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Italian recipe of the week: Strawberry and limoncello tiramisù

This fresh take on a classic tiramisù is perfect for the hot weather. Neapolitan food writer Silvana Lanzetta tells us how it's done

Published: 24 July 2020 15:08 CEST
Italian recipe of the week: Strawberry and limoncello tiramisù
A southern Italian take on the classic tiramisù, with strawberries and limoncello. Photo: DepositPhotos

The best way to bring some Italian summer home is to make a strawberry and limoncello tiramisù.

I prefer this to the traditional chocolate and coffee tiramisù for many reasons: one of them is that it reminds me of a cake that my mum used to bake for my birthday. And with the freshness of the fruits, the tanginess of limoncello and the creamy sweetness of the mascarpone, this tiramisù feels like southern Italy – where I come from – much more than the classic one.

READ ALSO: The one dessert you have to try in each of Italy's regions


Photo: DepositPhotos

Try to make it this weekend, to surprise and delight your family or to serve at a party: I guarantee you that you will quickly become very popular. And your guests don’t need to know that it is actually very quick and easy to make – this secret stays between us!

Tips

If you don’t have the time to marinate the strawberries, don’t worry: you can make this tasty tiramisù by squeezing the juice of a couple of lemons and adding it to about 50 g of sugar. Then follow the recipe from here, by adding the water and the limoncello.

A little warning note: this tiramisu contains raw eggs. Please don’t give to small children and older people, as raw eggs have a small risk of carrying salmonella. If in doubt, use powdered eggs.

FOR MEMBERS: From football to tiramisù: A look at Italy's deepest rivalries


Photo: Marco Bertorello/AFP

Ingredients

For the cream:

6 egg yolks (very fresh)
60 g icing sugar
500 g mascarpone
60 g limoncello

For the liqueur:

250 ml strawberry marinade (see recipe)
100 ml water (warm)
12 tbsp limoncello

For the cake:

750 g strawberries
150 ml lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
400 g savoiardi biscuits (also called ladyfingers or sponge fingers)
100 g caster sugar

 

Method

1. The evening before, prepare the strawberry marinade: wash and cut the strawberries in quarters (keep about 100 g aside to decorate the tiramisù), put them in a bowl together with the sugar and the lemon juice; stir thoroughly to coat all the strawberries well, cover with cling film and put in the fridge to rest overnight.

2. In the morning prepare the cream: beat the mascarpone with a wooden spoon until soft and set aside. Whisk all the egg yolks with 60 g of icing sugar until you obtain a clear and frothy cream (when you lift the whisk, the egg has to form a thick ribbon). Add the limoncello and keep whisking for a few more minutes, then add the mascarpone and beat until smooth and shiny. Cover with cling film and allow to chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, strain the strawberries and set them aside. Take 250 ml of the marinade, and pour it in a pot together with the water and 12 tbsps of limoncello. Boil the liqueur for a couple of minutes and then let it cool down.

4. Soak each savoiardi biscuit in the liqueur, and arrange them in a deep rectangular dish. Spread a layer of strawberries over the savoiardi, then cover it all with a layer of cream. Then add another layer of savoiardi, strawberries and cream. Carry on like this until all the ingredients are finished, terminating with a layer of cream.

5. Decorate the top with the strawberries kept aside, cover with cling film and put it in the fridge. Wait at least two hours before serving. Keep the tiramisù refrigerated at all times and consume within 48 hours.


Silvana Lanzetta. Photo: Private

Silvana Lanzetta was born into a family of pasta makers from Naples and spent 17 years as a part-time apprentice in her grandmother’s pasta factory. She specializes in making pasta entirely by hand and runs regular classes and workshops in London.

Find out more at her website, Pastartist.com, including this recipe and others.

This article was originally published in 2019.

 

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FOOD AND DRINK

What to do (and avoid) when paying a restaurant bill in Italy

If you have plans for dinner out in Italy, here's a look at the etiquette over the bill - from where and how to pay to the culture around tipping.

Published: 12 June 2024 12:11 CEST
What to do (and avoid) when paying a restaurant bill in Italy

If you go out to eat in Italy, then there are a few things you should know about paying the bill afterwards.

This sounds like it should be straightforward, but the etiquette may differ from your home country.

Uncertainty around how it all works in Italy leads some visitors to worry about causing offence, or to wonder if they’ve been overcharged (which is thankfully rare, although it does happen.)

