No need to dine out—learn how to make the BEST Homemade Tiramisu at home. Indulge in coffee-soaked lady fingers and creamy mascarpone all layered into a delicious Italian dessert.
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If you want to make a stunning dessert that tastes just as good as the restaurants, follow this recipe. Here I walk you through how to make this layered dessert.
This BEST Homemade Tiramisu recipe is...
- A traditional tiramisu recipe
- Made with mascarpone
- A great make-ahead dessert
- Gorgeous to serve for guests
How to Make the BEST Homemade Tiramisu
- For the mascarpone cream, separate eggs and yolks.
- Add sugar to whites and beat until double in size.
- Repeat with remaining sugar and eggs; look for stiff peaks.
- Beat the mascarpone until creamy. Then add egg yolks and whites mixture.
- Soak your ladyfingers in the coffee mixture.
- Place a layer of ladyfingers in your pan.
- Layer with half the cream, top with ladyfingers, and add another cream layer.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
- Dust with coffee granules or cocoa powder before serving.
Full directions for how to make the BEST Homemade Tiramisu are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Tips & Tricks for BEST Homemade Tiramisu
Whip the Mascarpone
To get that ultra creamy texture, make sure to really whip the mascarpone. You'll want to whip it really well before folding in the egg mixture. This will give your mascarpone an ultra creamy texture.
Warm Mascarpone
I take my mascarpone out about 10–15 minutes before I start making tiramisu. This lets the mascarpone warm up just a bit, which makes it easier to work with.
Mixer
I really recommend using a stand or hand mixer to make this recipe. Whipping mascarpone can be a bit difficult. So some kind of electric-powered mixer is going to really help the mascarpone get the proper consistency.
Variations to BEST Homemade Tiramisu
Coffee
Any type or flavor of coffee works for this recipe. You could even use espresso if you wanted to! It will shift the flavor of your dessert slightly, so experiment and find which coffee you prefer.
Topping
For the topping, you could finely grind up some coffee beans and pair it with cocoa powder. Then simply dust the mixture over the top of your cake. Alternatively, you could use just cocoa powder or coffee granules.
BEST Homemade Tiramisu FAQs
Can you oversoak the ladyfinger cookies?
You want to make sure that you don't oversoak the cookies or they will fall apart. So make sure to watch how long you dip them, or you will have to start over.
Can I make this dessert in advance?
You are more than welcome to make this tiramisu a day in advance. I find that making this dessert early is a great way to allow it to really set up. Just make sure to store your tiramisu in an airtight container in the fridge.
Can you freeze tiramisu?
It is possible to freeze your leftover tiramisu. Start by wrapping it in plastic wrap, then foil. Then you can freeze your dessert for 2–3 months. When you're ready to eat the tiramisu again, thaw it in the fridge overnight, then enjoy!
Recipe
Ingredients
Mascarpone Cream
- 8.8 oz mascarpone cheese 250 g
- 2 eggs 2 yolks, 1 egg white
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
Soaked Ladyfingers
- ¾ cup coffee 180ml, prepared and cooled
- 20 ladyfingers
Optional Decoration
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder
- coffee grains
Instructions
Mascarpone Cream
- Separate the yolks from the egg whites. You will only use 1 egg white and 2 two yolks for this recipe.
- Mix half of the sugar with the egg yolks and beging beating with a hand mixer until whipped. Sugar should be dissolved, and the volume of the mixture should nearly double in size. Set aside.
- Mix the other half of the sugar with the egg white and repeat the process. This time, use the whisk attachment for whipping. The volume should increase much more. You will know it is ready when you remove the whisk from the mixture, and the egg white still sticks to it.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the mascarpone.
- Add the whipped yolks.
- Mix until well combined.
- Add the whipped egg white and combine, slowly folding it in with a spatula in a circular motion.
- It's important to use a folding motion to add air into the final mixture. You will get a creamy and delicious mascarpone cream.
Soaked Ladyfingers
- Dunk the ladyfingers into the cooled coffee, soaking them each for about 5 seconds.
Assemble Tiramisu
- Start placing the first layer of ladyfingers in the bottom of an 8” springform pan. You will have to break some ladyfingers to fill in any small gaps.
- Once the first layer of soaked ladyfingers is complete, use a spoon to spread half of your mascarpone cream over the top.
- Repeat the process for another layer of ladyfingers and another layer of cream. (You can do more or less layers, as you prefer.)
- Chill tiramisu in the fridge for about 3 hours. Remove the springform pan from the sides. You can use a butter knife to loosen the edges if needed, then just smooth the sides back out.
- Dust lightly with cocoa powder or coffee grains for decoration if desired.
Notes
- It will be easier for you to beat the mascarpone if you take it out of the fridge 10 minutes before using it.
- You can use any type of coffee to soak the ladyfingers, but remember: the better the quality of the ingredients, the better the result will be. This especially applies to coffee because it is one of the dominant flavors in the recipe.
- Be careful not to oversoak the ladyfingers, because they can fall apart and the taste of the coffee will be excessive.
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