Serving for 1 person

4 ladyfingers
1 cup American-style coffee, mixed with 2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup ricotta
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup roasted almonds, chopped coarsely

Sweeten a fresh cup of coffee with 2 teaspoons of sugar. Cool.

Cut the ladyfingers so that they'll fit snuggly inside the individual glass container or fruit serving dish you'll be using.

Place the cut-to-measure ladyfingers on a plate and soak lightly with the sweetened coffee (Obviously, the amount of coffee needed will depend on the size of the ladyfingers -- if you use giant ladyfingers [what I used], a cup of coffee might be just right, but if you use small-sized ladyfingers, then a cup might be too much. In either case, it doesn't hurt to use the best quality ladyfingers available, as they are an essential part of this dish.).

Using an electric mixer or food processor cream the ricotta and sugar.

Add the cocoa to the ricotta mixture and cream again (The resulting mixture should look like a chocolate-flavored cream cheese, if it doesn't look like one, then one could add a bit of table cream, but if the ricotta is fresh and of good quality, this shouldn't be necessary.).

Place the coffee-flavored cut-to-measure ladyfingers in the serving glass.

Add half the creamed ricotta on top of the ladyfingers in the serving glass, then add another layer of coffee-flavored ladyfingers.

Add the remaining creamed ricotta.

Top the creamed ricotta with chopped roasted almonds.

Cover the container with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least half an hour before serving.

This tiramisu recipe is very easy to make and rather inexpensive. Those who have heard about this famous Northern Italian cake and would like to know how to make it without spending a fortune (Most "tiramisu" recipes do cost a small fortune to make) can try out this recipe. In the last decade "tiramisu" has become a very popular cake in North America. Possibly, this could be a sign that Italian North Americans many of whom were born in the South have come to embrace Northern Italy's cookery traditions. In any case, "tiramisu" is now available in most Italian pastry shops, regardless of where its owner was born. The traditional "tiramisu" cake uses "mascarpone" cheese rather than ricotta. "Mascarpone" is delicious, but extremely expensive. However, the king (or shall I say the god?) of classic Italian cooking, Giuliano Bugialli, suggests that ricotta cheese can be substituted for "mascarpone." If he gives his blessing, then it's should be quite O.K. to use ricotta for this recipe. In addition to "mascarpone," the traditional way of doing "tiramisu" involves the use of uncooked eggs. Possibly, prior to World War II, the chickens were free-roaming and free of disease, but nowadays it's difficult to use uncooked eggs and not worry about food poisoning. Egg whites, beaten till they're stiff, might add substantially to this cake, but I couldn't bring myself to add them uncooked, so I simply didn't use them. Nowadays, most store-bought tiramisu cakes are flavored with rum, brandy or Sambucco. Whether or not alcohol was used to flavor "tiramisu" cakes in Northern Italy prior to World War II, it's hard to say (Giuliano bugialli does not include it in his recipe). Most famous North American Italian pastry chefs have their own version of this famous "tiramisu" or "pick-me-up[from the dumps]" cake. For those who love to play in the kitchen, any recipe, regardless of its source, is fun to do. Those who don't like to cook (but love to eat) might beg to differ. Photo: Mary Melfi.

Back to main list