It's difficult to find a better moment to share a recipe for classic Italian dessert Tiramisu than while snacking on Parmiagiano Reggiano! :) I adopted the recipe from a famous Italian Chef Antonio Carluccio - it's super quick and easy to make, and won't take more than 20 minutes of your time!

I don't think anyone needs a reasoning to make tiramisu - it's a wonderful dessert that speaks for itself: from Italian "tiramisu" can be translated as "cheer me up" or "lift me up". So whenever you feel like you need an extra kick of endorphins, clouds of creamy mascarpone on a airy pillows of savoiardi will help you get there.



A couple of little notes before you start preparing your dessert.

- Use only fresh organic eggs. 
I used to make tiramisu without eggs at all (substituting them with whipped cream and leaving the cake for the night in the fridge to stabilize) when I didn't have access to those - but traditional version really needs that yolk.

- Make your coffee in advance and let it cool down. 
Yes, I know that some people suggest using hot coffee claiming that it helps savoiardi to melt faster - I tried both methods, and honestly, it's much better to work with cold coffee because a) it doesn't burn your fingers and b) you have less chance to "overdip" your savoiardi this way!



- Use liquor in your coffee-dipping mixture
Seriously, just do it :)

- Don't over-dust with chocolate / cocoa powder
When I was craving tiramisu and went to Eataly they put so much cocoa powder that I almost choked because powders tend to overwhelm your mouth receptors.



Ingredients and directions for Classic Easy Tiramisu (makes two portions): 

Ingredients: 
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp sugar (for cream)
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g mascarpone
splash of milk
1 pot of coffee (~2 cups)
2 tbsp of sugar (for coffee mix)
1/2 pack of savoiardi / lady fingers
1 tsp liqueur (Marsala/Kalua/Dark Rum/ or Kirsch for slight cherry flavour)

Directions:
*Make coffee and let it cool down (if you have not read my notes before:)) 
1) Mix egg yolk with 2tbsp of sugar with a whisk.
2) Add mascarpone (apparently, better if it's a little bit sour) and a splash of milk to the mixture, and mix it until the consistency is smooth. Set aside.
2) Dissolve 1-2tbsp of sugar in the coffee, and start briefly dipping saoiardi one by one in there and quickly putting them in your serving bowl.
3) After every layer of coffee-dipped savoiardi put the mascarpone cream. Repeat till you have no more savoiardi or cream :)
4) Lightly dust with cocoa powder.

This wonderful dessert can be enjoyed right away but I prefer to keep it in the frige ~4hours for a more intense flavour. Best of all paired with espresso!