Raspberry Tiramiso

By á-5911

Cook's Tip:

Make sure that your mixer beaters are thoroughly cleaned after beating the egg/cheese mixture and before beating the egg whites. If there is even the slightest bit of oil left on them, the egg whites won't whip properly.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/3 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 4 tablespoons Triple Sec or other orange-flavored liqueur
• 14 ounces ladyfingers or savoiardi
• 16 ounces fresh or frozen raspberries, thawed
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 pound mascarpone cheese
• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate
• 3 tablespoons toasted sliced almonds

Preparation

Step 1

Stir 1/4 cup of the sugar into the hot water until completely dissolved, then stir in the cold water and orange liqueur. Lay the ladyfingers or savoiardi out on a baking sheet and brush both sides with the orange liqueur syrup. They should be moist on the outside but still crunchy on the inside.

Place the respberries in a medium bowl and stir in 1/4 cup of the remaining sugar. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks, 6 tablespoons of the remaining sugar and the vanilla with an electric mixer until the mixture is thick enough to form a long ribbon when you lift the beaters, about 5 minutes. Add the mascarpone cheese, beat for 3 minutes then set aside.

Clean the beaters of the electric mixer carefully and in a clean bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, 3-4 minutes. Add the remaining 6 tablespoons of sugar and beat until they form stiff peaks and have a glossy finish, about 1-2 minutes longer.

Fold the beaten egg whites into the mascarpone mixture, 1/3 at a time. Make sure you fold the egg whites in completely to avoid a coarse texture, but don't overmix or you'll lose the lightness.

Cover the bottom of a 7 x 11 inch baking dish with a single layer of the soaked ladyfingers. Cut the remaining ladyfingers in half and stand up around the edges of the dish. Spread with the raspberries, 1/2 of the cheese mixture, the grated chocolate and the remaining 1/2 of the cheese mixture. Sprinkle the toasted almonds over the top. Lightly cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. Serve chilled.