Tiramisu

Tiramisu

Tiramisu, meaning "pick me up," is one of the best desserts in the world. I love the creamy, sweet, coffee and Amaretto flavored goodness, and I hope you will enjoy my version of this classic dessert. 

Ingredients:

Syrup:

• 1 cup coffee, espresso or very strong coffee
• ½ cup Amaretto (almond liqueur)
• ½ teaspoon instant coffee

Mascarpone cream:

• 4 egg whites (pasteurized)
• 4 egg yolks (pasteurized)
• 150 g confectionary sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
• 500 g mascarpone

Other:

• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• about 40 lady finger cookies 

Directions:

Syrup:

Brew the coffee and let it cool. Mix in the instant coffee and amaretto, set aside.

Mascarpone cream:

Beat the egg whites until stiff, using an electric mixer or stand mixer. Set aside. Beat egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. 

Whisk the mascarpone cheese until smooth. Mix in the egg yolk mixture and vanilla. Gently fold the stiff egg whites in the mixture with a spatula.

Pour the syrup into a small shallow dish. Dip each ladyfinger into the syrup for only 5 seconds. Letting the ladyfingers soak too long will cause them to fall apart. Place the soaked ladyfinger on the bottom of a baking dish. Make sure to fill the whole bottom, break the ladyfinger to make them fit. 

Spread ½ of the mascarpone mixture evenly over the ladyfingers. Arrange another layer of soaked ladyfingers and top with remaining mascarpone mixture. Sprinkle the cocoa powder  on top. 

Cover tiramisu with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 8 hours.

Enjoy.

The Danish version:

Tiramisu

Ingredienser:

Sirup:

• 1 cup (240 ml) stærk kaffe eller espresso
• ½ cup (240 ml) Amaretto (mandellikør)
• ½ tsk frysetørret kaffepulver

Mascarpone cream:

• 4 æggehvider pasteuriserede
• 4 æggeblommer pasteuriserede
• 150 g flormelis
• 1 tsk vanille pasta (kornene fra ½ vanillestang)
• 500 g mascarpone

Yderligere:

• 1 spsk kakao (usødet)
• ca 40 ladyfingre, Savoiardi

Fremgangsmåde:

Sirup:

Bryg kaffen og lad den køle af. Bland kaffepulver og Amaretto i. 

Mascarpone cream:

Pisk æggehviderne stive, og sæt dem til side. Herefter piskes æggeblommerne og flormelisen indtil de er lysegule og luftige, ca 5 minutter.

Rør mascarponen så den bliver blød og cremet, det tager kun få sekunder. Bland æggeblommerne og vanillen i mascarponen. Til sidst vendes de stivpiskede æggehvider forsigtigt i cremen. 

Hæld siruppen i en flad skål. Dyp hver ladyfinger i siruppen, ikke længre end ca 5 sekunder ad gangen, da ladyfingrene eller vil gå i opløsning. Dæk bunden af fadet med dyppede ladyfingre. Hæld halvdelen af cremen over. Dyp resten af ladyfingrene i siruppen og læg dem oven på cremen. Fordel resten af cremen over dette andet lag ladyfingre. Drys et tyndt lag kakaopulver over tiramisu'en. 

Dæk tiramisuen til og lad den hvile i køleskabet i mindst 2 timer, men  gerne op til 8 timer. Tag Tiramisuen ud af køleskabet lige før servering.

Velbekomme

Limoncello/Liquorice Tiramisu

Limoncello/Liquorice Tiramisu

I have a love for al thing liquorice, and adding lemons into the mix, makes everything so much better. This spin on the traditional tiramisu is almost better than the original, well they are tie for first place. The limoncello makes the dessert seem light and fluffy and not as heavy as the original. If you don’t care for licorice, just leave it out, the limoncello tiramisu can easily stand on its own.

Ingredients:

Syrup:

• ½ cup (120 ml) limoncello liqueur

• ½ cup (120 ml) water

• ¼ cup (50 g) sugar

• ½ cup (120 ml) lemon juice

Mascarpone cream:

• 4 egg whites (pasteurized)

• 4 egg yolks (pasteurized)

• 150 g confectionary sugar

• 1 teaspoon vanilla paste

• 500 g mascarpone

• 1 lemon, zest of

Other:

• 1 tablespoon fine liquorice powder (from Lakrids by Bülow)

• about 40 ladyfingers, Savoiardi

• 1 teaspoon raw liquorice powder (from Lakrids by Bülow)

Directions:

Syrup:

In a small pan heat the limoncello, water, sugar and lemon juice almost until the sugar has completely dissolved. Set the syrup aside to cool down to room temperature.

