• Preheat oven to 300 F. Prepare the baking sheets: butter lightly, dust with flour, and knock off excess flour. Assemble the pastry bag. Prepare the powdered sugar. Measure out all the rest of the ingredients listed in the recipe.

Make the Ladyfinger Batter

• Gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks, add the vanilla, and continue beating for several minutes until the mixture is thick, pale yellow, and forms a ribbon.
• Beat the egg whites and salt together in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed. Sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
• Scoop one-fourth of the egg whites over the top of the egg yolks and sugar mixture with your spatula.

  Sift on one fourth of the flour, and delicately fold in until partially blended. Then add one third of the remaining egg whites, sift on one third of the remaining flour, fold until partially blended, and repeat with half of each, then the last of each.

  Do not attempt to blend the mixture too thoroughly or you will deflate the batter; it must remain light and puffy.

Form the Ladyfingers

• Scoop the batter into the pastry bag. Squeeze out even lines onto the prepared baking sheets, making finger shapes 4 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide, spaced 1 inch apart.

  Sprinkle with a 1/16-inch layer of powdered sugar. To dislodge some of the excess sugar, hold baking sheet upside down and tap the back of it gently; the ladyfingers will not budge unless you are rough with them.

Bake the Ladyfingers

• Bake in the middle and upper third levels of preheated oven for about 20 minutes. The ladyfingers are done when they are a very pale brown underneath their sugar coating. They should be slightly crusty outside, and tender but dry inside.

  If they are not baked enough, they will become soggy when they cool; over-baking makes them dry.

  As soon as they are done, remove them from the baking sheets with a spatula and cool on wire racks.

To Serve

• Ladyfingers may be served as they are, with tea or fruit desserts, like charlotte russe. Or you may make double ladyfingers by sticking the two flat sides together with apricot glaze or with butter cream.