, which is not a bad thing. For those who prefer to have their desserts without alcohol, leave out the liquor.

How to make tiramisu

Ingredients (serves 6)

500g mascarpone cheese

2 tbsp caster sugar

400mls freshly brewed strong coffee, cooled (Italians use espresso)

2 tbsp Marsala or Tia Maria or Kahlua (optional)

250g sponge finger biscuits
1 tbsp cocoa powder (or 80g good-quality dark chocolate, grated, see below)

Method:

1. Beat the mascarpone and caster sugar in a medium mixing bowl with an electric beater until soft. Set aside.