This is an updated version of my homemade Tiramisu recipe, a slightly “lighter” twist on the Italian classic, using stiff egg whites to lighten up the cream filling.
I am not a coffee drinker, I am 100% a tea person, but the one coffee-flavoured thing I cannot get enough of is this Homemade Tiramisu! I probably have far too many favourites, but alongside Trifle and Sticky Toffee Pudding, this probably is a firm favourite!😋
Unfortunately, the rest of my family and/or flatmates don´t really like it (How???) so I don´t get the chance to make it very often (although that´s probably a good thing for my waistline…😅). You can, however, easily half the recipe below to make a smaller amount of the homemade Tiramisu.
Tiramisu is s classic Italian dessert. Traditionally, it consists of alternating layers of coffee-soaked biscuits and a mascarpone cream filling. Some versions contain a bit of booze or chocolate as well.
Tiramisu originates from Venice and I was inspired to try and make my own after a recent trip there whilst I was working as an Au Pair (read about my experience here).
Venice is a wonderful place and obviously I had to try some Tiramisu when I was there. It was pretty good, but I have to say that I found it a bit to creamy and heavy for my liking. I prefer it to be a little lighter, so I decided to try my own version.
It Italy, they use only the egg yolks and mascarpone, my version, however, also uses the egg whites. Stiff egg whites are folded in with the mascarpone-egg-yolk-mix resulting in a much lighter texture – plus extra servings! Win-win I would say!
I also kept down the amount of sugar in this recipe, to avoid a sickly-sweet Tiramisu.
Homemade Tiramisu is easier to make than you think!
Homemade Tiramisu is much easier to make than you´d think! Coffee, Eggs, Sugar, Mascarpone, Sponge (Lady) Fingers and some cocoa powder are all you need – that´s only 6 ingredients!
Give yourself about 10-15 minutes to make the mascarpone filling, plus an additional 10 to assemble the tiramisu. Then you will need to leave it to chill in the fridge for a good few hours or even better over-night. This will allow all the flavour from the coffee and cream to be absorbed by the sponge fingers, creating the perfect homemade tiramisu! So it is best prepared the night before or in the morning on the day you want to serve it.
My stay in Italy also inspired me to get creative with some other Italian specialties, so why not try my twist on my Classic Rosemary Focaccia: A Tomato and Mozzarella Focaccia Bread?
Find a slightly older version of this recipe in this Guest Post at Farmer´s Wife Rambles.
Homemade “Lighter” Tiramisu
Recipe
Ingredients (serves 8 people):
- 3 cups strong coffee, cooled
- 4 medium eggs, whites and yolks separated
- 50g sugar
- 500g mascarpone
- 200g sponge fingers
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder, to serve
YOU WILL ALSO NEED:
- 1 litre pudding dish
Method:
- Brew the coffee and pour into a large shallow dish. This will help cool the coffee faster and make it easier to dip the sponge fingers later.
- Separate the egg whites from the yolk, putting the 4 yolks into a large mixing bowl and the whites into another.
- Using the whisk attachment of a free-standing or an electric hand mixer, whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks and the sugar (You can use the same whisk as you did for the egg whites, no need to wash) with for about 5 minutes until very light and frothy. Next, whisk in the mascarpone.
- Mix in about one tablespoon of the egg whites into the mascarpone mixture, then gently fold in the rest using a spatula or large metal spoon.
- To assemble the tiramisu, start by dipping half of the lady fingers into the coffee and laying them at the bottom of a 1 litre pudding dish. Only dip the biscuits briefly, as they absorb liquid quickly and will become very soggy if left too long.
- Next, spoon half of the mascarpone mixture on top of the biscuit layer and spread out evenly.
- Dip the second half of the lady fingers in the coffee and assemble on top. Finally, spread over the remaining mascarpone mix and level the surface or fill into a piping bag, cut off the tip and pipe little blobs of the mixture on top.
- Cover the dish with clingfilm and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours, or even better overnight.
- Sieve some cocoa powder on top just before serving.
