Asha's Masala Chai Tiramisu

To make the soaking liquid and filling

1. To make the soaking liquid, place the water, Masala Chai Blend, and jaggery in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl and let cool to room temperature. When completely cooled, mix in the rum and vanilla extract.
2. To make the filling, remove the cardamom seeds from the pod and place in a mortar, then pound into a fine powder. Transfer the ground cardamom to the bowl of a stand mixer along with the eggs, granulated sugar, jaggery, and salt, and whisk to combine. Bring a small saucepan with 1-inch of water to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low to keep it at a simmer and place the bowl with the egg mixture over the pan and cook, stirring constantly (make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl so the heat doesn’t cook the eggs), until the sugar melts and the eggs reach 160°F, 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Transfer the bowl to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, then whisk on high speed until lighten in color and texture with very soft peaks (you want it to be thick and ribbony like airy custard), 8 to 12 minutes. Scrape down the sides, then start whipping at medium-high speed and add the mascarpone ⅓ cup at a time until just combined, scraping down the bowl, as needed (be careful not to overmix because the higher fat content of the mascarpone can cause it to split). Cover and refrigerate until the soaking liquid is completely cooled.

To make one large tiramisu

1. Dollop one-quarter of the filling in the bottom of an 8x8” baking pan and spread in an even layer. Taking one ladyfinger at a time, turn it 2 to 3 times in the chai soaking liquid (you don’t want them drenched because they’ll get too soggy) and arrange them in a single layer covering the bottom of the pan (this should be about 12 to 15 ladyfingers). Spoon half of the remaining filling on top of the soaked ladyfingers and spread into an even layer, then repeat with one more layer of ladyfingers and finish with the remaining filling (if you want, you can put the filling for the top in a piping bag and pipe a fun design on top). Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, up to overnight.
2. To serve, mix the cacao powder and cinnamon in a small bowl, transfer to a fine mesh strainer/sifter and dust the top(s) of the tiramisu generously.

To make individual tiramisu

1. Choose 6 to 8 glasses (if they aren’t the same kind of glasses, that just adds to the charm of it all—choose a mix of coupes, low ball glasses, etc). Place the filling in a piping bag. Pipe a thin layer of the filling in the bottom of each glass. If needed, cut the ladyfingers to the size needed to fit in the cups, then taking one piece at a time, turn it 2 to 3 times in the chai soaking liquid (you don’t want them drenched because they’ll get too soggy) and arrange them in a single layer covering the bottom of each glass. Pipe a generous layer of filling, and repeat with another layer of ladyfingers and filling. If you want to pipe a design on top, I usually will just spread a thin layer of the filling on the top layer of soaked ladyfingers, then keep the rest of the filling in the piping bag to finish right before serving (this makes covering the glasses easier). Place on a tray, cover, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, up to overnight.
2. To serve, mix the cacao powder and cinnamon in a small bowl, transfer to a fine mesh strainer/sifter and dust the top(s) of the tiramisu generously.