Thursday is dessert day in our office and this Tiramisu is one of the most loved dishes. Chocolate is always good, but a lot of chocolate is even better! This is Jamie Oliver’s way of making this great Italian dish. It’s very easy for you to do at home and also a great dinner party show off. Put even some sparkles on the top. You can make this beforehand, no need for last minute stress.

Ingredients

250 g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
50 g butter , diced
sea salt
175 g sponge fingers
400 ml good hot sweetened coffee
vin santo or other sweet dessert wine (optional, not during working hours 😉
4 large free-range eggs
100 g caster sugar
750 g mascarpone
2 oranges
a few fresh coffee beans , bashed up finely

Method

Put a glass bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the water doesn’t touch the base of the bowl. Put 200g of the chocolate into the bowl, keeping the remaining 50g in one piece. Add the diced butter and a pinch of salt, and leave for 5 minutes or so until melted and combined. Help it along by giving it a stir every now and then.
Meanwhile, line a large, deep bowl or round earthenware dish (about 30cm in diameter and 12cm deep) with the sponge fingers, then carefully pour over the hot sweetened coffee. -Add a couple of swigs of vin santo to your melted chocolate-, stir it through, then drizzle all over the sponge fingers. Use a spatula to carefully smooth it out to the edges so you’ve got a nice even layer. Put it to one side to cool.
Separate your eggs, putting the whites into one bowl and the yolks into another. Add the sugar to the yolks -with another swig of vin santo (if you’re feeling naughty!)-, and whisk with an electric whisk on the highest setting for about 5 minutes, or by hand, until all the sugar has dissolved and the yolks are pale and fluffy. Mix in the mascarpone and the zest of 1 orange.
Clean and dry your whisk, and whisk the whites with a pinch of salt until they form stiff peaks – they should be a similar consistency to the yolk and mascarpone mixture, and should hold their shape when you lift the beaters from the bowl.
Using a large metal spoon, add a spoonful of your whites to the yolk mixture and gently fold them in, then fold through the rest of the whites. Spoon and smooth this creamy mixture on top of your chocolate layer.
Scatter the finely bashed-up coffee beans over the top. Using a sharp knife or a speed peeler, carefully shave over your remaining chocolate. Finely grate over the zest from half your remaining orange. Pop the tiramisù into the fridge for 2 hours to set.