Editor’s Note: This blog post is featured on the Disney Blog Carnival No. 42. Check out more posts about all things Disney.

It has been quite a while since I cracked open my copy of “Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs.” My last adventure was this key lime pie. But, let me rewind a bit. The whole story began one morning a few weeks ago when I heard on the news that Hostess, maker of the famed Twinkie, was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

I got to thinking…I have never had a Twinkie in my 31 years. How is that possible, let alone for a so-called food blogger? Of course, I’ve had Ding Dongs and Ho-Hos, but somehow that yellow cake filled with cream had eluded me. How, with a mascot like Twinkie the Kid, could this atrocity be possible? I accessed my brain full of memories as a child, what was in my lunchbox in grade school? Fig Newtons, Oreos, the occasional Nutter Butter or the curly-cued Hostess Cupcake. But, no Twinkie. My dear hubby Brett, in disbelief, quickly went to the store and bought a 10-pack of the treats for me to try once I got home from work that evening.

With a smile on my face (and a rerun of “The Big Bang Theory” playing in the background), I scarfed down my first Twinkie with the giddiness of a toddler. Creamy frosting all over my face and hands, and a cheek-to-cheek grin.

And with that Twinkie, now deep inside my happy belly, I recalled a recipe in my Disney cookbook for Twinkie Tiramisu, a dish that’s served at the Pop Century Resort’s food court. As Hostess is fighting for its future, I trekked to the store to bulk up on more boxes of the lunchbox staple (it was buy 1 get 1 free!) and make this twist on the classic Italian dessert.

Ingredients

Espresso syrup

• 1/3 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup strongly brewed espresso coffee
• 1/4 cup Italian or domestic brandy (optional)

Mascarpone Filling

• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 pound mascarpone cheese, softened to room temperature
• 12 Twinkies, sliced 1/2 inch thick (I ended up using a few extra, close to 14 or 15)
• Cocoa powder, for garnish

To make the espresso syrup

First, combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat. Cool and add the coffee and brandy. (I didn’t use the brandy in mine since I didn’t make a run to the liquor store.)

Next, slice the Twinkies in half. I went the horizontal way. Keep a wet paper towel on hand to wipe your knife between slices, otherwise it gets a bit sticky and the knife gets caught on the cake. This was probably the most time-consuming part of the entire recipe!

Next, to make the filling, whip the cream, sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Then, fold the softened mascarpone cheese into the cream.

To assemble, use a 9×13 baking dish and place a layer of the Twinkie slices on the bottom. Drizzle half of the espresso syrup over the cake pieces. Then, spread half of the cheese filling over the cake. Repeat the layers of Twinkies, coffee and filling.

Smooth the top of the tiramisu with a spatula. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least an hour (and up to 24 hours) to chill.

Shortly before serving, sift cocoa powder on top for a nice dusting of chocolatey goodness!

The end result: a super-moist tiramisu with a fluffy, light filling. You won’t believe you’re eating cheese! I took 3/4 of mine to work and it was a BIG hit! You’ll really impress anyone that you make this dessert for!!

I hope these won’t be my last Twinkies! It would be so sad to think that my first (and potentially last) Twinkies would be when I was in my 30s. It got me to thinking, if we can bail out car makers, we can bail out Hostess! C’mon, there’s gotta be someone out there willing to shell out the bucks to save an American institution. It would be like a world with no more Jell-o or Cheerios. I don’t think I could live in a world like that!