Walnut and Chocolate Tiramisù

Tiramisù con noci e cioccolatto
Mario Matassa shares his recipe for this uplifting dessert that can be made with leftover cake!

Walnut Tiramisu Recipe

➤ SERVES 4

➤ PREPARATION 15 minutes

SETTING 3 hours in the fridge

This classic Italian dessert is served in most households in Italy some time over the festive season. Usually it is made with a base of savoiardi biscuits. But as an alternative, this is a great way for creating a simple and delicious dessert using some leftover cake – chocolate, sponge or fruit cake, or leftover panettone or pandoro all work equally well.

Ingredients:

  • 4 medium free-range eggs
  • 110g sugar
  • 500g mascarpone
  • espresso coffee sweetened (approximately 2 cups)
  • leftover cake (approximately 400g)
  • 80g dark cocoa powder, unsweetened
  • 120g chopped walnuts

Method: 

  1. Separate the eggs into two separate bowls. Pour half the sugar into each bowl. First, beat the yolks and sugar and then gradually add the mascarpone, beating until you have a thick and smooth creamy consistency – about 4 minutes. With a clean whisk, beat the egg whites and sugar for about 5 minutes until you have stiff peaks. Taking one spoonful at a time, gently incorporate the whites into the egg yolk mixture.
  2. You can serve this dessert however you please. Large glasses or wide-opening jam jars are fun and allow you to see the individual layers. Begin by filling the base with a layer of leftover cake. Press down gently to get an even layer about 1cm thick and drizzle a couple of tsp of coffee over the top to moisten. Top the cake with a couple of spoons of cream and a sprinkling of cocoa powder. Gently place another layer of cake over the top and again wet it lightly with coffee. Spoon more cream over the top. Finish with a good sprinkling of cocoa powder, the chopped walnuts and a few small cubes of cake. Refrigerate for about 2-3 hours or overnight before serving.

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