Tiramisu {w/o coffee}

Mmmm... Tiramisu!   Have you ever had Tiramisu before? Tiramisu is a gorgeous decadent Italian dessert that literally means cheer me up!  And let me tell you this is SO good it will certainly cheer you up!  It is originally made with coffee and raw eggs but since I don't drink coffee and prefer not to eat raw eggs this recipe is made with hot chocolate instead and no raw eggs.

Tiramisu is a layered dessert of lady fingers soaked quickly in coffee (I used hot chocolate) then a layer of cream which in this recipe, consist of whipping cream, a little egg yolk custard and mascarpone cheese. Mascarpone cheese is a rich Italian cheese. It's like cream cheese but much better and fancier.  It is a little pricey though. This recipe calls for 2 cups but if you want to save on money 1 cup is just fine to use.  I tasted it after adding one cup(which is typically the same as one container) and it was still amazing. With 2 you just get more of the mascarpone flavor.

I have been wanting to make this for months now to surprise my husband. As I've mentioned before he spent 2 years in Italy and loves Tiramisu!  I ended up making it for him last week as we celebrated our 4 year anniversary! He was so excited and said it was the best he's had since he's been home. 

Last Friday was my sister-in-law's wedding day and in between events we shared some of this with my in-laws. They were all pretty impressed with it and amazed but how incredibly good it was!  The best part is it's fairly simple to make.  Here is how it's layered:

 *Note: I didn't have enough lady fingers so I used a smaller dish but this recipe calls for a 9x13 so when you make this your ladyfingers will fit a little nicer than mine did.

1 & 2- Lady Fingers are dipped in hot chocolate very quickly then lined up in a dish.
3- Half of the mascarpone cream mixture is spread on top.
4- Sprinkle on cocoa powder.
And repeat one more time!

When you  bite into it you will be amazed at the flavors! The crisp and sugary lady fingers soften up and taste cake like, the layers of mascarpone cheese and cream are rich and creamy.  The mascarpone adds a unique flavor.  Then on top of those tastes you get a hint of chocolate from the cocoa powder and chocolate curls. 

Tiramisu {w/o coffee}

Recipe adapted from Guy Fieri (Food Network)

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups hot chocolate

3 egg yolks

1 ¾ cup whipping cream, divided

½ cup sugar

2 cups mascarpone cheese

36-42 Italian-style hard lady finger biscuits

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, divided

¼ cup shaved bittersweet (or dark) chocolate

Directions:

Prepare the hot chocolate in a bowl or shallow baking dish and set aside.

Bring a small saucepan with 2 inches of water to a boil over medium high heat.  In a small heatproof bowl that will fit on top of the saucepan, or in a double boiler, combine the egg yolks and ½ cup of the whipping cream.  Place over the hot water and whisk continuously until the mixture is 160 F and coats the back of a spoon, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk for 3 to 4 minutes to cool.  Set aside to cool completely, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

In a *stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add the remaining whipping cream, prepared yolk mixture, and sugar and beat until soft peaks form, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the mascarpone and combine well.

Place 1 layer of the ladyfingers in a 9x13 inch pan, then dip both sides of the lady fingers into the hot chocolate mixture and place back into the pan. Spread half of the mascarpone mixture over the cookies, sprinkle with half of the cocoa powder. Repeat with another layer.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours.

Shave the chocolate over the top for garnish and cut with a sharp knife into squares. (I did this by placing a block of chocolate in the microwave for 10 seconds to soften it up and just used a vegetable peeler to make the curls.)

Serve and enjoy!

*You can use a hand mixer if you don't have a stand mixer.