Can it be that there are no bad cooks in Italy and Sicily? Or maybe there are only a few really good cooks, while the rest aren't so much mediocre as simply ordinary. But it's the children of the really good cooks who end up on TV cooking shows and in magazines and writing cookbooks, much like Nick Stellino's Family Kitchen, that skew what's real. Nick Stellino has made a living in print and on TV selling the Italian family table
We all have times in our lives when everything seems to be going our way This recipe represents for me one of those times. I prepared a tiramisu for Oprah Winfrey to serve at one of her Book Club dinners. She loved it, and so did the three hundred people in her audience. So I say: Thank you, Oprah, for a wonderful moment in my life. You'll need to make this early on the day you intend to serve it, or the day before.
Serves 8 to 10
2 1/2 cups espresso or strong coffee, cooled
1/2 cup coffee liqueur
2 (17.6-ounce) packages ladyfingers (72 cookies)
9 eggs, separated
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 pounds mascarpone cheese
1 cup finely chopped semisweet chocolate morsels (8 ounces)
1/2 cup sweet cocoa powder
Mix the coffee and liqueur in a large bowl. Dip in the ladyfingers in batches. Don't leave them in for too long; you want them to be moist on the outside but crunchy on the inside.
Beat the egg yolks with half of the sugar until the mixture is thick enough to form a long ribbon when you lift the beaters. (If you are concerned about using raw eggs, once you have beaten the yolks cook them in the top portion of a double boiler over high heat, whisking constantly, until they reach the thickness of a custard, 3 to 5 minutes. Be careful not to overcook them, or you'll end up with sweet scrambled eggs. Proceed with the recipe once they're cooked.) Add the vanilla and mascarpone, and beat for 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.
Beat the egg whites, adding the remaining sugar a little at a time, until they form stiff peaks and have a glossy sheen, about 4 minutes. Gently fold the egg whites into the mascarpone mixture until it is all the same color. Gently fold in the chocolate.
In a 9xl7-inch glass baking dish, assemble the dessert: Layer the bottom of the pan with the moist ladyfingers, and top with a layer of the mascarpone mixture. Repeat with another layer of ladyfingers and a layer of the mascarpone mixture (see tip below). With a flour sifter, sprinkle a thin layer of sweet cocoa powder over the top. Refrigerate the tiramisu, for at least 5 hours, or preferably overnight.
Chef's Tip You might find there's enough of the mascarpone mixture left over to make another, smaller tiramisu. This usually never happens to me, because I'm always tasting to make sure the sugar and chocolate are right, so by the time I assemble the tiramisu in the baking dish, there's only just enough of the mixture for the one dish. Don't laugh-it may happen to you, too!
