This irresistibly delicious traditional Italian Tiramisu is made with coffee-soaked ladyfingers, a luxuriously creamy mascarpone filling, and a generous dusting of cocoa powder. It’s an indulgent, easy, no-bake dessert that’s guaranteed to impress!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Tiramisu is, without a doubt, the ultimate Italian dessert (at least, in my opinion!). It’s my absolute weakness, which is why I made sure this recipe was tested to perfection to meet my high standards. Here’s why I think you’ll love this version!
Authentic Recipe: This classic tiramisu recipe is the type you’ll find in the streets of Italy. It’s made with raw eggs alone (no whipped cream/heavy cream!) and is light, indulgent and packed with coffee flavor.
Ultra-Creamy: The mascarpone cream used in this recipe has a combination of egg yolks and egg whites (and of course mascarpone cheese!), which makes for the most ultra-creamy, not too heavy mascarpone cream that is ideal for tiramisu.
Tiramisu is also often made with alcohol like rum, brandy or marsala wine, which is added to the coffee. Because I don’t personally consume alcohol, this is an alcohol-free recipe 🙂
Love the coffee flavor of tiramisu? For more coffee flavored desserts, check out my coffee cake recipe, or for something a little lighter, my coffee sponge cake recipe!
Are Raw Eggs Okay?
Traditional Italian Tiramisu is made with raw eggs, which might seem a bit off-putting, but many other foods you may not realize also use raw eggs, such as mayonnaise and chocolate mousse! Raw eggs are the key to achieving the optimal tiramisu texture 🙂
The key is ensuring the eggs are safe to consume. In New Zealand, raw eggs are generally considered safe, but this may not be the case in countries like the US. In that case, it’s important to use pasteurized eggs, which are gently heated to kill any harmful bacteria without cooking the eggs. Pasteurized eggs are available at most grocery stores.
Alternatively, you can safely heat the egg yolks and whites separately over a double boiler, stirring constantly until they reach 160°F (71°C). This temperature is enough to kill any bacteria while preventing the eggs from scrambling. This way, you can enjoy the rich, creamy texture of tiramisu without any concerns about raw eggs!
How to Make Tiramisu
You can find the full list of ingredients in the recipe card at the end of the blog post (for easy navigation, hit the ‘jump to recipe’ button at the top of the blog post). Here is a quick visual breakdown of the recipe (recipe video is also provided in the recipe card below).
Begin by preparing strong hot coffee (use espresso if you can). Set aside to cool.
Combine the egg yolks and ¼ cup (50g) of granulated sugar in a large bowl. Using a hand or stand mixer on medium-high speed, whip for about 5 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and pale. Be patient—keep mixing until it forms ribbons that rest on the surface for a few seconds before blending back into the mixture.
Add the cold mascarpone and vanilla to the egg yolk mixture. Whisk on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is thick and creamy. It will still be slightly soft but should hold its shape relatively well (see video for visual).
In a clean medium-sized bowl with clean whisks, beat the egg whites on medium speed for about 30 seconds until frothy. Gradually add ½ cup (100g) of granulated sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form (about 5 minutes). Take care not to over-whip the egg whites.
Add half of the egg whites to the mascarpone mixture and gently fold with a spatula until just combined. Then, add the remaining egg whites and fold until fully incorporated. Be careful not to deflate the air bubbles or overmix, as this can cause the mixture to become too runny.
Assembly: At this point your coffee should be at room temperature or slightly warm (you don’t want it to be hot). Carefully and quickly dip one ladyfinger at a time in the coffee for no more than 1 second on each side and place it on the bottom of a 9×13 inch dish. Repeat this step until the bottom of the dish is completely covered in a layer of coffee-soaked ladyfingers. You may need to break some of the ladyfingers if there are small corners you need to fill. Be careful not to leave any gaps between the lady fingers.
Next, place half of the mascarpone cream on top and spread it out evenly, making sure to reach the edges of the dish.
Next, quickly dip the remaining ladyfingers in the coffee and arrange them over the mascarpone cream, ensuring there are no gaps.
Place the remaining mascarpone cream over the top, spreading it out as evenly as you can. I like to use my offset spatula to get it nice and smooth.
Cover tightly with plastic wrap (so that it’s not touching the cream) and place into the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours, ideally overnight.
Once ready, dust with cocoa powder and serve.
How to Store Tiramisu
Tiramisu can be stored in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. The flavors actually improve as it sits, making it even better the next day!
Classic Tiramisu (So Creamy!)
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (360 g) strong espresso - or any strong coffee. I use 4½ tbsp instant espresso powder in 360g hot water.
- 4 large eggs - yolks and whites separated. Purchase pasteurized eggs if you need to (see note 1)
- ¾ cup (150 g) white granulated sugar - ¼ cup (50g) for the egg yolks and ½ cup (100g) for the egg whites.
- 2 cups (450 g) cold mascarpone - 16oz in the US. See note 2 about type to use.
- 1 tsp vanilla extract/essence
- 40 ladyfingers
- cocoa powder - about 2 tbsp for dusting on top
Instructions
- Begin by preparing strong hot coffee (use espresso if you can). Set aside to cool.
- Combine the egg yolks and ¼ cup (50g) of granulated sugar in a large bowl. Using a hand or stand mixer on medium-high speed, whip for about 5 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and pale. Be patient—keep mixing until it forms ribbons that rest on the surface for a few seconds before blending back into the mixture.
- Add the cold mascarpone and vanilla to the egg yolk mixture. Mix on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is thick and creamy. It will still be slightly soft but should hold its shape relatively well (see video for visual).
- In a clean medium-sized bowl with clean whisks (see note 3), beat the egg whites on medium speed for about 30 seconds until frothy. Gradually add ½ cup (100g) of granulated sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form (about 5 minutes). Take care not to over-whip the egg whites.
- Add half of the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture and gently fold with a spatula until just combined. Then, add the remaining egg whites and fold until fully incorporated. Be careful not to deflate the air bubbles or overmix, as this can cause the mixture to become too runny.
- Assembly: At this point your coffee should be at room temperature or slightly warm (you don't want it to be hot). Carefully and quickly dip one ladyfinger at a time in the coffee for no more than 1 second on each side and place it on the bottom of a 9x13 inch dish. Repeat this step until the bottom of the dish is completely covered. You may need to break some of the ladyfingers if there are small corners you need to fill. Be careful not to leave any gaps between the lady fingers.
- Next, place half of the mascarpone cream on top and spread it out evenly, making sure to reach the edges of the dish.
- Next, quickly dip the remaining ladyfingers in the coffee and arrange them over the mascarpone cream, ensuring there are no gaps.
- Place the remaining mascarpone cream over the top, spreading it out as evenly as you can.
- Cover tightly with plastic wrap (so that it's not touching the cream) and place into the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours, ideally overnight.
- Once ready, dust with cocoa powder and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
2 Comments
Does traditional tiramisu have alcohol in it
Hi Patricia 🙂
Yes, traditional tiramisu does usually have alcohol in it. Because I personally don’t consume alcohol I haven’t added it in, but many people choose to add it in to the coffee. The rest of the recipe remains the same 🙂
Enjoy!