TIRAMISÙ WITH PAVESINI...love at first taste!

The first recipe that I want to share with you is that of tiramisù.

This well known Italian dessert has played a fundamental role in my life. As a child, before discovering how beautiful it is to eat, I was the despair of my mother: I used to eat almost nothing and it was very difficult to feed me. Then she found out that I had a true passion for only two things: tiramisù and pumpkin gnocchi. As my mother usually says, I grew up with (or thanks to?) these two traditional Italian dishes.

Tiramisù has a very controversial history. Many Regions claim the creation of Tiramisù; however, its father was a chef working at the restaurant "Le Beccherie" in Treviso, a town near Venice, in the Region of Veneto.

There are different versions of tiramisù and many techniques to prepare it (everybody has his/her own).
The recipe you will find below is the one of my mother. It is really easy (you don't even need a scale) and lighter than the traditional one, because it uses pavesini instead of savoiardi (ladyfinger biscuits). Though, I can assure you that "my tiramisù" is very appreciated among all my friends...and not only!

One tip before starting: prepare your tiramisù in the morning and eat it the same day.  The fresher it is, the most you will enjoy it!


For 4 to 6 servings

3 medium eggs
6 tablespoons of sugar (2 per egg)
250 gr mascarpone
1 pack of Pavesini (or you can use savoiardi, easier to find out of Italy)
3 cups of Italian espresso
2 tablespoons of cocoa

These are the quantities that I usually use for a rectangular dish of about 20x20cm. In this case the tiramisù has three layers and is perfect for 4 persons. Otherwise you can make it in small bowls or glasses, as in the picture:

Preparation

1. Prepare coffee and pour it into a wide dish or bowl. Following the Italian tradition it should be made with a moka, but you can use also instant coffee. Though, it's important to have a quite strong coffee for a better final result.

2. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites.

3. Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff.
Be careful that no yolks are in the egg withes!
Tip: a pinch of salt will help you in beating the whites.

4. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together with the electric  mixer until pale and creamy (this will take 3/4 minutes but it guarantees a perfect tiramisù!).

5. Add the mascarpone and mix until well combined.
Tip: if your cream is too fluid and you want to serve the tiramisù in slices, add a teaspoon of whipped cream stabilizer.

6. Fold beaten egg whites into the mascarpone cream.
Be careful! If you don't want to deflate the egg whites, stir with a spatula or wooden spoon from bottom to top.

7. Quickly dip 4 pavesini (or 1 savoiardo) into the coffee and press them slightly all together to eliminate the coffee in excess.
Be careful not to over-soak the biscuits!

8. Arrange the biscuits as a layer and spread the cream from step 6. over them.

9. Dust with cocoa

10. Repeat steps 7-9 one or two times (as said above, the layers number depends on the size of the dish used.

11. Cover with aluminium foil or cling wrap and chill in the fridge for at least three hours before serving.

12. Enjoy your home-made tiramisù!