Tiramisu

Semisweet chocolate, grated or cocoa powder for dusting through a sift Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Whip egg whites to soft peaks. Gradually sprinkle in the remaining 1/2 cup sugar while whipping to medium stiff peaks. In a separate bowl, whip egg yolks and 1/4 cup of sugar with an electric mixer until thick and pale. Fold the egg yolk mixture into the egg whites. Gently fold in the flour and vanilla. Trace two 9 inch circles onto the parchment paper using a cake pan as a guide. Spread batter to completely fill inside the lines of the circles. Batter should be about 1/2 inch tall. (I could have these two circles on one plate, having the centers on the diagonal) The remaining batter can be used to make a little cake you can eat to test if the cake is ok before serving the big one :) Bake in preheated oven 10 to 15 minutes, until firm but not browned. Remove from the oven and and turn it over on a grid and remove the paper immidiately, which is easy while it's hot. Rotate the two cakes 90 degrees so they wont stick to the grid. To make the filling, combine mascarpone, icing sugar, Cognac and vanilla in a large bowl. Whisk together until completely smooth, scraping the bottom of the bowl to remove any lumps. Pour in the heavy cream. Whip with an electric mixer so it gets thick. Stop whipping when the mixture shows the first sign of graininess. To assemble, line the sides and bottom of a 9-10 inch springform pan with parchment or waxed paper. Place one of the ladyfinger rounds in the bottom of the pan (there should be a little space btween the sides of the cakae and the sides of the springform). Mix coffee and cognac. Sift some cocoa powder over the cake and with a tablespoon spread less than half the coffee dip, don't overdo it. Spread half of the filling mixture over the first ladyfinger round in the pan. Place the remaining ladyfinger round on top of the filling, and sift cocoapowder. Soak the second ladyfinger round with syrup until it cannot take any more. Spread the remaining filling over that and smooth the top. Sprinkle with grated chocolate or sift cocoa powder. Make the test cake on a plate - there's not much creme filling for this, so it can hold itself. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (Best to let it wait to next day, eat the test cake while waiting). When serving, remove the sides of the pan and carefully remove the parchment or waxed paper from the outside of the cake.