By: Valerie
Cakes and Cupcakes, , ,

Tiramisu Torte

Yield: one 9-inch torte
Recipe: 158/200
“Back to Baking”, pp. 172

    This is another one of the few recipes in the book that I flipped over many many times because of how intricate it appeared. I finally stopped putting it off in all honesty because I lost a bet with a colleague. The loser of this bet would have to cook or bake something of the winner’s choosing. My colleague chose a tiramisu, so that’s what I did! This was an interesting recipe to attempt, because not only have I never even had a tiramisu let alone made one, but I don’t like coffee so this is not a dessert that I would particularly enjoy myself. Nonetheless, I was excited to have a golden opportunity to finally make this classic dessert, with an Anna twist as it is a tiramisu torte rather than your typical tiramisu. The main difference is that the ladyfingers in this dessert surround the cake as opposed to forming a distinct layer within. I brought back a couple of bites for my husband to try and he said that it was amazingly delicious, so since I had some mascarpone cheese left I decided to make him a smaller, personal one. He absolutely loved it, as did my colleague, although in the first version of the tiramisu torte the coffee I prepared for the recipe was not strong enough.

Ingredients for filling:

  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 1 tub (500 g) mascarpone cheese
  • 5 egg yolks
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup brandy
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Ingredients for syrup:

  • ½ cup sugar
  • ½ cup strong hot brewed coffee
  • 2 tablespoons amber rum or brandy

Ingredients for assembly:

Ingredients for topping:

  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 1 tablespoon instant skim milk powder
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon amber rum or brandy
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    My initial impression of this recipe was correct: it was quite complex to make with many steps and almost as many layers. Certainly time consuming. Additionally, I looked and looked everywhere but unfortunately could not find ladyfinger biscuits anywhere where I live, so I had to make those as well. They are pretty straightforward to make, but were an additional step.

Directions:

  1. For the filling, whip the cream to soft peaks and set aside. Beat the mascarpone gently with a spoon or spatula to soften it, then fold it into the whipped cream in two additions. You may have to use a whisk to fold this in a little more vigorously to avoid any lumps from the cheese. Chill the mixture once done.
  2. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and brandy in a metal or glass bowl. Place it over a pot of gently simmering water and whisk constantly until the mixture has doubled in volume and the mixture makes and holds a ribbon when the whisk is lifted. Stir in the vanilla extract and remove the bowl from the heat to let the mixture cool for 10 minutes.
  3. Whisk the chilled mascarpone mixture into the egg mixture in two additions. The filling will be quite fluid, this is normal. Chill this while preparing the other components for assembly.
  4. For the syrup, stir the sugar and hot coffee together, heating further if needed for the sugar to dissolve completely. Stir in the rum or brandy and set aside.
  5. To assemble the torte, slice the vanilla cake layer horizontally and place one 8-inch cake layer in the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Arrange the ladyfingers around the outside of this cake layer (the cake willl help to keep them in place). Brush the cake layer with half of the coffee syrup, and then spread half of the mascarpone filling over the cake. Sprinkle a layer of grated chocolate over the filling and top with the remaining cake layer. Brush this with the remaining syrup, top with the remaining mascarpone cream, and sprinkle this with more grated chocolate. Cover the torte loosely and chill until set, about 4 hours.
  6. For the topping, whip the cream with the the skim milk powder until the cream holds a soft peak. Stir in the sugar, rum or brandy, and the vanilla extract. Spread this over the chilled filling. Top with a little more grated chocolate and chill until ready to serve.
  7. To serve, remove the outer ring of the springform pan and carefully slide the torte onto a serving platter. The torte can be kept in the refrigerator for up to three days.

    Since I don’t like coffee it was a bit hard for me to judge this dessert fairly, but I was told that this tiramisu torte is very delicious. As long as you make a strong coffee for the syrup, the flavour should come through enough. The other layers taste wonderful and decadent. This dessert is very enjoyable and sure to make an impression.

Happy baking!
Valerie