125g of dark chocolate (70%)
25g butter, diced
Sea salt
Lady fingers
200 ml hot sweetened espresso
2 large eggs
50g caster sugar
375g mascarpone
1 orange
Vin santo or other sweet dessert wine (optional)
Place a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water, making sure the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl. place 100 g of chocolate in the bowl keeping the remaining 25g behind in one piece. Once melted add the butter and a pinch of salt and mix until well combined.
Meanwhile lay the lady fingers on a tray and pour the hot coffee over. drizzle with some dessert wine.
Add a splash of wine to the melted chocolate and give it a stir to incorporate.
Now separate the whites and yolks. Add the sugar to the yolks with a bit more of wine and beat until you can see that the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is pale and creamy. Mix in the mascarpone and the zest of 1/2 orange.
Whisk the whites with a pinch of salt until they form stiff peaks. Add one spoon to the mascarpone mixture and fold it in before adding the rest and gently folding it.
Place one layer of lady fingers in a deep dish. spread some of the chocolate on top and cover it with a layer of mascarpone cream. Repeat the process until you run out of ingredients but make sure the last layer is mascarpone. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Just before you are ready to serve shave the remaining chocolate and orange on top.