Tiramisu Charlotte Cake

I spent the first twenty years of my life without celebrating my birthdays. There were no parties and no birthday cakes.

When I was still very young, I used to envy my friends and classmates whenever they showed me photos of them when they were barely toddlers...standing behind a birthday cake. No, don't get me wrong, even without any birthday parties, I had a wonderful childhood...I would even think I am way better off as compared to my kids. I spent most of my time playing as we had so much free time. School homework were unheard of during those days and there were no such things as enrichment classes! My childhood days were fully enriched with the time spent at the playgrounds and the fields :)


I probably had two or three birthday cakes for the subsequent 10 to 18 years of my life. My friends bought me my first birthday cake. I remembered it was an ice cream cake from Swensons.

It was only after I embarked on my baking journey that I started having birthday cakes on a regular basis. That's because I made the cakes myself ;) It was with mixed feelings that I made my first birthday cake. The excitement worn off when I attempted the second one. This year, I only decided to make a cake just so that I could use it as an opportunity to test out the tiramisu torte recipe again. Yes, the previous two attempts were not as satisfactory...the cakes were delicious...the only thing was, the sponge cake layers floated above the cheese fillings!!


I made this Tiramisu Charlotte Cake this year. This must be the most presentable cake I have ever made, or rather, I have ever had on my birthday. I have always wanted to make a pretty and very very girlish cake. I guess my wish had finally came true...and you will be surprised at how easy this can be accomplished.


I decided at the last minute not to go back to the same tiramisu recipe which I had attempted twice. I didn't want to go through the hassles of making the sponge cake layers and the zabaglione. I googled using the key words 'easy tiramisu' and out came this video clip of Gorden Ramsey whipping up an awesome version of this Italian dessert. Then, I searched using another set of key words 'tiramisu birthday cake' and I was brought to several blogs featuring a tiramisu cake recipe by Dorie Greenspan, it looks 'simple' enough as it also doesn't require making the zabaglione. With my past two hands-on experience with making tiramisu, I tried to mix and match the two recipes and came out with my own version.


There is no baking required as I used store-bought sponge fingers. It was really a time-saver. Although I have not tried making any homemade sponge fingers, I would think these ready-made ones are not anyway less inferior in taste, and that was base on the fact that both my kids actually save the sponge fingers for the last! In case you ask, I used this brand (Vicenzi) of sponge fingers, and for the locals, you can get it from Carrefour or Cold Storage. It comes in a pack of 24 sponge fingers, and the quantity is just enough for this cake.


To me, the most tricky part of putting together a tiramisu cake is the timing to dip the sponge fingers in the espresso syrup. It has to be done within one second so that they will not get soggy. I accidentally dropped the first sponge finger into the espresso syrup and it was totally soaked within a few seconds.

It was a fabulous cake, rich and finger-licking good. It certainly picked-me-up especially on a day when I have to unwilling acknowledge and accept my advancing years ;)



Tiramisu Charlotte Cake


Ingredients:
(makes a 7" cake)

Espresso Syrup:
1 tablespoon instant espresso/ strong coffee powder
1/2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) boiling water
1 tablespoon Marsala (I used Baileys Irish Cream)

Filling:
250g mascarpone cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 tablespoons icing sugar
2 tablespoons Marsala (I used Baileys Irish Cream)
1 cup (250 ml) heavy/whipping cream

about 24 sponge fingers (savoiardi)
50g dark chocolate

cocoa powder, to dust
dark and white chocolate shavings (optional)
strawberries for decoration (optional)


Method:

To make the Espresso Syrup:
Dissolve instant espresso coffee powder, sugar in boiling water. Leave to cool. Stir in 1 tablespoon Baileys Irish Cream. Set aside.

To make the Filling:
In a mixing bowl, with a manual whisk, whisk mascarpone cheese with icing sugar, vanilla extract, Baileys Irish Cream and 3 tablespoons of the espresso syrup until blended.

With an electric mixer whisk the whipping cream until soft peak (do not over whip). With a spatula, fold in 1/4 of the whipped cream to the mascarpone mixture. Fold in the remaining whipped cream to the mascarpone mixture.

To assemble the cake:
Cut off one end of the sponge fingers so that each one is about 3" in length. Line the sides of a 7" round baking pan* (with a removable base or use a springform pan) with the sponge fingers (do not dip them in the espresso syrup). You will need about 17 sponge fingers (depending on the type/brand). If the last sponge finger cannot fit in nicely, trim away part of it to fit it in. Save the leftover small pieces.

One at a time, gently dip (do not soak) sponge fingers in the espresso syrup and use them to line the base of the pan. Cut the sponge fingers into shorter lengths if necessary. Use the leftover pieces to fill the gaps.

Spoon over half of the filling. Spread evenly. Grate the dark chocolates over the filling. Repeat with another layer of sponge fingers and spoon over the remaining filling. Spread and smooth the top. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, best left overnight.

Just before serving, unmold the cake and dust the top with cocoa powder. Decorate with dark and white chocolate shavings and strawberries (as desired).

(*Note: If you do not have a springform pan or a pan with a removable base, you can improvise by lining a normal round pan with a large sheet of aluminium foil. Give allowance of about 1~2 inches for the foil to hang over the rim of the pan. Place a cake board inside the lined pan. Follow the steps above. To unmold, simply lift up the cake from the pan by gripping the foil. Transfer the cake onto a serving plate and carefully remove the foil. )