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Italy, Europe · Tiramisu

Marsala Zabaglione Tiramisu

A restaurant tiramisu built on a Marsala zabaglione cooked over a bain-marie, folded into mascarpone and cream, and finished with shaved dark chocolate.

ServingsServes 2
Total cooking time38 min
Chilling+ 6 h
DifficultyHard
About servingsThe yolks are cooked to 75 °C as a zabaglione, so no raw egg is used. The Marsala is heated only briefly and goes into the coffee uncooked, so the dessert contains alcohol; for children, replace the Marsala with the same amount of coffee.

Method

  1. Brew the coffee, dissolve the coffee sugar in it and let it cool completely, then stir in the Marsala for the coffee and pour it into a shallow dish. Keep the cream and mascarpone in the fridge until needed, and set up a large bowl of iced water.

    Add in this stepStrong espresso, cooled 120 mlSugar (for the coffee) 1 tspMarsala wine (for the coffee) 1½ tbsp

  2. In a heatproof bowl, mix the yolks, zabaglione sugar, Marsala and salt. Pour 3 cm of water into a 16 cm pot, bring it to a gentle simmer over low heat and set the bowl on top (the bottom must not touch the water). Whisk non-stop for until the mixture has roughly tripled in volume and is thick enough that a trail from the whisk sits on the surface for a moment. If you have a thermometer, aim for 75 °C: at this temperature the yolks are safely cooked and the cream holds its shape.

    Add in this stepEgg yolks 2Caster sugar (for the zabaglione) 30 gMarsala wine (for the zabaglione) 30 mlSalt 1 pinch

    low heat

  3. Move the bowl straight into the iced water and keep whisking for until it feels cool to the touch. Warm zabaglione would melt the mascarpone and cream.

  4. Whip the cold cream for to soft peaks that just flop over. Loosen the mascarpone with a spatula, fold in the cooled zabaglione in two additions, then gently fold in the whipped cream. Spoon it into a piping bag (or a zip bag with a corner snipped off) for neat layers; if the cream is soft, chill it for 10 minutes.

    Add in this stepCold whipping cream (at least 35% fat) 75 mlCold mascarpone 125 g

  5. Dip each savoiardi in the coffee for 1 second per side and lay them in a single layer in a 15×10 cm dish or glass, breaking them to fill gaps. Pipe half the cream evenly over them and level it with a spatula. Repeat once more and smooth the top.

    Add in this stepSavoiardi (ladyfingers) 8

  6. Cover and refrigerate for at least , ideally overnight.

  7. Just before serving, sift an even layer of cocoa over the top and shave the dark chocolate over it with a vegetable peeler. For clean portions, use a knife or spoon dipped in hot water and wiped dry.

    Add in this stepUnsweetened cocoa powder 2 tspDark chocolate (about 70% cocoa) 10 g

Cook's tip

Too much heat scrambles zabaglione, so keep the water at a bare simmer, never a boil, and whisk right into the edges of the bowl. Stop whipping the cream while it is still soft; stiff cream tends to split when folded. Coffee liqueur or dark rum are good alternatives to Marsala.

Cooking it at camp

The zabaglione needs careful heat control, so finish the tiramisu at home and carry it in a lidded container. Keep it below 5 °C in a well-iced cooler and add the cocoa and chocolate at the campsite.