…or as my older brother says, Tira-MEE-su Cupcakes. Older bro requested these specifically in honor of his birthday, which provided ample sibling-bonding time as the lot of us scoured Chicago for the necessary ingredients and slaved away over a hot oven in his kitchen to be sure the cupcakes turned out just right. It was a wicked good time.
Traditional tiramisu, as Terry & Isa helpfully explain, is made by soaking ladyfingers in coffee and Marsala wine. And I just thought it was that weird dessert on every Italian menu. Isa & Terry’s version takes the Golden Vanilla Cupcakes (33), cuts out a cone from the center of each cupcake, puts a couple tablespoons of coffee and Kahlua inside the cupcake, and replaces the cone. And oh! remember the Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting (158 ) I raved about last week? Some of that goes inside as well, and on top. Sprinkle with cocoa powder and cinnamon. Sound complicated? It’s not. But this recipe did have a few significant “firsts” in my cupcake backing career:
1) first recipe I tried from the “Fancy Cupcakes” section of VCTOTW, which means you can dazzle your friends and foes with tales of scouring Chicago for the necessary ingredients and slaving over a hot oven (when really you just drove around and played Munchkin while the cupcakes were baking)
b) first recipe that required more complex prep than topping the cupcakes with a generous mound of frosting. Luckily I had plenty of help and bro’s gf Mel proved to be a natural cake-cone-cutter-outer – her trick: use a grapefruit spoon
and iii) it was the first recipe that called for alcoholic flavors. I don’t drink and the taste of alcohol wigs me out a little, but Kahlua sounded better than Marsala wine. Luckily I didn’t put up any strident temperance protests, the cupcakes were made, were eaten, and enjoyed. They had that alcohol-ly aftertaste, but otherwise I was very, very pleased with the results. I do love that Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting…
Here you can see the cupcakes themselves, tastefully arranged (with Kahlua, VCTOTW, and cocoa powder) and photographed by Jere.
2 Comments
May 8, 2008 at 3:19 pm
Really? I say tira-MEE-su? Or is that your other older brother who absconded to become a clown in the Belgian countryside at the age of 16?
May 8, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Yes. ;)