Homemade Tiramisu

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Classic Homemade Tiramisu. Your favorite dessert, now made at home! Multiple decadent layers of Homemade Ladyfingers soaked in a coffee and liqueur mixture, with sweetened mascarpone cream, cocoa powder, and finished with Chantilly Cream. It’s actually a lot easier to make than you might think and oh so delicious! Every bite is creamy, sweet, coffee-y, and has just the right amount cocoa powder. You couldn’t ask for the better dessert to make to celebrate any and every special occasion. Truly a guaranteed crowd pleaser that is effortlessly stunning. So GOOD.

About The Recipe

Happy Wednesday!

If you didn’t see our Instagram post/stories then you might’ve missed that yesterday was my mom’s birthday! We’ve also just gotten back from our trip to Disney World, so we’re EXTREMELY tired, but we (of course!) had to make something to celebrate. Though, she couldn’t decide between two desserts…so, here is the first one! Classic homemade tiramisu.

This is a variation of the recipe my mom used to make all the time when she was catering/when I was growing up. Though, I think this one might be even BETTER! Before we left heading to Disney, we had made a batch of Homemade Ladyfingers (and admittedly snacked on quite a few on our way to Florida). We froze the ones we didn’t eat and, when we got home, we knew immediately what we needed to make!

Of course, we ran to the store after we got home and bought our normal staples, but also got some mascarpone…actually, we bought a FEW packs of mascarpone. We had a few troubles with our tiramisu layer cake when it came to the mascarpone.

This filling was no different. We made it a few different ways, but quickly found that just stirring the mascarpone in works the best! It yields in the silkiest, fluffiest, and easiest tiramisu filling EVER.

If i’m going to be honest, this is SO much easier to make than you might think. The hardest part? Waiting for the tiramisu to set! It’s so tempting to just dig into this after assembling, but it REALLY needs to set.

Every bite is so decadent, luscious, perfectly sweet, with just the right amount of coffee and cocoa powder. You couldn’t ask for a better dessert to celebrate special occasions, but especially birthday’s!

Reasons You Need To Make This Tiramisu Recipe

• Actually so much easier to make than you might think.
• Tastes SO. GOOD.
• Homemade Ladyfingers or store-bought can be used for this recipe.
• A crowd pleasing dessert.
• Makes a large amount so there’s plenty for everyone.
• No specialty pans needed!

Equipment Needed

• Mixing Bowls
• Hand Mixer
• Digital Thermometer
• Large Casserole
• Piping Bags
• Offset Spatula
• Fine Meshed Sieve

Ingredients

(Full ingredient amounts and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post)

For The Filling:

• Egg Yolks
• Granulated Sugar
• Mascarpone Cream
• Vanilla Extract
• Heavy Cream

For The Syrup:

• Espresso (or strong coffee)
• Coffee Liqueur

For The Chantilly Cream:

• Heavy Cream
• Powdered Sugar
• Vanilla Extract

For Assembly:

• Ladyfinger Cookies
• Cocoa Powder

How To Make Tiramisu

Step 1: Make the filling

In a medium, heat-proof bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar. Place over top of simmering water, being careful not to let the bottom of the bowl touch the water. Whisk continually until egg mixture is tripled in size and an instant read thermometer reads between 149° F and 158° F.

Remove from heat and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until cool, about an hour.

Stir in mascarpone and vanilla, mixing until smooth. Set aside.

In a clean bowl, whip the heavy cream to stiff peaks.

Gently fold the whipped cream into mascarpone mixture.

Step 2: Make the syrup

In a small bowl, mix together coffee and coffee liqueur. Set aside.

Step 3: Make the Chantilly cream

In a large bowl, combine cream, powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer to stiff peaks. Cover and place in the refrigerator until needed.

Step 4: Assemble

Dip ladyfingers, one at a time, into coffee mixture, making sure to coat entire cookie. Place in bottom of 12 x 12 inch casserole or pan.

Spoon half of filling over top of soaked ladyfingers. Sift cocoa powder over the top of the filling. Repeat for the second layer.

Top with Chantilly cream and dust with cocoa powder. Refrigerate for 5-8 hours, or overnight.

Tiramisu FAQ’s

Do I have to use alcohol in the syrup?
If you don’t want to use alcohol in this recipe, be sure to double the amount of coffee you brew for dipping the ladyfingers! Other than that, you do not need to make any other adjustments. Just know it will change the flavor quite a bit, but it’s still absolutely delicious!

Why is my filling yellow?
This is because of the egg yolks! There’s nothing wrong with the filling. It’s just a LOT of egg yolks.

Why does my filling look lumpy/curdled?
This can be caused by a few things. The eggs were not constantly whisked when cooking and there are bits of cooked egg in the mixture OR, as it turns out, after a lot of troubleshooting, we found that our mascarpone, fresh out the package, was not as smooth as we thought it was. If you suspect the mascarpone was lumpy, don’t worry! It does not taste lumpy. Though, if you have bits of cooked egg in your mixture, you can try straining them out with a fine meshed sieve, but it’s really best to start over.

Store-bought or homemade ladyfingers?
We used our Homemade Ladyfingers Recipe, but you can easily sub in store-bought.

Can I serve this recipe immediately?
It’s best to serve this tiramisu after it’s chilled for at LEAST 5-8 hours, but preferably overnight.

What’s the best coffee to use?
Lots and lots of espresso, if you can make it! Honestly, the stronger the coffee, the better. We brewed a very strong cup of coffee (as our coffee machine does not make espresso) to help pack that punch that tiramisu is known for.

Decorating Ideas

The wonderful thing about this tiramisu is that it is so EFFORTLESSLY elegant. Though, there are a few things you can do, if you would like to, to really turn this elegant beauty into a show-stopper!

• You can spread the Chantilly cream evenly across the top, dust with powdered sugar, and use chocolate curls (or chocolate covered coffee beans!) to decorate.
• You can also pipe the Chantilly cream in a variety of different ways. For the photo, I snipped the end off of a piping bag and just piped little dollops in a line. You can also do this OR use a tip like the Ateco 868 to give the Chantilly cream some shape.

How To Store

Once this tiramisu is assembled, it can be kept in the fridge, covered, for about 2-3 days. You can also freeze this as a whole casserole or individual servings for up to 2 months!

Expert Tips

• The mascarpone needs to be about the same temperature as the sabayon (the cooked egg mixture). Be sure to remove the mascarpone from the refrigerator about 15-20 minutes before using it!
• While you can whisk the egg yolk mixture by hand while it’s cooking, it’s best to use a hand mixer! This makes the process so much easier and less tiring.
• Be careful to not over-beat the heavy cream OR the Chantilly cream.
• Carefully fold the heavy cream into the filling. You don’t want to deflate it!
• Don’t be afraid to soak the ladyfingers! You can always use one as a test to see how long you need to leave it in the coffee syrup. We found that around 1-2 seconds was a good amount. If you still feel like it’s not enough, you can gently brush or drizzle the ladyfingers with the coffee syrup after placing them in the pan.
• If you would like, you can use finely grated chocolate on top of the tiramisu!
• This recipe NEEDS to be refrigerated before slicing and serving. 5-8 hours at least, but preferably overnight.

When you make this Homemade Tiramisu, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #BakersTable.

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