Pumpkin Tiramisu
By Narayan • 22:44 on Sunday, June 29, 2003 • Comment
This is one of the usual suspects on my Thanksgiving menus. Through the years, I’ve cut back more and more on the chocolate bits of the recipe. I like to use a tablespoon of sweetened coffee (that condensed stuff you find at asian groceries works great) with the bourbon. The harvest crunch is a pain to make, if only because I usually eat it all before the tiramisu even makes it to the table.
- 2 tablespoons bourbon
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 9-ounce package chocolate wafers
- 1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 3/4 mascarpone cheese
- 1 3/4 cup heavy cream
- about 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- in a very small saucepan, combine the bourbon with 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar and bring just to a boil. remove from the heat. line the bottom of a large baking dish with 18 to 20 cookies, overlapping them slightly. brush the cookies with half of the bourbon syrup.
- in a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree with the remaining 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. add the mascarpone and cream. using an electric mixer, beat the pumpkin mixture on medium speed until soft peaks form; do not overbeat. spread half of the pumpkin mixture evenly over the cookies in the dish.
- cover the pumpkin mixture with the remaining cookies, overlapping them slightly. drizzle with the remaining bourbon syrup and cover with the remaining pumpkin mixture. sift the cocoa over the center of the tiramisu, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
harvest crunch (garnish)
- 1 cup raw pumpkin seeds (5 oz)
- 1 cup raw sunflower seeds (5 oz)
- 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup sugar
- preheat the oven to 350\Z. line a large baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. combine the pumpkin and sunflower seeds in a bowl and add just enough egg white to thoroughly moisten the seeds. add the sugar and toss to coat. spread the seeds on the baking sheet and toast for 10 minutes. stir to loosen the seeds and toast for 2 to 3 more minutes, or until light golden. let the crunch cool and separate any clumps.