This tiramisu is a classic Italian dessert combining coffee and chocolate flavours with creamy mascarpone cheese. A great dessert to make ahead and feed a crowd.
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Tiramisu or tiramisù is Italian for 'pick me up' or 'cheer me up'. It is traditionally made by soaking ladyfingers or savoiardi that are dipped in coffee and layered with a mix of mascarpone cheese, egg yokes, sugar, coco and sometimes liquor.
I have stuck to the classic recipe here, with the one addition of whipped cream to help make the dish lighter. If you prefer yours more traditional you can omit the cream and increase the amount of mascarpone cheese but it will result in a heaver, richer dessert. I also cook the eggs in this recipe by making a sabayon a light Italian custard.
Tiramisu can be one of those simple but tricky desserts to get right. Follow my tips and tricks to avoid some common pit falls and what do it if things do go wrong.
Tips and tricks for making tiramisu
How do you fix runny tiramisu? Why is my tiramisu not setting?
There can be a few reasons for this. The lady fingers may have absorbed to much liquid. They only need a brief dip and roll over in the coffee liquor liquid, if you leave them in for to long they will go soggy and collapse. The cream may not have whipped the cream enough to get firm peaks. It needs to be enough to hold it together, without so much it will curdle. If the cream mix it to thin by the time you've mixed in the mascarpone it may run and collapse as you try to cut it.
If your tiramisu is already runny, you can try leaving it in the fridge to set for longer if you have time. Ideally leave the tiramisu to set overnight in the fridge, if you check it in the morning and its till not set you can leave it for an additional night and it should firm up.
If your tiramisu is already runny, you can try leaving it in the fridge to set for longer if you have time. Ideally leave the tiramisu to set overnight in the fridge, if you check it in the morning and its till not set you can leave it for an additional night and it should firm up.
Alternatively transfer it to individual serving glasses and dust with extra coco. If you are worried about it not setting you can make the tiramisu in individual serving glasses or ramekins, thus eliminating the need to cut serves. Most importantly even if the tiramisu is runny if you have the basic ingredients right it should still taste delicious!
My mascarpone has curdled
This can happen if you over whip the mascarpone or if there's a big temperature difference between the mascarpone and other ingredients. You can either put it into the double boiler for a couple fo minutes, mixing till the lumps get out, then cool and re whip. Alternatively put into a microwave proof bowl and microwave for a few short thirty second bursts, mixing well till all the lumps are out.
My cream is gritty
This can happen when the sugar doesn't dissolve properly. Try using castor sugar and whip well into the egg yokes, whipping frequently as heating the sabayon.
My sabayon has curdled
This can happen when the egg yokes are heated up to quickly. Ideally use a double boiler to cook the sabayon and make sure the water in the pot below isn't touching the bottom of the double boiler. If it has curdled take it off the heat and try whisking it hard with a balloon whisk. If this doesn't work you could try blitzing it briefly and carefully with an immersion blender. You may need to re heat after this to thicken it up again.
I want to make kid friendly tiramisu
You could try using decaf coffee instead of regular coffee and either leave out the liquor and replace with extra coffee or substitute it with orange juice. I have also seen tiramisu made with chocolate milk instead of coffee and liquor but I have not tried this variation.
Ingredients
Coffee: I use strong black filter coffee in this recipe. I couldn't find my french press so I made it in our drip machine. Try to avoid using instant coffee, it won't taste the same or have any where near the same depth of flavour. If you want to reduce the caffeine kick you could make this with decaf coffee instead.
Lady fingers or savoiardi: also known as sponge fingers or boudiors, are dry sweet sponge biscuits roughly shaped like a large finger. They are usually available from supermarkets and some speciality deli's etc. If you can not get lady fingers you can substitute them with sponge cake, angle cake or pound cake thats been cut into 4 inch (10cm) strips and dried out in an oven at a low temp for ten minutes to dry them out and crips them up.
Mascarpone: is a type of soft white cheese, similar to cream cheese.
Marsala wine: is the traditional liquor used in tiramisu, but it often made with several other liquors including dark rum, port, brandy or coffee flavoured liquors such as kaluah, tia maria or dissarano. You can leave the liquor out if you prefer and increase the amount of coffee to compensate or replace the liquor with orange juice or chocolate milk.
Cocoa powder: gives this recipe a wonderfully chocolatey kick. I use natural cocoa powder rather than dutch processed cocoa powder as it has a stronger flavour.
Cream: I used thickened cream in Australia. You could also use whipping cream or heavy whipping cream. For a more traditional tiramisu you could leave out the cream all together but you will need to increase the amount of mascarpone cheese to make up for this.
Castor sugar: I used castor sugar as its finer and dissolves more easily. You could also use regular white sugar.
