Somehow between culinary school and today (which was legit almost 10 years ago) I seem to have forgotten about a Classic Italian Tiramisu! Well - not anymore!! I made my recipe from culinary school a few weeks back and OMG WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING WITH MY LIFE!
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
This Classic Italian Tiramisu is seriously one of the easiest recipes and is made with a sweet mascarpone filling and layered with espresso dipped lady fingers. It's truly perfection and I can't believe I haven't made it since culinary school. Instead of resorting to my usual cookie consumption for dessert for all of our recent parties, I changed it up and made Tiramisu. BRILLIANT. It takes almost no time to make and the recipe below is one that my culinary school instructor literally engrained into our brains during the dessert portion of our curriculum.
If you are making tiramisu as dessert for a dinner party, here's some dishes you can make to go with that: Cacio e Pepe, Bolognese, Pasta alla Vodka, Baked Rigatoni, Sausage with Tortellini
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder - this is my favorite kind!
- Espresso - you'll need a cup, so brew a handful of shots or buy them pre-brewed from your favorite coffee shop or grocery store
- Vanilla Extract
- Pasteurized Eggs - I always buy pasteurized eggs for this recipe as that means the eggs have been heat treated to kill off bacteria that could potentially cause a food borne illness. And since we're using raw eggs, it's the way to go!
- Sugar
- Kosher Salt
- Mascarpone Cheese - an integral part!! There isn't a great substitution here.
- Heavy cream
- Ladyfinger Cookies - make sure you get the hard ones
*For a full list of ingredients and instructions please see recipe card below.
How to Make Tiramisu
Step 1:Whisk together the cocoa powder, espresso and vanilla in a bowl and set aside to really infuse the flavors together.
Step 2: In a mixer or using a hand mixer, beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and thick, about 5 minutes.
Step 3: Add in the salt, mascarpone cheese and continue to whip until smooth.
Step 4: Add the chilled cream and continue to whip, until light, creamy and smooth
Step 5: Make sure it can hold a soft peak.
Step 6: Dunk each ladyfinger in the espresso mixture to absorb the liquid and start to line a 7x11 oval baking dish with the cookies.
Step 7: Top the first layer of cookies with ½ of the whipped mascarpone mixture and use the back of a metal spoon to spread it into an even layer. Dust with cocoa powder.
Step 8: Repeat for another layer and then finish by dusting with cocoa powder on top.
Step 9: Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours before serving.
How to Store Tiramisu
You can store tiramisu covered with plastic wrap for 3-4 days. The flavors of the tiramisu marry and develop as it keeps, especially once its been stored overnight.
How to Freeze Tiramisu
I do not recommending freezing tiramisu since. The no-bake and nature of other ingredients do not make it a great candidate for freezing.
Tips and Tricks
- ALL the ingredients for the filling must be cold. So when you read the recipe below, pay attention to the few things that need to be taken directly from the fridge.
- Get the ladyfingers from an Italian market if possible!!
- Mascarpone is essential. There is no substitution for it - so while you're out looking for the ladyfingers, grab the Mascarpone.
- No espresso on hand - no problem! Use coffee!
- Dunking the ladyfingers is an art form - you need enough to get a good flavor and texture, but you don't want them to fall apart. Just a quick dunk will do - nothing more than 1-2 seconds!
- NOTE - DO NOT SERVE IT RIGHT AWAY! While it will be delicious, the cocoa powder needs time to soften up and infuse into the cream topping otherwise you'll inhale straight cocoa powder and let me tell you from experience, it's not cute lol.
FAQs
What is traditional tiramisu made of?
A Classic Italian Tiramisu is a coffee-flavored Italian dessert that dreams are made of. It's made of ladyfingers dipped in espresso, layered with a whipped mixture of eggs, sugar, and mascarpone cheese and layered with cocoa powder.
What is the predominant flavor in the classic Italian dessert tiramisu?
The espresso dunked ladyfingers take center stage along with the creamy mascarpone mixture. Both are light and compliment each other beautifully.
Similar Recipes
If you tried this recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting today
Classic Italian Tiramisu
Ingredients
- ¼ cup Dutch Processed cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
- 1 cup brewed espresso (optional to add a few tablespoons of dark rum)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 5 large egg yolks, cold (I use pasteurized eggs)
- ½ cup white sugar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 8-ounce tubs mascarpone cheese, chilled
- 1 ¾ cups heavy cream, chilled
- 2-3 dozen hard ladyfinger cookies
Instructions
- Whisk together the cocoa powder, espresso and vanilla in a bowl and set aside
- In a mixer or using a hand mixer, beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and thick, about 5 minutes. Add in the salt, mascarpone cheese and continue to whip until smooth. Add the chilled cream and continue to whip, until light, creamy, smooth and can hold a soft peak.