But becoming familiar with a few local norms should make dining out in Italy a stress-free experience.

How to ask for the bill – When you’re ready, try to catch the waiter’s eye and ask for the bill (possiamo avere il conto?). You can always ask for the bill while they clear your plates.

Unless you’re in a very busy or touristy place the bill is not usually presented until you ask for it – this is deliberate, as Italian waiters normally don’t like to hurry their customers and once you’ve finished dinner it’s perfectly OK to linger and chat over the dregs of the wine.

If you’re in a place that runs two service periods at night (usually one at around 7.30pm and one at 9pm) then you may be asked to clear your table by a certain time, but this should be made clear to you when you book or when you arrive. 

If it’s getting late and the place is emptying out the waiter may bring over the bill and ask you to pay so they can close up the till – but they’re not necessarily saying that you have to leave. If they start stacking up chairs, however, then that’s your cue to go home.

What to expect on the bill – On top of the cost of your food and drink, in many places you can expect to see an extra fee for coperto, or a cover/table charge, on your Italian restaurant bill.

Coperto is a a fixed fee which is charged by restaurants in Italy on a per-person basis, in addition to the price of food and drinks, to cover expenses for washing or replacing cutlery, plates, napkins and tablecloths used by customers.

The coperto charge only applies to seated customers (both children and adults), meaning that you won’t have it tacked onto a takeaway order – and should definitely complain if you do.

READ ALSO: ‘A rip-off’: Should you really get mad about Italy’s table charge?

It’s usually around €2-€4 per person, but can rise as high as €10 or even €15 per person at major tourist sites such as Venice’s Piazza San Marco or right next to Milan’s Duomo cathedral.

Coperto has been banned by regional law throughout Lazio since 2006, so you shouldn’t see it listed on your bill in a Rome restaurant, though it may be snuck in in the form of an extra charge for bread (pane) or service (servizio).

There’s nothing illegal about charging these fees, and a restaurant could in theory add all three to your bill – but they must be clearly listed on the menu or price board, and you can refuse bread when it’s brought to your table so you don’t have to pay an extra charge for pane.

Where to pay the bill – One major difference between Italy and other countries is that many restaurants – usually more casual ones – will expect you to walk up to the cash register to pay the bill.

This means that once you feel ready to go you can just walk up and pay at the counter, rather than waiting for the bill.

You can always double check with the server by asking paghiamo qui o alla cassa? (do we pay here or at the counter?)

In many cases, the answer will be ‘either’ so it’s really up to you – but be prepared to wait a while for both your bill and your change if you want to pay at the table.

Tourists sit in the shade of umbrellas at an open-air restaurant on a street in central Rome, on July 19 2022. Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP.

How to split the bill – If you dined with a friend or friends, then you may want to split the bill. Some Italian restaurants use smart tablets that allow servers to click each of the items you ordered and then inform you of exactly how much you owe individually, while others will expect you to do the maths yourself. 

The waiter will likely ask how you want to pay (come volete pagare?). In response, you and your friend can tell the waiter vogliamo dividere il conto (we want to split the bill) once they come out with the card reader.

READ ALSO: How to spot the Italian restaurants to avoid

If you want to split it, you can say possiamo dividerlo in three/cinque? (can we split it three ways/divide it by five?). If there’s two of you can also say paghiamo metà a testa.

If you don’t want to do an equal split – let’s say your friend had the bistecca alla fiorentina and was drinking wine while you had a salad and a water – you can just do the maths yourself and then tell the server exactly how much you want to put on each card when they come out with the card machine.

How to leave a tip – Italian wait staff aren’t reliant on tips to get by like they are in many parts of the US. As is the case elsewhere in Europe, they are paid a standard wage and tips are viewed as an added, and optional, extra.

Italians may tell you they rarely leave a tip, or only do so if service was exceptional.

While tipping is always appreciated, then, it’s entirely at the customer’s discretion (beyond ‘servizio’ charges on the bill).

READ ALSO: When and how much should I tip in Italy?

If you don’t see servizio listed on the bill, you might want to leave one or two extra euros per person, and if there’s a group of you paying the bill together, you’d want to round up to at least the nearest five.

If you’re paying by card, bear in mind that not many places will be able to add a tip to the card payment – so you might want to carry some change or small notes so you are able to leave something behind.

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