What Are You Having For Dinner

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OK, so.. Had some Awesome 'left over' (from last week, that we didn't grill, then..) Olive Oil / Rosemary / Garlic'd Lamb chops..
LambNite.jpg
(..and No, we don't do 'fancy-pants restaurant portions', I just forgot to snap the pic before chowing 90% of it down, Derp.. ;)

..But that's fine, since that isn't really the 'salient point', here.. Which is, that, as I do every year for our Anniversary, made from-scratch Tiramisu..
Tirami14.jpg
(huh - wonder what 'Year they turned' last week? ;) And yeah, the 'LED-clock 14' wasn't all that 'elegant' a topper, but.. When I black-lit-out the Kitchen and presented it wearing nothing more than a red plastic Devo hat and shiny-black vinyl apron - well, Then She was impressed! 🤓 jk, but..

..In years past, I took a bit more 'care' with the deco, ie:

Feliz-10-A-os.jpg
..She Liked it, hey Mikey! ;)

..But even All That isn't really my 'Point', here.. (cuz, who really Cares.. :) It's all to share the following: ....
 
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Magical Scratch-Made 'Amarettomisu', by jd:

TiraPrep.jpg
(hey, Somebody's gotta give Some 'photo competition' to Sir Hashbrown.. 🤓 OK...

Ingreds:

Coffee 'Dip'
:
(Note: this is an absolute Min for a small-batch (ie: 9" x 9") Find it helpful to make at Least 1.5x these quantities (for the Dip, at least) and definitely Double them (all Ingreds) for a 13" x 9", or a 'triple layer' cake...)

1/2 cup (120 ml) brewed Espresso or very strong coffee ('Instant' is helpful for this / makes tailoring the strength easy)
1/8 cup (~30 ml) sweet Marsala wine...
1/8 cup (~50 ml 'mini') Disarrono Amaretto
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 cup granulated white / natural cane sugar

Filling:
3 large egg yolks (but not Too large.. Too much yolk > mascarpone ratio = sweet Elmers glue ;)
1/8 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar, divided
8 ounces (225 grams) mascarpone cheese (about 1 1/4 cups)
3/4 cup (175 ml) heavy cream
18 to 20 Savoiardi Italian ladyfingers (the 7-ounce package, but Strongly suggest getting 3x Packages for a 9"x9" and 4x for a 13"x9" or if making a triple-layer..)
1 ounce (30 grams) Minimum bittersweet chocolate bar for grating / dusting (suggest 60% cacao or 'darker', to-taste.. and Freeze it..)

Prep:

Dip
:
Combine espresso (or strong coffee), 2 tablespoons of the Marsala wine, All the Amaretto (50 ml), vanilla extract, and a tablespoon of the sugar in a wide bowl. Set aside to cool to room temp.

Ladyfingers:
Take out of package and 'pre-set' them in baking pan to see how they'll 'nest' - You may have to 'snip some' to get them to fit, length-wise. (but those snippets make great 'rewards' for any little helping-hands in the kitchen... :)

Filling:
Take mascarpone out of Fridge / let warm up to room temp so it is soft & 'blendable'. Vigorously whisk (Best by hand..) Egg yolks, remaining 2 tablespoons of Marsala, and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a pyrex bowl set into a saucepan of barely simmering water until tripled in volume, usually ~6 to 8 minutes.

(Note: You Can use a handheld electric mixer at slow speed, but.. a) Do not stop beating until expanded / removed from the heat and b) Do not 'overbeat' / whip, or use too-high a temp (Not 'boiling' water! That is, unless you Like sneaker-sole. ;)

Meantime, if you have any 'helping hands', they can whip the heavy cream in a bowl until it holds stiff peaks. Add sugar / vanilla, to-taste, if you wish. Also, remind not to whip too-much / turn into butter. ;)

Remove the bowl from heat then fold-in mascarpone cheese until just combined. If it 'lumps', simply keep stirring until it all blends in. Once the egg-mascarpone mixture has cooled a little, gently fold in half of the whipped cream into the mix, then the remaining half just until fully incorporated (the whipped cream will 'deflate' a little, but hand-whisking in such manner as to 'aerate', makes for a Really nice 'fluffy' cream, vs a heavy / paste-like one...)

Assembly:
Dip the ladyfingers very quickly into the coffee ('dip, roll, remove' in 1 sec.) and line the bottom your pan (this is where 'pre-fitting' comes in handy for expedient finishing..)

Spoon half of the mascarpone filling / spread over the ladyfingers in an even layer. Grate half of the bittersweet chocolate over filling. (Note: This is why you freeze the chocolate, so it'll 'withstand' the grating.. Grate 1 pile using the 'fine' holes, and a bit at the end using course, for the Top layer..)

Repeat above for the second (and, third, if you've Doubled the quantities for a triple-layer..) Grate more chocolate on top, and finish with 'course' choco-chunks. Cover with Foil and refrigerate at least 5-6 hours.

When ready to serve, dust with more grated chocolate (if you wish..) and / or decorate at-will, (ie: the above suggestions, etc..) Here's a 'two-layer' example:

TiraYum.jpg
:cool:

Some say leave out at room temperature ~20 minutes before serving, but.. We like it 'chilled', served with Hot, strong coffee. :cool: Can be re-refridged up to ~2-3 days, but much after that, the ladyfingers turn into coffee-flavored mush, not as much 'curb-appeal'..

Yes, a 'spendy' / time-consuming dessert, and a bit tricky to make the first time, but.. Once you master it, believe me, this particular recipe is Well worth the effort. 👍

Fwiw..
jd
 
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I'm sorry, I cannot confirm nor deny that I am having dinner. :)
 
@Haertig My first attempt at instapot spaghetti. I added to much broth but it was still good, looking forward to leftovers. I added broth because it didn't look right. I should have trusted my math, my math was correct. At least it wasn't a disaster. I'll definitely try this again.

instopot spaghetti (2) sm.JPG
 
@Haertig My first attempt at instapot spaghetti. I added to much broth but it was still good, looking forward to leftovers. I added broth because it didn't look right. I should have trusted my math, my math was correct. At least it wasn't a disaster. I'll definitely try this again.

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The leftovers will probably soak up additional moisture while they're sitting in the fridge. If not, just run it over a strainer to drain off excess water. I guess you could try making a small amount of cornstarch and water paste and add that while reheating it in a pot, to thicken things. Don't know how that would work, I'd almost be afraid to try it. I'd go for the strainer method myself. The taste is probably fine, just a little too juicy.

That actually looks like the perfect "training meal" for dainty eating. Put on a clean white shirt and see if it's still that way after dinner.
 
We had identical meals, Weedy. Except for dessert we had cheesecake.
You make scalloped potatoes, if I remember correctly. People always rave about them, but I rarely know of others making them, except you.
One time G wanted me to make them for Thanksgiving. I told him they don't go with turkey and gravy and stuffing. Mashed potatoes go with them, and sweet potatoes.
 
We went to Easter lunch at my parents house today. Mom made a ham, duchess potatoes, 3 bean salad home grown corn Broccoli salad and homemade crescent rolls. Followed up with several types of desserts. I won’t be eating tonight!

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Duchess potatoes? Is that similar or the same as the hashbrown casserole with sour cream, cheese, and a can of cream of something soup? It looks similar. That was something I frequently took to pot lucks for many years. The dish was always empty when I took it home.
 

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