Shelly's Recipe

TIRAMISU CUPCAKES

Category: Cakes

White cupcakes (favorite recipe)
Espresso chocolate mousse (recipe follows)
1/4 cup coffee or espresso
Mascarpone frosting (recipe follows)
Cocoa powder for dusting
Crushed ladyfingers for garnish

Prepare and cool on a wire rack.

Espresso Chocolate Mousse
2 cups chilled heavy cream
4 large egg yolks
4 tbsp sugar
2 tsp espresso powder
8 oz fine-quality semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

Heat 3/4 cup cream in a 1-quart heavy saucepan until hot. Whisk together yolks, sugar, espresso powder, and a pinch of salt in a metal bowl until combined well, then add hot cream in a slow stream, whisking until combined.

Transfer mixture to saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until it registers 160 degrees on thermometer. Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Melt chocolate in a double boiler, stirring frequently. Whisk custard into chocolate until smooth, then cool.

Beat remaining 1 1/4 cups cream in a bowl until it just holds stiff peaks. Whisk one fourth of cream into chocolate custard to lighten, then fold in remaining cream gently but thoroughly.

Mascarpone Frosting
2 cups heavy whipping cream
8 oz Mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Whip the cream until stiff peaks form. In a mixing bowl, fold two-thirds of the whipped cream into the Mascarpone cheese, along with the powdered sugar. Add remaining cream. Blend until cream is fully incorporated. Place in refrigerator until ready to frost.

Assemble: Using the cone method, fill cupcakes with Espresso Chocolate Mousse filling. Place top back on top of cupcakes. Brush top of cupcake with coffee or espresso. Go light on this as they are fresh cupcakes, and not hard like most ladyfingers. You don’t want to soak them. Frost top with Mascarpone Frosting. Sprinkle cocoa powder on top of cupcakes and garnish with crushed ladyfingers.