Tiramisu

This is Lizzy's tiramisu recipe - and it comes out amazingly (even if the egg whites don't beat up to stiff peaks) :P

500g mascarpone cheese (Whole Foods has a good selection of these)

1 package lady finger cookies 

4 eggs

4 spoonfuls of sugar

1 small glass (like a shot) of brandy or rum (Either vanilla rum, or just plain Hennesey brandy)

2 cups espresso (or good strong Italian coffee)

Dark or bittersweet chocolate bar ( I use the 50% dark Ritter)

Electric hand mixer 

Dish (I usually use a 13X9 dish but you can use smaller, I wouldn't go larger)

Shallow dish for dipping lady fingers in coffee

1. Start by separating the eggs - leave the separated whites in the fridge till you're ready to work with them.

2. Beat egg yolks with the sugar, then add the mascarpone to form a cream. Flavor with 2 spoons of the brandy (or rum). 

3. Then with the hand mixer, beat the egg whites so they come to stiff peaks. They sometimes just don't want to beat up to stiff peaks, which is annoying, in which case just let them foam and froth and fold it in. 

4. Fold the egg whites into the mascarpone cream to gently incorporate (you don't want to lose a lot of air)

5. Pour the coffee into a wide, deep dish, add a spoonful of sugar or two (whatever you think you'd like) and a splash of the rum (hee hee). Dip the lady fingers one at a time in the coffee to coat and then put a layer in your baking dish (I use a 13X9 glass dish but you can do whatever you want, it will be thicker if you use a smaller dish, etc). 

Don't let the lady fingers sit in the coffee for any significant amount of time, because they soften and disintegrate really quick. So just dip and transfer to your dish.

6. After the first layer, spread half the mascarpone cream over them and level. Then do another layer of coffee dipped lady fingers. Continue this way, then finish with a layer of cream. 

7. Sift cocoa on top. If you want to be indulgent, use a microplane or cheese grater and grate bittersweet chocolate on top. 

8. Freeze the tiramisu overnight, and then put it in the fridge to thaw the next morning you want to eat it. It lets the flavors seep through the layer so you can taste the coffee everywhere.