For the last bake of the year and to ring in the spirit of this holiday season , I've chosen to bake a Tiramisu cake. Unlike classic Tiramisu , which is soft to the touch and gooey , this cake is an interpretation of Tiramisu with all the flavors intact. The kahlua and amaretto add such warm notes to the flavor of both the cake and the frosting. As a coffee lover , it was only fair that the finale paid some tribute to my all time favorite - filter coffee. I have used traditionally brewed filter coffee decoction in place of espresso just to give the cake some added punch.
INGREDIENTS
For the sponge (makes 2 8” sponge cakes)
All-purpose flour - 2 2/3 cups
Granulated Sugar - 1 cup
Baking Soda - 2 tsp
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Salt - a pinch
Milk - 1 1/2 cups
Yogurt - 1 cup
Oil - 1 cup
Vanilla essence - 1 tsp
For the mascarpone cream mixture
Mascarpone cheese - 2 packages
Heavy Whipping Cream - 1 cup
Amaretto - 5 tbsp
Kahlua - 2 tbsp
Confectioner’s sugar - 1tbsp
For the coffee soak
Brewed espresso or instant coffee - 1 cup
Kahlua - 1/8 cup
PREPARATION
1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F and grease the baking pans.
2. In a mixing bowl , add all the dry ingredients and mix together.
3. To this , add the yogurt , oil , 1.5 cups of milk and vanilla essence and
whisk to a smooth mixture that is free from lumps.
4. Pour into the baking pans and bake at 350F for 35 minutes.
5. Cool the cakes for atleast an hour to make sure that they can take in the coffee soak
To prepare the mascarpone mixture
1. Allow the mascarpone to warm down to room temperature so that it is smooth.
2. In a stand mixer , beat the heavy whipping cream and caster sugar until stiff peaks form.
3. Fold the mascarpone cheese , kahlua and amaretto into the whipped cream until a smooth mixture is obtained.
Assembling the cake
1. Place the bottom layer of the cake on a cake base and soak it in one half of the coffee soak.
2. Pipe an even layer of the cream mixture on top of this layer and spread to remove inconsistencies.
3. Dust a layer of unsweetened cocoa powder on top of the cream.
4. Place the top layer of cake on this and soak it in the remaining coffee syrup.
5. Use the remainder of the mascarpone mixture to coat the cake.
6. Finish with a layer of unsweetened cocoa powder
