There!!! I confessed it!!! I'm a Tiramisu junkie ... there's no denying it when I finished 2 cups yesterday in a single seating ...
Something about that insiduous little cup/bowl just hooked me, reeling me in slowly at first, and then suddenly launched a blitz by making ambushing me from every corner I turn.
At first, it appeared suitably demure, ensconced behind pricey figures in Italian restaurants, chastely bestowing occassional seductive kisses.
Then it reared its head in coffee chains, shedding its patrician modesty to presume an air of worldly sophistication ... going well beyond hinting at being available for frequent trysts ...
Finally, it is just throwing itself at you from supermarket shelves, and for a time, even petrol kiosk stations, slumming now in the guise provided by Bontà Divina ...
Despite some claims that the Italians invented it for tourists, the Italians do actually eat it before it was introduced to foreigners, though what it was called might differ from region to region, as its actual texture and contents.
I had some of the loveliest in Italy itself, and it has become one of the primary test of an authentic Italian restaurant for me, along with whether it cooks its pasta al-dente.
Aware of my own history with food addiction, the only way apart from stripping myself of cash, credit and NETS cards, is to indulge in it until I'm sick of it.
Aaaaarrrrgggghhhhh so much for trimming my waist!!!!!
La Belle Dame sans Merci!
Now, how am I going to get my hands on and sink my teeth into the floppy tiramisu from Oso Ristorante introduced in 100 Favourite Dishes published in Sunday Times, 14 October 2007 ...
Oh, I always thought it was some silly Japanese dish. So its actually a silly Italian dessert of sorts?
ReplyDeleteSnowy, old chap, its like chocolate, you can live without it.
umm, I believe you can make Triamisu at home... and I could try to get the receipe for you...
ReplyDeleteYeah, I thought that too. -__-
ReplyDeletehmm, Ur, for someone so picky about food... you've tried it?
ReplyDeleteI love tiramisu and whenever I go to a new resturants I would definitely eat it.
ReplyDeleteOf course not, I don't even know what Tiramisu looks like.
ReplyDeleteSnowy, so that your addiction, damaging as it might be to your waistline, causes no harm to your family, here's a recipe, translated from a french website (http://www.marmiton.org/recettes/recette.cfm?num_recette=12023 very good recipes here, btw). Tiramisu is actually very easy to prepare, so far you can find the ingredients (mascarpone esp.).
ReplyDeleteTiramisu
Preparation : 15 mn
Ingredients (for 8) :
- 3 large eggs
- 100 g brown sugar
- 1 bag of vanilla sugar
- 250 g mascarpone (this is an italian cheese, I'm pretty certain you could find it in Singapore...)
- 24 biscuits à la cuillère (those are the long "lady finger" spongy things)
- 1/2 litre black coffee, without sugar
- 30 g powdered cocoa (unsweetened)
Preparation :
Separate whites from yolks, mix the yolks, sugar, vanilla sugar, add the mascarpone and mix with a whip.
Beat the egg whites hard, and delicately mix them (with a wooden spatula) with the previous mix (no need to stir too hard)
Prepare black coffee (should be expresso, but powdered nescafe like coffee is ok too, so far you make it strong...)
Dip the biscuits in coffee
Put a layer of biscuits at the bottom of the mould
Cover it with a layer of cream (the egg mascarpone sugar thing you've done before)
Then another layer of biscuits, and another layer of cream ... an so forth until you run out of biscuits and cream (normally, you would have 2/3 layers of each), the bottom layer should be biscuits, the top one cream...
Sprinkle the powdered cocoa over the tiramisu, and put the whole at least 4 hours in the fridge, that should be it.
I think this recipe would robably be a bit healthier than "shop tiramisu", some add alcohool (marsala dry, or amaretto) with the coffee or at the bottom of the mould.
As usual, the proportions are mostly indicative, some put more biscuits, some put less sugar... the idea is to try.
In Singapore, the most difficult ingredient to find would be mascarpone, but I'm pretty sure you can get it snowy...
It's all right, we can setup Tiramisu Anonymous where we help each other get over our addiction.
ReplyDelete"Hi, I am Ur. I am single and I haven't had a slice of Tiramisu since the day I was born."
Apparently, it was made famous by the movie "Sleepless in Seattle".
ReplyDeleteTom Hank's character Sam, a widow, was given some tips on going back by his pal, Jay, to the dating game after a long absence. Jay told him to remember "tiramisu".
Sam: What is "tiramisu"?
Jay: You'll find out.
Sam: Well, what is it?
Jay: You'll see!
Sam: Some woman is gonna want me to do it to her and I'm not gonna know what it is! (in his earnest Tom Hankish delivery)
Thanks, but I doubt I'll have the time. I haven't even made my other favourite konyaku jellies for a long time ...
ReplyDeletePS: yes, konyaku is a Japanese term.
For others who want to know more Italian desserts, try finding zucotto. Panna cotta is easily available, but the good ones are rare in Singapore.
No!!! This is not the way I want to get over it!!!
ReplyDeleteArrrgh!!!
ReplyDeleteArh-buh-den??
ReplyDelete"Hi, I'm Jules. I'm single and I haven't had a slice of tiramisu since I last visited an Italian restaurant which was, like, yonks ago."
ReplyDeleteYes, checked today, in an attempt to shake away my book buying addiction... Mascarpone can easily be found in the Carrefour in Dobhy Ghaut (Singapura Plazza), among cheeses, big one pound pots, which could probably allow snowy to survive one week without any withdrawal symptom, and the lady fingers can be found on the left, just past the entrance... among the biscuits. Actually, you can find the italian savoiardi brand thingies, but the french would probably use those called "boudoir" which can also be found there...
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot, Francois ... don't let Snowylady know or she might have nightmares about what I'll do to her kitchen ... or my body ...
ReplyDeleteActually, it is such a simple process, and you don't even need an oven.... sigh... somewhere it was said... it is better then sex... but then, it is kind of difficult to prove right? kekeke.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you've made tiramisu before, Centaur.
ReplyDeletePlease make more to share with us, heh heh heh.
I'll probably get over it sooner or later, just like how I got over kolo noodles, just eat it until I'm sick of it. Used to know it was only available at Chinatown. Found out a couple of months ago that it's also available in Bedok, not too far from my office, though not as delicious as Chinatown's.
Still, the best way to overcome one addiction is provide an alternative ...
Now, if only Francois could recommend some exotic French dessert ...
Umm, could do it someday... the only drawback is that you need to be near a refrigerator... it needs to be kept cool.
ReplyDeleteIt'd be great if I could find a good escargot recipe...
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteVideoJug: How To Make Easy Individual Tiramisu Pots
I finally realised the lady finger refers to Savoiardi, not the vegetable okra ... *duh*
ReplyDeleteAhah ! Greedy people here !
ReplyDeleteOh, finally tried Tiramisu when I was in HK recently. It's ok.
ReplyDelete