- Dunk each ladyfinger in the espresso mixture to absorb the liquid and start to line a 7x11 oval baking dish with the cookies. Top the first layer of cookies with ½ of the whipped mascarpone mixture and use the back of a metal spoon to spread it into an even layer. Dust with cocoa powder. Repeat for another layer and then finish by dusting with cocoa powder on top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours before serving.
Notes
-
- ALL the ingredients for the filling must be cold. So when you read the recipe below, pay attention to the few things that need to be taken directly from the fridge.
- No espresso on hand - no problem! Use coffee!
- Dunking the ladyfingers is an art form - you need enough to get a good flavor and texture, but you don't want them to fall apart. Just a quick dunk will do - nothing more than 1-2 seconds!
- Make sure you leave time to rest the tiramisu. The cocoa powder needs time to soften up and infuse into the cream topping otherwise you'll inhale straight cocoa powder and let me tell you from experience, it's not cute lol.
Hi I’m planning to make this for my sister’s birthday! Thank you for the recipe, I was wondering how much ground coffee I should use in place of espresso for a pour over
I'm not a pour over gal so I don't know how much ground coffee you need to make 1 cup of a pour over! But as long as you have 1 cup of a coffee liquid, you're golden
I love it
I made this for my adult son's birthday cake. It was a hit! His fiance and he said it was the best tiramisu they ever had. They more days it sits, the more blended the flavors the better it gets. The last day I ate it which was day 4, was the best. At first I thought it needed a tad bit more sugar but after the flavors melded I changed my mind. It is a keeper.
My fiancé & I made this for Christmas, & it was even better than I thought it could be! We bake & cook a ton, & we found this recipe so easy to follow. So so so yummy! I just know we will be making this recipe over & over again, especially now that we know how easy it actually is to make. Thanks so much, Gaby!
For everyone looking for pasteurized eggs, I researched this for hours (& days) … and I couldn’t find them, so we decided to use regular fresh eggs as we are not high risk. We called every type of place we could think of (including Italian markets & even restaurants that make tiramisu in house—we called EVERYONE), asked Reddit, asked Nextdoor, etc. It seems like no one has seen them widely available since 2020. The largest supplier is Davidsons Eggs, but their website doesn’t even mention them anymore.
Hi Gaby,
I tried your recipe and It was easy to follow and it turned out great. I made a double batch for a pan that was
12 x 18 to take to a party. well I had very good comments on how delicious it was. So the next day I made another to take to a block party for Christmas and my final batch in 3 days was for the family Christmas party.
All great reviews.
So like in texture and so tasty. I always thought it would be a difficult to get the restaurant quality dessert.
I will be more likely to try more of your recipes.
Thank You for helping all of us . Vicky D
wonderful recipe and so easy to make. I took me longer to find the correct ingredients.
And I made 3 different batches for 3 different parties and they all love it.
thanks for all your recipes.
Vicky D.
Could U please send me the name of the coco powder you buy on amazon, I saw it and now I can't find it.
thanks again. 🙂
Can this be made in a 9x13 pan?
sure can - you might need to adjust the amount of lady fingers to cover but no prob!
Where are you guys finding pasteurized eggs? I can’t seem to find them anywhere
I can't find egg yolks pasteurized! Any suggestions Gaby?
SAME! In Seattle suburbs and tried 2 Safeways and a QFC so far.
I ended up pasteurizing them myself using a sous vide set at 135 for 1 hr 15 min then an ice bath. Could not find them in the store a anywhere!
Can this be made ahead and frozen?
I havent ever tried to freeze it but I would think that would work!!
I have espresso powder. How do I use in this recipe? Can’t wait to make. My son’s favorite!
Thank you for all of your wonderful recipes!
1 teaspoon of the Espresso Powder dissolved in 1 cup water to substitute for coffee
I make this every Christmas! The leftovers are a perfect breakfast with coffee!
Why have I never made this before?? You make it sound so easy, I will definitely be trying this!
This recipe is AMAZING! So approachable and so delicious. Thank you for another hit, Gaby!
Delicious! But definitely takes more than 15 minutes to make. It took about 15 minutes just to beat the eggs/sugar/cream/mascarpone, so I'd say 30 mins from start to final dusting.
I made this for a dinner tonight, and just realized I totally forgot to add the chilled cream to the filling. ♀️ Is it still edible? Or is it going to be a total disaster?
ohhhhh very interesting. still edible but not as light and airy