OLE! A MEXICAN DINNER IN ITALY!

Much as we LOVE Italian food, we sometimes want something different. Some nights I'll fix meatloaf with mashed potatoes, or roast a large chicken with stuffing (and wish I'd brought back some cranberries!). One of the tastes we miss the most here in Italy is Mexican.....chips and salsa, refried beans, fajitas, tacos. Yes, some of the ingredients are available here, but for the most part I need to plan ahead.

Sometimes the convenience foods and mixes we take for granted in the states are a blessing when you live in another country. I bring back a mix for salsa: just add tomatoes and green onions and let sit until the flavors mix....fantastic! I also bring back seasoning mix to make fajitas...grill some peppers, onions and chicken, add the seasoning packet, water, and ole! it's fajita time! Of course the one key ingredient we need to complete our Mexican feast is cheddar cheese, and thanks to our friend Nedra we have two nice chunks. Friends Jill and Larry left us a large bag of tortillas, and thanks to Jane we now know about the dried refried beans that cook up quickly and taste really, really good. It's time for Mexican night!

Whenever we have Mexican food we always call Wendy, knowing how much she loves spicy and/or Mexican food. She was finally able to get away from work the other day to join us for chips and salsa, refried beans, and chicken fajitas. Our English friend Janine also joined us, and I wondered how she'd react to our version of Mexican food. She loves spicy stuff, so I wasn't too worried.

I ended the evening with a new recipe I'd been wanting to try: Jamie Oliver's Chocolate Tiramisu. Here's the recipe as I made it, but you can find the original by clicking on the link.

Chocolate Tiramisu by Jamie Oliver

For the Tiramisu
· 110 gr good-quality white chocolate, melted
· 4 shots espresso coffee
· Tia Maria liqueur (a coffee liqueur)
· cocoa powder for dusting
· 1 bar good-quality dark chocolate for shavings

For the Genoese Sponge
· 110 gr caster sugar
· 4 eggs
· 50 g melted butter
· 85 gr plain flour
· 30 gr good-quality cocoa powder

For the Filling
· 500 gr mascarpone cheese
· 70 gr caster sugar
· 2 egg yolks
· 100 ml Vin Santo

First make the sponge. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Whisk the sugar and eggs until they are at ribbon stage. Fold in the melted butter, then fold in the sifted flour and cocoa. Pour the mixture into a lined Swiss roll tin and bake in the preheated oven at for 10 minutes. Remove the sponge from the oven when it's done and leave to cool.

To make the filling, put the mascarpone, sugar, egg yolks and Vin Santo into a bowl and mix until smooth.

To assemble the tiramisu, break up the sponge and press it into the bottom of a shallow dish. Drizzle over the coffee, Tia Maria and white chocolate. Spoon over the mascarpone filling, then dust liberally with cocoa. Using a large knife, scrape the chocolate towards you to make shavings and arrange these delicately over the top.

Art made the espresso in the six cup pot, and I used 4 (espresso) cupfuls. I was hesitant to add that much in addition to the coffee liqueur. There's no way to taste and adjust at this stage, so I just had to hope for the best. In the end I could have added a little more espresso and/or coffee liqueur, and I'm not even a big coffee fan, but what you want in this dish is the contrast of the bitter coffee with the sweet creaminess of the marscapone filling.

Everyone agreed that this version of tiramisu was a winner, even after we'd all had THRRE fajitas each, in addition to the chips and salsa! Maybe the sign of a successful dinner party is when your guests groan as they get up from the table! We've now satisfied our Mexican tooth, at least until we return to the states in December. Thanks to all who helped make this meal possible, and thanks to our friends for sharing it with us!