Egg yokes: I use large eggs in this recipe. You can put the egg whites aside to make in another recipe such as my pretty rainbow meringues. Unlike some other recipes I cook the egg yokes in this recipe, which good for people who don't like eating raw eggs and makes the tiramisu keep for longer.
How to make tiramisu
Make sure you have room in your fridge for you dish to lay flat and that your mascarpone and eggs are at room temperature.
Prepare the coffee and allow to cool to room temperature.
Boil the water for the double boiler if using (highly recommended).
Make sure the heat under your double boiler is on low, and that the water is not touching the double boiler above. Seperate the eggs and put the whites aside for another recipe. Whisk the egg yokes and sugar together in a double boiler. Cook in double boiler for about five minutes, whisking frequently. The mix should be think and pale. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Whip the cream until firm peaks have formed. Mix the mascarpone with half the masala wine and beat until it starts to stiffen but do not over mix. Mix the sabayon into the mascarpone and gently mix.
Gently fold the mascarpone mix into the whipped cream, taking care not to nock the air out of the cream.
Dip half lady fingers biscuits briefly into the coffee marsala mix. Dip, flip and remove. Arrange dipped biscuits on the bottom of your baking dish, packing them in closely together.
Spread half the mascapone cream mix on top of the biscuites. For extra chocolatleyness you can sprinkle on some coco powder at this point if you like. Dip the other half of the lady fingers biscuites into the coffee marsala mix and arrange on top of the first layer. Spread the remaining mascapone cream mix over the top and smooth down.
Dust with sieved coco powder. Cover with cling wrap and chill in fridge overnight or at least eight hours. See my tips and tricks for what to do if your tiramisu doesn't set.
To serve
Remove from the fridge, dust with some extra coco powder, cut with a sharp knife and carefully remove with an egg flip or spatular. Great on its own or with a cup of coffee and a nip of marsala wine or liquor. Delicious!
To store
This tiramisu will keep covered in the fridge for up to four days from the day its made. You can also freeze this on the day of making but I haven't personally tried this.
Have you made this recipe? Tell me how it went in the comments below and tag me on instagram so I can see your delicious creations! @keep_calm_and_eat_icecream
Looking for more yummy dessert recipes? Why not try making
- No churn chocolate ice cream
- No churn coffee ice cream
- Mint choc chip ice cream
- Tim tam rocky road
- Vegan bounty ice cream bites
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📋 Recipe
Tiramisu
Equipment
- 1 deep dish baking tray, approx. 8 inches squared (20cm by 20cm)
Ingredients
- 1 cup (250mls) cold strong black coffee
- ½ cup masala wine *optional
- 24 lady fingers or sponge finger biscuits
- 3 large egg yolks
- ⅓ cup (80 gms) castor or white sugar
- 2 tubs (8.8oz/ 250gms each) mascarpone cheese
- 2 cups (500mls) thickened cream
- ¼ cup Cocoa powder or finely chopped chocolate, for dusting
Instructions
- If using a double boiler put water on to heat up.
- Whip cream lightly until firm peaks form.
- Add half the marsala to the mascarpone cheese. Whip until mix starts to firm up but not not over mix, or it will curdle.
- If using a double boiler make sure the top of the water does not touch the bottom of the double boiler. Start with boiling water then turn the heat down and keep the heat on as low as possible. Add the egg yolks and sugar to the top of the double boiler and whisk together with a balloon whisk until pale. This is your sabayon.
- Continue to whisk for five to ten minutes until mixture is pale, foamy and starts to thicken up. Once thickened remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Add the slightly cooled sabayon to the mascarpone cheese and mix to incorporate.
- Add mascarpone mix to whipped cream and fold in gently to incorporate, without knocking the air out of the mix. It should be nice and thick and hold its shape pretty well.
- Mix the cold coffee and masala wine and put into a shallow bowl
- Dip ½ of the sponge finger biscuits in one by one, turning over briefly before removing.
- Place the soaked sponge fingers into the dish, lining them up as needed.
- Spread half the cream mix over the coffee soaked biscuits.
- Repeat for the next layer, soaking the sponge biscuits and covering with cream mix.
- One the top layer is completed dust generously with cocoa powder or finely chopped chocolate.
- Cover and chill in fridge for at least 4 hours, ideally over night.
- To serve remove from fridge, slice and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate based on an online database. The nutritional content of ingredients may vary by brand. If you require accurate nutritional information, you should calculate this based on the specific brands and products you are using.
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Sylvie says
Always such a great dessert - it doesnt matter how many times I have tiramisu, I'm always happy to have more! Thanks for all the great tips too 🙂
Janelle says
i love the step by step instructions for the delish recipe. yum! thanks for the inspo