Mascarpone cream:

Beat the egg whites until stiff, using an electric mixer or stand mixer. Set aside. Beat egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. 

Whisk the mascarpone cheese until smooth. Mix in the egg yolk mixture and vanilla. Gently fold the stiff egg whites and lemon zest in the mixture with a spatula.

Pour the syrup into a small shallow dish. Dip each ladyfinger into the syrup for only 5 seconds. Letting the ladyfingers soak too long will cause them to fall apart. Place the soaked ladyfinger on the bottom of a baking dish. Make sure to fill the whole bottom, break the ladyfinger to make them fit. Sprinkle with some fine liqourice powder.

Spread ½ of the mascarpone mixture  evenly over the ladyfingers. Sprinkle the rest of the fine liquorice powder on top. Arrange another layer of soaked ladyfingers and top with remaining mascarpone mixture. Sprinkle the raw liquorice powder on top. 

Cover tiramisu with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 8 hours.

Enjoy.

The Danish version:

Limoncello/Lakrids Tiramisu

Ingredienser:

Sirup:

• 120 ml limoncello likør

• 120 ml vand

• 50 g sukker

• 120 ml citronsaft

Mascarpone cream:

• 4 æggehvider pasteuriserede

• 4 æggeblommer pasteuriserede

• 150 g flormelis

• 1 tsk vanille pasta (kornene fra ½ vanillestang)

• 500 g mascarpone

• 1 citron, kun den gule del af skallen

Yderligere:

• 1 spsk fine liquorice powder (fra Lakrids by Bülow)

• ca 40 ladyfingre, Savoiardi

• 1 tsk raw liquorice powder (fra Lakrids by Bülow)

Sirup:

Varm limoncello, vand, sukker og citronsaften op indtil al sukkeret er smeltet. Køl siruppen ned til stuetemperatur. 

Mascarpone cream:

Pisk æggehviderne stive, og sæt dem til side. Herefter piskes æggeblommerne og flormelisen indtil de er lysegule og luftige, ca 5 minutter.

Rør mascarponen så den bliver blød og cremet, det tager kun få sekunder. Bland æggeblommerne og vanillen i mascarponen. Til sidst vendes de stivpiskede æggehvider og citronskallen forsigtigt i cremen. 

Hæld siruppen i en flad skål. Dyp hver ladyfinger i siruppen, ikke længre end ca 5 sekunder ad gangen, da ladyfingrene eller vil gå i opløsning. Dæk bunden af fadet med dyppede ladyfingre, herefter drysses lidt fint lakridspulver henover. Hæld halvdelen af cremen over, og fordel resten af det fine lakridspulver over hele overfladen. Dyp resten af ladyfingrene i siruppen og læg dem oven på cremen. Fordel resten af cremen over dette andet lag ladyfingre. Drys et tyndt lag raw liquorice powder (lakrids)  over tiramisu'en. 

Dæk tiramisuen til og lad den hvile i køleskabet i mindst 2 timer, men  gerne op til 8 timer. Tag Tiramisuen ud af køleskabet lige før servering.

Velbekomme

Passionfruit Petit Four

Passionfruit petit four

Passion fruit is the best fruit in the world. The tiny fruit has a big, bold tropical flavor. It is the taste of vacation.

I just found passionfruits in my local store I had to make these small dessert cakes (petit four) from chocolat.dk, that I have been wanting to make for the longest time.

It's a no-bake dessert with chocolate, with flavors that burst in your mouth.

4 small cakes.

Ingredients:

Crust:

• 30 g hazelnuts

• 70 g good milk chokolate

• 30 g pop rock candy (without flavor)

Filling:

• 40 g good white chocolate

• 25 g cream

• 2-3 passionfruits

Directions:

Crust:

Roast the nuts in the oven at 400°F (200°C) and grind them to a flour.

Melt the chocolate over a water bath, let the chocolate cool to 90°F (32℃), then mix in the pop rock candy and hazelnut flour.

Put the "dough" in the mini tart mold, don't make the crust to thick. Let the crust cool in the refrigerator.

Filling:

Chop the chocolate finely, and put it in a bowl, and set aside.

