Pick Me Up!

I know it's supposed to say 'Happy Birthday Gaya', but 'Happy Gaya' is true as well....

Previous post showed my Tiramisu cake I did for a friend's birthday... Coffee, cheese, chocolate - what's there not to love about Tiramisu? :)

Tiramisu, means 'Pick me up' in Italian. Or 'Make me happy'. I love both translations - it makes perfect sense of course. If it's coffee, cheese and chocolate in you cake, it'll certainly pick you up! And if you lace your coffee with a little Kahlua, then it's sure to make you happy!

It's one of the easiest cake to make, as there is no baking required. I bought a large pack of Ladies Fingers and some chocolate Love Letters to complete the cake. Now, I'm not a very science-y, count-y kinda girl (which should not be appropriate for someone who claims to bake a lot) so I do not actually have a recipe for this. I'm more of a feel-y, estimate-y kinda chick, so I put in as much stuff as I think should go in.

So, here's my feel-y Tiramisu recipe:

These are Ladies Fingers
(dip them with the sugarless side down)

You'll need a pack of Ladies Fingers, Love Letter wafers, Cream cheese, Icing sugar, Gelatin, Coffee Granules

Chocolate Love Letter wafers

1. Mix one bar of cream cheese with icing sugar well
2. Mix in two teaspoons of gelatin with hot water, till gelatin melts
3. Beat in the gelatin mixture with the cream cheese mixture
4. Now, line a spring foam pan with baking paper on the bottom and the sides
5. Mix about 3 tablespoons of coffee granules with hot water (basically make a thick and black cup of coffee) in a shallow plate
6. Dip a Ladies Finger in strong coffee for about 2 seconds, only on one side. (Don't leave it in for too long, you can feel the Ladies Fingers soaking up all the coffee and start to crumble)
7. Now, line the ladies fingers at the base of your pan (about 4-6 fingers, depending on the size of your pan)
8. Pour a layer of cream cheese on top of the soaked Ladies Fingers.
9. Now, take your Love Letters, and line the side of the spring foam pan - making a sort of fencing on the sides
10. Repeat with a second layer of ladies fingers, topped with the rest of the cream cheese.
11. Now, let it set in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.



I cut out her name, and used it as a stencil. Unfortunately, Gaya's 'ya' got a little smudged...

12. Sprinkle some cocoa powder on top before serving

Birthday Girl and her cake