Tiramisu

In Italian, it means: pick me up; or pull me up. Originally a semifreddo dessert made from ladyfinger biscuits, cocoa, mascarpone cheese, Marsala wine, eggs, sugar and espresso coffee. (Semifreddo is Italian for "half cold" and in culinary terms it refers to any of various chilled or partially frozen desserts.) Within the last few years, I’ve seen tiramisu recipes that don’t completely fit this definition (i.e., they are made with other than espresso and chocolate).

Pat and I were on a business trip in the spring of 2007 in New York. Pat had a touch of the flu, but we were exploring the town of Fishkill as best we could. At a little Italian restaurant called Locanda, they were serving Lemoncello Tiramisu. We had to leave quickly so we didn’t get to try any, but it intrigued me to the point that I decided to develop our own recipe.

Some of the ground rules were: 1) It had to be refreshing. 2) It needed to be identifiable as a tiramisu (i.e., semifreddo using mascarpone and ladyfingers). 3) Non alcolholic so that the grandkids could try it too.

First problem: what can give a rich lemon flavor with out the alcohol in lemoncello? The juice from four fresh lemons, the zest of a half of a lemon, and 1/3 of a cup of granulated sugar were mixed with an 8 ounce container of the mascarpone. While researching tiramisu, I saw that an egg yoke was often added to the cheese mixtures to help it set better, so one was added to the mixture.

The result was promising, but there was too much juice, so it was cut back to two lemons. Also , using frozen lemonade mix would also remove the work of dissolving the sugar. Batches were made using varying amounts of lemonade concentrate. When added to the mascarpone with the lemon zest and an egg yolk, it was virtually indistinguishable from the fresh lemon juice and sugar version. (Purists can still use the fresh lemon juice and sugar!)

Similar experimentation was done to find a good mixture to soak the ladyfingers. (Again, purists can still use the fresh lemon juice - 2 lemons,  sugar - 1/3 cup, and 1/3 cup of water.) The result is below

LEMON TIRAMISU

INGREDIENTS: 8 oz of mascarpone cheese; 8 – 10 lady fingers; 6 oz can of frozen lemonade concentrate; 1 egg yolk; ½ pint of whipping cream; 1 tsp. vanilla extract; ¼ C. of confectioner’s sugar; zest of 1 lemon.

FILLING: Allow the lemonade concentrate to thaw out; then mix the mascarpone with ½ of the can of lemonade concentrate, ½ of the lemon zest and the egg yolk until it is smooth and consistent.

RECIPE: Line a plastic container (a 3 - 4” square that’s 1 ½ - 2” deep works the best) with wax paper. Neatly fold the wax paper at the corners. Mix the left over lemonade concentrate with ½ can of water. Dip the lady fingers in the lemonade mixture and line the bottom of the container (should be 4 or 5). Add ½ of the filling and dip the rest of the lady fingers and layer them. Add the rest of the filling and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight is better).

Mix the whipping cream, vanilla and confectioner’s sugar together and whip until the mixture holds a peak. Carefully invert the container on to a serving plate and remove the wax paper. Evenly cover with the whipped cream, and garnish with the rest of the lemon zest. Slice and serve.

VARIATIONS: Double the ingredients and make in a loaf pan (the picture is a double batch); or, for a further touch of Italy, dip the lady fingers in a mixture of 1 teaspoon of the lemonade concentrate, 4 teaspoons of water, and 4 tablespoons of Lemoncello Liqueur.

NUMBER OF SERVINGS: 6 to 8

PREPARATION TIME: 30 minutes plus setting.

This is a refreshing summer dessert that lives up to its name.
 

How to Build a Recipe

I haven't written very many original recipes. Actually only two or three that I can think of. I actually like writing recipes though, so I going to do more of them.

The first thing you need is a premise. The first recipe that I wrote was for Barbequing spareribs. I wanted to enter the ribs into a "burn-off" like the one they have annually in Cleveland OH.

So I started researching the dish. I looked in several cook books and watched some PBS cooking shows. When the process was understood, I started looking for ways it could be customized to make my process original or at least identifiably my own, the way that would make the ribs mine.

I read about the "secret ingredients" - swamp water, rendered pork fat, combinations of spices and herbs, etc. I decided against using any of these in favor of straight forward flavors - clean and simple.

Finally, I wrote up the recipe and made my first batch. It was very well received, but I immediately started tweaking the ingredients.

I heard about other methods to achieve even better flavor, or optimum tenderness, so I went into the experimentation phase. I finally hit upon the combination that made my ribs good, and distinctively mine.

I have given out my rib recipe to quite a few people, and they say that they've done pretty well with it. Most people just say that it looks like a lot of work. Maybe it is, but I think the results are worth it.

I'm sorry that I haven't entered it into any contest, but that seems to be the really hard part. Where are the qualifiying contests and how does one enter them? This is what I need to find out.

I'm working on a new rib recipe to lower the sodium level in the ribs - Hypertension isn't any fun at all. Back to the experiments - I'll let you know when its' done.

We're Blogging Now!

I'm starting this because I'm tired of hearing about how much harm everyone is doing to their bodies by eating meat! And I'm tired of listening to people who have no business expressing their opinions outside of their therapist's office writing things as if they were fact.

I envision this as being a forum for me to diseminate my opinion and to pass on experience to all (or, more likely, none). I'm going to include recipes that I've made up or that make sense to me. I'm going to include my opinions on anything that "trips my trigger" at the time.

You are welcome to comment on anything and everything - just remember that this is MY blog and I get to control the content - including which comments get posted. I also plan not to say anything in anyway that I wouldn't want my grandaughters to hear - be aware of that when you comment please.