My Tiramisu makes it easy for a home cook to make this amazing dessert that has a soft spot in my heart! One bite and you will be in Italy.
This traditional Italian Non-Chocolate Dessert is light and delicious, perfect for serving with a tasty after-dinner espresso. If you love rich Italian desserts then you have to check out my recipes for Affogato and Panna Cotta next!
Why You’ll Love This Tiramisu?
- Easy to make instructions make it easy for a home chef to make a Italian bakery worthy dessert!
- Has an impressive look that will wow all of your dinner party guests.u003cspan style=u0022white-space: normalu0022u003eu003cstrong style=u0022color: rgb(0, 51, 102); font-size: revert; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, u0026quot;Segoe UIu0026quot;, Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, u0026quot;Helvetica Neueu0026quot;, sans-serif;u0022u003e u003c/strongu003eu003c/spanu003e
Sabrina’s Tiramisu Recipe
After I’ve finished a hearty dinner of Meat Lasagna, I like to keep with the theme and make a traditional Italian dessert. I’ve tried a lot of Tiramisu through the years, but I have to say that the best one I’ve had was the first time I went to Italy. I went to a dinner party in Venice, I tried Tramezzino sandwiches, rich zabaglione, and savoiardi, or Italian lady fingers. Everything was so amazing, but the classic dessert really stuck out, especially since I had it with the world’s best cup of espresso. This beautiful spoon dessert is sure to knock the socks off of anyone who sees and tastes it!
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Custard Mixture:
- 6 large egg yolks
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 16 ounces mascarpone cheese
Whipped Cream:
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Coffee Soak:
- 1/4 cup coffee , room temperature
- 2 tablespoons dark rum
To Assemble:
- 6 ounces ladyfinger cookies
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Instructions
Custard Mixture:
- To a large dutch oven or saucepan add the egg yolks and sugar, whisking well.
- Turn the heat to medium heat and slowly whisk in the milk until it comes to a low simmer, then cook for 1 minute before removing from heat.
- Place onto an ice bath, whisk to cool down faster then refrigerate, covered, for 1 hour.
- Whisk the mascarpone into the cooled egg custard until smooth.
Whipped Cream:
- To your stand mixer add the heavy cream on medium speed until it starts to thicken.
- Once it thickens add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and raise the speed to medium high, beating until it hold stiff peaks.
Coffee Soak:
- In a small bowl stir together the coffee and rum.
To Assemble:
- To an 8×10 baking dish add the first half of the ladyfinger cookies, then brush them with the coffee-rum mixture.
- Spread half the egg custard over the soaked cookies.
- Spread half the whipped cream on top of egg custard.
- Repeat a second time and wrap tightly with plastic wrap.
- Refrigerate for 4 hours, until the custard and whipped cream have chilled thoroughly and set enough to be sliceable.
- Dust with cocoa powder just before serving.
Nutrition
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Note from Sabrina
Most Tiramisu recipes require that you dip every single lady finger individually. With this easy-to-make recipe, all you need to do is get a pastry brush and brush a light layer over the lady fingers. They are like sponges so they will soak up all that coffee rum goodness, giving you the same great flavor and texture without all of the extra hassle. Remember to just do a light layer, and try not to soak them too much.
Table of contents
About this Recipe
I started developing this easy Tiramisu recipe, as soon as I got home from Italy, so that you can make it with just a simple baking dish and a mixing bowl. I’ve recreated that tasty authentic recipe with a few slight alterations to make it a bit easier for home cooks. Most of the ingredients you can find at any local grocery store, since I couldn’t find a lot of the specific items that I would have used in Italy. I recommend serving up slices with a cup of strong coffee for the full experience! If you like the idea of serving up a light cake, there are plenty more on my Dessert recipe page that you can make really quickly and easily.
Can this be made ahead of time?
Yes, this dessert is perfect to be made ahead of time since it needs time to sit in the fridge to set. I recommend letting it set for at least 4 hours but overnight would be better. It will last in the fridge for up to 4 days so you can make it a day or two ahead of your dinner party and it will be perfect to serve. Just wait to dust the top with cocoa powder until right before serving.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Make sure to keep your stove on medium heat and whisk slowly so you don’t scramble the eggs in the custard mixture.
- Let your mascarpone come to room temperature before adding it into the egg mixture. This will help it to blend in more smoothly.
- Make sure you layer your lady fingers closely together so that the custard layer doesn’t soak through the cracks.
Serving Ideas
You can top your Tiramisu with all sorts of decorative toppings, from a fine dusting of espresso powder or unsweetened cocoa powder, to a dollop of extra Homemade Whipping Cream. I also like adding a handful of sliced nuts or some dried fruit depending on the occasion. You can also serve it with a side of Homemade Ice Cream or top it with whipped mascarpone to cut the sweetness.
How to Store
- Serve: It’s best kept chilled and you don’t want to leave it out for longer than 2 hours.
- Store: You can keep this desert in the fridge for up to 4 days if you keep it in plastic wrap or in an airtight container. Keeping moisture out of it is key, so make sure to secure it tightly.
- Freeze: You can freeze it for up to 3 months if you keep it in plastic wrap.
Frequent Questions
Tiramisu translates to ‘pick me up.’ The idea was that it’s a little cake to give you energy.
In some cases. Traditionally, Madeira wine or Marsala wine is used but all sorts of liqueurs have made their way into it, like Amaretto, Kahlua, or coffee liqueur.
It tastes similar to a pudding that has flavors of coffee liquor mixed with creamy custard and whipped cream layers. So basically, a pudding version of a coffee with cream.
Variations
- Liquor: My recipe calls for a little dark rum, but you can use all sorts of different libations depending on your preference. You can use Marsala wine, Amaretto, or what you have on hand as long as it complements coffee.
- Non-Alcoholic: You also don’t need to make your Tiramisu boozy if you don’t want to, you can skip the liqueur and still get an amazing tasting Italian dessert.
- Lemon: Instead of a coffee layer, use an Italian lemon Liquor to brush your lady fingers. Add lemon 2-3 tablespoons of lemon zest into your whipped cream layer.
Related Recipes
More Delicious Italian Desserts
Photos used in previous posts:
Can you please tell me if you use the soft or hard ladyfingers? Does it make a difference? Thanks.
The best ladyfingers for this recipe are very dry and crisp. They’re often called savioardi and are imported from Italy. If you can’t find these and your supermarket only has soft, cakelike ladyfingers, you’ll need to let them dry out in the oven first.
Made this for a crowd as dessert following a lasagna dinner and it got rave reviews from everyone. Super tasty!
Absolutely loved this tiramisu! So delicious!
Tiramisu is high on my list of perfect desserts! This is a great, easy to follow recipe. The tiramisu was decadent and delicious.
This tiramisu recipe is so good! Great combination of texture and flavor, a classic Italian dessert!
This tiramisu is a crowd favorite last New Year’s Eve celebration. It is so delicious and impressive. Thanks Sabrina for helping me satisfy my family and guest!
We had tiramisu last Christmas, it was a hit! It is so delicious and irresistible, everyone loves it.