Cut open the passion fruits and scoop out the flesh/juice and strain out the seeds, set aside.

Bring the cream and passionfruit juice to a boil and pour it over the chocolate. Stir until all the chocolate is melted. Let the filling cool before pouring into the crusts. 

Keep the cakes in the refrigerator until you serve them. Decorate with freeze-dried passionfriut or shaved chocolate.

Serve the cakes with berries and a good vanilla ice cream.

Apple Cake with Hazelnuts and Apple Syrup

Apple Cake with Hazelnuts and Apple Syrup

Normally you would make apple pie or apple cake in the autumn, when the apples are in season. But frankly I can eat this cake anytime of the year. The crunch from the hazelnuts with the sweet apples is a perfect match.

Makes a 9" cake feeding 8-10 people.

Ingredients:

• 3-5 apples, I used jonagold, peeled, cored, halved, and sliced
• 1⅓ cup (3 dl) apple juice
• ⅔ cup (1½ dl) apple cider 
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla paste

The dough:

• 375 g sugar
• 225 g (2 sticks) butter, salted and room temperatur
• 375 g hazelnuts
• 3 eggs
• 1 egg white
• 75 g all-purpose flour

Directions:

Mix cider, juice, honey and vanilla, and set aside.

Peel, core and slice the apples. Put the apple slices in the cider mixture to marinate for about 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350℉ (175℃).

In the meantime, make the dough, cream the butter with the sugar and add the eggs (and egg white) one at a time.

Grind the hazelnuts to a flour, mix it with the all-purpose flour and add it to the butter. 

Spray the springform with vegetable oil and spread the dough in it.

Drain the apple slices, save the marinade, and put the slices on top of the dough. Press the apple slices into the dough. 

Bake cake for 60-90 minutes, and let cool completely before removing from the pan. 

Pour the cider mixture into a saucepan, and reduce it, until you have a sirup. Brush the sirup on the cake.

Serve the cake room temperature with some light whipped cream, creme fraiche or a good vanilla ice cream.

The cake will be very soft in the middle, the day you bake it, but the pectin in the apples will make the cake more firm as it sits. I usual bake it a day in advance.

Enjoy.

Source: Claus Meyer.

Kiksekage - Chocolaty Biscuit Cake

Kiksekage - Chocolaty Biscuit Cake

Kiksekage is an old classic non-bake cake very popular in the 70's and 80's in Denmark. But it's not a Danish cake. It's actually a German cake called "Kalte Hund" or cold dog, and the British has a similar cake, the chocolate fridge cake.

My chocolate loving husband, asked if I could try to make a kiksekage, and I was somewhat reluctant, chocolate is not my thing, but I promised to look into kiksekage. My only experience with Kiksekage, was the one my mom made, and to be honest, I didn't care for it. Weird - I loved everything sweet back then.

A traditional kiksekage is made with coconut oil (palmin), eggs and cocoa powder, but why not make the cake with premium ingredients. It's not like good chocolate is hard to find. During my research for the perfect kiksekage, I found Lone Kjærs recipe. This one was made with condensed milk instead of eggs and she used about ⅓ of the butter other recipes called for. So I decided to go with Lone's recipe.

Ingredients:

• 300 g dark chocolate (I used Valrhona 61%)
• 1 can condensed milk. 400 g
• 35 g butter
• 1 orange, the zest of
• about 20 squared vanilla biscuits
• sprinkle: chopped pistachios

Directions:

Line a loaf pan (9x5 inch or 22x12 cm) with parchment paper (Spray the inside of the pan with cooking spray, so the parchment sticks to the pan, don’t spray the inside of the parchment paper). You can also use plastic wrap to line the loaf pan. Chop the chocolate coarsely and put it in a small saucepan with condensed milk and butter. Let the mixture to melt over low heat. Be careful not to burn the mixture, stir occasionally until the mixture is homogeneously, then remove the pan from the heat and mix in orange zest. Pour a thin layer of chocolate in the bottom of the pan. Add then a layer of biscuits. Continue to layer chocolate and biscuits until you have 4 layers in total, ending with a chocolate layer. Sprinkle with the chopped nuts and cover the cake with a piece of parchment paper. Store the cake in refrigerator at least 4 hours before serving.

Serving:

Flip the cake out onto a pretty platter, remove any parchment paper. Do this about 10-15 minutes before serving. Slice the cake with a sharp knife. Tip: heat the knife in hot water, to ease the cutting.

Enjoy.