The Origin of Tiramisu

Tiramisu is one of the most popular Italian desserts. Butfrom the town of Treviso and was started in
just where did this delicious confection come from?restaurants instead of being passed from one family
There are many different possibilities if you goto another like other recipes.
investigating Italian cookbooks and history.Treviso
Giuseppe MaffioliThis means that looking at the town of Treviso will
One of the first mentions of anything similar to tiramisugive you a better idea of where tiramisu was invented.
comes from the famous epicure Giuseppe Maffioli. InFernando and Tina Raris wrote a book devoted to the
his book published in 1968, The Venetian Gluttoncuisine of the town, known as "La Marca
(known in Italian as Il Ghiottone Veneto), he talks aboutGastronomica." According to the book, a restaurant
Zabaglione custard. This custard was prepared withknown as Le Beccherie was responsible for the
sweet wine from Cyprus, and earned its name frominvention of tiramisu. The dessert became extremely
Zabaja. It was first made in the Illiria region, which waspopular, and soon Italian restaurants around the world
once a Venetian territory.started to copy the recipe and the name. If you stop
In his book Maffioli discusses a wedding. At the end ofat Le Beccherie today you can still enjoy the classical
the ceremonies, the friends of the groom, still singletiramisu recipe. It features ladyfingers soaked in strong
themselves; give the newlyweds a large bottle ofespresso coffee accompanied by mascarpone and
zabajon. The purpose of the gift was so that the twozabaglione cream and topped in bitter cocoa powder.
of them would enjoy their honeymoon that muchTiramisu variations
more. According to the book, sometimes whippedToday's tiramisu comes in numerous variations. While
cream was added and the custard was severed verythe original is still one of the most popular, many people
cold. Also included were baicoli, a popular thin cookiehave come up with different variations. There are
that also originated in Venice. If you consider theplenty of lower carb and lower fat versions. Versions
tiramisu that is served today, these ingredients arethat swap out the lady fingers for sponge cake or
very similar, hinting at its origins. Tiramisu means "pulleven pound cake, and other versions that include
me up" which is an apt description of the properties ofalmonds, chocolate, and other sweets. And then there
Zabaglione custard.are variations that seem to have nothing to do with
Giovanni Capnistthe original recipe, such as tiramisus that include fruit,
One of the oldest recipes for tiramisu can be found insuch as blueberries, raspberries, or even lemon. There
the book written by Giovanni Capnist, The Desserts ofare even some versions out there that will substitute
Veneto (known as I Dolci del Veneto in Italian). It wasthe coffee or leave it out entirely if you do not enjoy
originally published in 1983 and includes one of thethe taste of espresso.
classic tiramisu recipes. It notes that the recipe comes