TIRAMISU

This is my version of one of my favorite favorite desserts, Tiramisu.
Italian for "pick me up" or "make me happy" :)

I like to use homemade ladyfingers, but you could use store bought if you prefer to. Pure cane sugar and honey are also used instead of white sugar.

hint: you can buy natural cane sugar super cheap if you look in the spanish section of the grocery store!

TIRAMISU

adapted from this recipe from Cooking Light

36 ladyfingers (I use this recipe from Pastry Affair)

1/2 cup kahlua 

or 

1/4 cup strong coffee, 1/4 cup vodka, and 1 tablespoon cocoa powder whisked together

1/4 cup cream cheese

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

1 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup pure cane sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste, vanilla extract, or half of a scraped vanilla bean

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon honey

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

-

Before you start, place the bowl of your stand mixer, along with the whisk attachment, in the freezer for a bit. Having a cold bowl and whisk will help your cream whip up faster.

Blend the cheeses, sugar, and vanilla in a food processor until smooth. This will take a couple minutes.

Take your bowl and whisk out of the freezer and whip the cream and honey until stiff peaks form.

Arrange half of the ladyfingers in the bottom of a 11x7 inch casserole dish, and drizzle half of the kahlua on top. Sit for a minute or so and top with half of the cheese mixture, then half of the whipped cream. Repeat the layering process with the remaining ingredients and sift the cocoa powder on top. For a little extra fun you can use a vegetable peeler to make chocolate curls to sprinkle on. :)

Let this sit in the fridge for at least a couple of hours; it is best after refrigerating overnight.

yum. yum. yum.