Tiramisu #3

So... DH & I finished off Tiramisu #2, which means I had to make another for tomorrow's election soirée at Jared's. I figured I would just double everything, and do it exactly the same as #2.

I popped 6 egg yolks (now I have a dozen egg whites...) into the double boiler with 3/4c white sugar, stirred until it thickened, then added 1/2c Marsala . I was adding the Mascarpone when I realized that I only had 1 tub of cheese...

So what do I do? halve the Zabaglione? or just toss in half the Masacrpone I should have?

I decided to just use what I had. I figured it would turn out more custardy and less cheesy... might as well try it out... I'll just use the same size springform pan, instead of a large one.

Presentation of this one was important (I wasn't going to be the only one eating it), so I wrapped the bottom and sides in baking parchment. That was an adventure in and of itself, but it got done, and looked like it would hold in the dessert until it set.

Everything else was the same - 1/3c strong coffee with 1/3c Kahlua. I dipped the Ladyfingers a bit quicker, and made sure to place them sugar side up (I just felt like it). Then I poured over the custardy layer. This is where I ran into a new problem... the Ladyfingers decided to float.

Ummm... yeah. I tried pushing them back down and holding them there, but they just floated right back up. After contemplating this dilemma, I decided to just keep on on going. The Tiramisu would taste the same, right? The layers would just be a little wonky... I put the rest of the layers on, covered it in plastic wrap, and put it in the fridge to set.

Now, can someone tell me why the biscuits decided to float?

So... here's what I did differently:

1. Wrapped the pan in baking parchment
- This shouldn't have affected the top layer

2. Didn't let the coffee mixture cool
- It was about lukewarm when I dipped the Ladyfingers

3. Dipped the Ladyfingers faster
- I flipped them over once instead of twice. Less liquid absorbed = more air inside

4. Half the amount of Mascarpone cheese in the custard
- The custard had a different density.

5. Didn't let the Mascarpone mixture chill
- It was lukewarm by the time I poured it into the pan, but it was almost as thick as Tiramisu #2

Oh well... I'll dust it heavily with cocoa powder, and no one will be the wiser ;)

Update: I brought the Tiramisu to Jared's for the Election Watch, and it was a resounding success :) The baking parchment was useless in the end, I forgot the extra lady fingers and it was a a bit too liquidy to stand up on it's own. Of course, I only discovered that after removing the springform pan... I ended up flipping the cake back into the pan, which, incidently, fixed the problem of the floating Ladyfingers :) I sponged the drips off the side, scraped the leaked custard off the baking parchment, and back into the pan, heavily dusted it all with cocoa powder, and Voila! I had a perfect looking Tiramisu. It had to be scooped out of the pan with a serving spoon, but hey! It tasted darned good! Aiden said he didn't know what Tiramisu was supposed to taste or look like, but that I could bring this to every function :D

In short, I was happy with the taste, it just needed to be more firm ;) Now, how do I make it more firm without drastically changing the taste? Do I add more cheese, more eggs, less Marsala or try whipped cream? Do I cook the eggs longer? If all else fails, I can toss in some unflavooured gelatine... but I'd rather keep it on the more natural side of things :P