6 servings

I named this tiramisu after my dear friend, lovely Giulia, from Modena, who gave me the recipe. The first time was a failure. Mascarpone I used was not a good quality. I also mixed it with a mixer – a gross mistake! Otherwise, the dessert is very easy to prepare, tasty and aromatic. Follow a few simple guidelines and you will achieve the result desired. I would say that once you try this tiramisu – you will not need anything else!

Products:

200-300 g ladyfingers (biscotti) – have more, just in case, different brands have different density, which affects the absorption

600 g mascarpone

6 large eggs

6 tbsps sugar

1 cup (or 1 and ½ cup) strong black coffee (espresso)

almond essence/liqueur to taste

vanilla optionally (sometimes I put in mascarpone)

cocoa powder for sprinkling

Preparation:

In a bowl, slowly beat the yolks with sugar, using a mixer, till it becomes a very thick cream (stir slowly; wait until yolks increase in volume several times).

In another bowl (absolutely clean and dry), mix the egg whites with a slow speed mixer to obtain a fluffy, smooth mixture. The fins of the mixer must also be clean and dry. After mixing, make sure there is no liquid at the bottom of the bowl (from the egg whites). If this happens (it is quite possible if you are a beginner) … don’t worry! Pour it out carefully, you will use the fluffy egg whites.

To the mixed egg yolks, add the mascarpone (with vanilla) and mix them carefully by hand to keep the airy consistency. To this mixture, add the egg whites in parts. Again, I do not use a mixer, but I mix slowly, gradually by hand. The result is a fantastic, fluffy cream.

Flavor the coffee with essence/liqueur. Pour it into a large bowl.

I put the biscotti on both sides in the coffee (slightly chilled), just for a second and place them in a suitable rectangular tray with a high board. The bottom of the tray should be covered with biscotti.

At the top, I put a layer of the cream. I spread it everywhere. I lay on it a new layer of the wetted biscotti, and so on and so on. The order and number of layers depends on the size and shape of the tray. I finish with a cream and sprinkle abundantly with cocoa powder.

Dessert stays in a refrigerator for 12 hours to let the aromas mix and biscotti absorb the cream well.

Cut into squares.