Tiramisu

Tiramisu is a well known Italian dessert that consists of lady fingers dipped in coffee and layered cream made from eggs, mascarpone cheese and sugar. The original recipe has been adapted in many different cakes and desserts.

My husband absolutely loves Tiramisu and it's funny because he hates coffee. I on the other hand love coffee and also coffee flavored desserts. I wanted to make a special dessert using the traditional flavors of Tiramisu. I decided to make mascarpone mousse and a liquid coffee center that would ooze out of the mascarpone sphere. Making the sphere turned out very tricky especially at the assembly. It took a lot of nerves to put two hemispheres together while frozen, but it was worth the effort at the end.

I also made a simple cookie for the base to put my sphere on. You can use leftover sponge cake or any flat cookie you have.
The final element was a warm sauce, basically a sabayon sauce. It's made from egg yolks and sugar, you can also add Marsala wine. The sauce is light and fluffy, a perfect combination with mascarpone cheese.

At the end I was happy with the look and the taste of my Tiramisu. The look could be more polished and the "seam" between the two hemispheres should be less visible but for my first try I was happy.

Tiramisu

(Makes 3 spheres)

Time:

Preparation: 1,5 hour

Cooking: 30min

Baking: 15min

Setting: overnight

For the mascarpone-coffee mousse:

• 120g mascarpone cheese
• 120g heavy cream
• 40g egg yolks (2 eggs)
• 50g white granulated sugar
• 4g gelatin leafs
• 2 teaspoons instant coffee

For the liquid coffee center:

• 10g heavy cream
• 5g cocoa powder
• 7g glucose syrup
• 7g water
• 2 teaspoons instant coffee

For the shortbread cookie (makes a lot):

• 130g all purpose flour
• 35g icing sugar
• 113g cold butter (cut into chunks)
• a pinch of salt

For the sabayon sauce:

• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tablespoon white granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon Marsala wine (optional)

For the white chocolate glaze:

• 135g white chocolate
• 1 gelatin sheet
• 85g heavy cream
• 20g water
• 15g glucose syrup
• 12g vegetable oil

Making the liquid coffee center:

Mix and pour all ingredients together in a small pot. Bring to the boil and pour in a jug. 

Pour mixture in small hemisphere molds, cover with foil and freeze overnight.

Making mascarpone-coffee spheres:
Soak gelatin in cold water.
Whisk together egg yolks and sugar in a small bowl. Place over a large pot with water and cook the yolks until hot and double in size constantly whisking. Make sure the egg yolks are hot before you put the gelatin in and stir to dissolve. Dissolve instant coffee in a teaspoon of water, and to the mixture and whisk.
In a separate bowl whisk mascarpone until soft then add it to the egg mixture. Cool to room temperature.

Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and incorporate it gently to the yolk and mascarpone mixture. Pour the mixture into silicon hemisphere molds. Insert the frozen coffee liquid center into each hemisphere. 

Cover with foil and freeze overnight.

Making the shortbread cookie:

Place the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and process to combine. Add the cold butter and pulse until the pastry looks like coarse bread crumbs. Transfer the pastry to a floured surface and knead until it comes together (try not to knead to much). Shape the pastry into a disc and wrap in plastic foil. Place in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.

Roll out and cut circular shapes.
Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden. Set aside to cool completely.

Making the white chocolate glaze:

Place the gelatin sheet in a bowl of cold water.
Chop the white chocolate and melt it over a bowl of simmering water. Pour the heavy cream, glucose, water and oil into a pot and bring to a boil.

Place the mixture off the heat and stir in the soaked gelatin. Pour the hot mixture over the melted chocolate and stir to combine.

Pour the glaze into a measuring cup and set aside to cool.

Making the sabayon sauce:

Place together egg yolks, Masala wine and sugar in a medium sized bowl. Place over a pot with hot water and cook while whisking constantly until pale and double in size. Place in an airtight container until ready to use.

   

Assembly:

Take a small pot and heat the bottom of it.

Unmold the mascarpone hemispheres and place each on the hot pot then press them together and smooth it out until you have a nice sphere. Place it on a wire rack over a large bowl and glaze with white chocolate glaze. Use a toothpick to transfer the sphere from the rack to the plate. 

Pour a little of the sabayon sauce on a plate, place a cookie and on top of the cookie place the mascarpone sphere. Place in the fridge to thaw completely.

Once thawed garnish with cocoa powder, chocolate and serve.