Easy Authentic Italian Tiramisu

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This Italian classic tiramisu recipe is quick and easy to make, and you only need 6 ingredients to make this no-bake espresso-flavored dessert. It's a readers' favorite and very popular with my family. The super creamy and smooth melt-in-your-mouth texture is just dreamy, and enjoying this classic Italian dessert will make you believe you are sitting in an authentic Italian cafe in Rome. By the way, have you tried my Tiramisu Cake?

Two slices of tiramisu on two plates with a whipped cream and cocoa decoration on top

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What is Tiramisu?
Why You Will Love This Classic Tiramisu Recipe
Ingredients
Variations
Step by Step Video Tutorial
How To Make Tiramisu
Storing and Freezing Tips
Expert Tips for Success
Recipe FAQs
More European Desserts to Try
Recipe

What is Tiramisu?

Traditional Italian tiramisu is a no-bake espresso-flavored dessert. It's made of coffee-dipped ladyfingers with sweetened mascarpone cream and dusted with cocoa before serving.

The authentic version of tiramisu dessert contains no alcohol though it's a popular variation today. It's a simple dessert that requires no cooking and goes together quite quickly.

It's the perfect dessert for ending dinner parties, a family dinner, or any time you want a decadent dessert that doesn't feel heavy and overwhelming.

Want to try your hand at making another popular Italian dessert? Try this Panna Cotta Recipe!

Why You Will Love This Classic Tiramisu Recipe

Easy to Make! This is a recipe that is suitable for all levels of cooks. If you are new to desserts and baking, making this Italian dessert is the perfect option.
Texture and Flavor Combination. The combination of sweet coffee, cookies, creamy mascarpone, and cocoa powder is light, fluffy, and oh-so good.
Authentic Italian Dessert. If you're looking for an authentic Italian tiramisu recipe, this is it!

Ingredients

Here's a look at the six simple ingredients you need to make an authentic tiramisu recipe without alcohol.

Eggs: For an authentic Tiramisu recipe, just like Italians make it, you will want to use raw egg yolks.

Coffee: Espresso is the coffee of choice in authentic Italian Tiramisu. I usually pick up espresso at my favorite coffee shop as I can't replicate the taste of a professional coffee machine at home. You will need about ½ a cup to 1 full cup to soak the lady fingers. You can also use strong-brewed coffee or coffee granules or instant coffee dissolved in water.

Ladyfingers: For this recipe to work, you need hard Italian ladyfingers (Savoiardi). Soft ladyfingers tend to get soggy because they soak up much more coffee than the hard ones. This means you may not have enough coffee for all three layers of ladyfingers or it may result in a watery dessert at the end.

Mascarpone: I recommend using quality mascarpone. My favorites are BelGioioso and Galbani. Mascarpone can be tricky to work with as it can curdle very quickly within seconds.

Is it Safe to Consume Raw Eggs?

Yes, if the eggs have been pasteurized then they are safe to consume without cooking them because they have already been heated within the shells. It's hard to find them in the store though and are not widely available so you will find some other options below if you aren't comfortable eating raw eggs.

However, if you don't want to consume raw, unpasteurized eggs and you can't find the pasteurized, you have a two options.

Lightly Cook the Egg Yolks and sugar: In this case, mix the mascarpone with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy, then set aside. To cook the egg yolks and sugar, you can use a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler, place a heat-proof bowl on top of a pot filled up 2 inches (5cm) high with simmering water. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar continuously until foamy and light for about 5 minutes. Then remove from the heat and add to the mascarpone cheese and mix until creamy and combined.
Skip the Raw Eggs: If you don't want to use eggs at all, mix the mascarpone cheese until creamy for about 1-2 minutes. Then add the powdered sugar and mix until smooth, combined, and sugar is dissolved for about 2-3 minutes. Keep in mind that without the egg yolks, you have less cream. In this case, I recommend making just a two-layered Tiramisu or add ½ cup (120ml) of whipping cream to the mascarpone mixture and whisk until peaks form.

Half eaten tiramisu slices on grey plates with spoons.

Variations

Without or Lower In Caffeine: If you want to serve this dessert to kids or people that are sensitive to caffeine, you can use either de-caffeinated coffee or hot cocoa instead.
Dark Rum: This addition is not part of a traditional Tiramisu recipe but it is popular and commonly served this way. You could also add Amaretto liquor or brandy. Add 2 tablespoon (30ml) to the coffee before dipping the ladyfingers or add 1 tablespoon (15ml) to the mascarpone cream or both. I personally prefer the Tiramisu recipe without alcohol so that it is kids friendly.
Whipping Cream with Mascarpone: If you want to add whipping cream to your mascarpone cream, you can add a ½ cup (120ml) of heavy whipping cream after mixing the mascarpone mixture and mix on medium-high speed for about 2-3 minutes until peaks form.
Whipped Cream on Top: Add whipped cream on top of the chilled Tiramisu before you dust it with cocoa. To recreate a beautiful top, as shown in my pictures, just pipe little dollops of whipped cream on top. I used a Wilton 1A round tip with my piping bag.

Step by Step Video Tutorial

How To Make Tiramisu

Step 1: Start by mixing the egg yolks and sugar until white and creamy, and the sugar is completely dissolved. This takes about 2-3 minutes with a hand mixer on medium-high speed.

Mixing egg yolks and sugar with hand mixer in glass bowl.

Step 2: Add the mascarpone cheese and mix on medium-low speed just until smooth, creamy, and combined about 1 minute.

PRO TIP: Use the mascarpone straight out of the fridge when adding it to the egg yolk mixture. Be careful not to over mix the mascarpone mixture.

Mixing mascarpone, egg yolks, and sugar in glass bowl with mixer.

When you are done mixing, the mascarpone cream should look like in the picture below. The consistency is smooth and creamy but not fluffy or airy like whipped cream.

Close up of the texture of the mascarpone filling in a glass bowl.

Step 3: Dip about 9-12 ladyfingers in espresso and arrange in the bottom of a 9x7x3 or 8x8x3 inches (23x18x8 or 20x20x8 cm) baking dish or casserole dish until it's fully covered. How many ladyfingers you need depends on the size of the ladyfingers as well as the dish used.

A layer of espresso soaked ladyfingers in glass baking dish.

Step 4: Spread about a third of the mascarpone mixture on top until the lady fingers are evenly covered. You can do this with the back of a spoon or with an offset spatula.

Spreading mascarpone mixture on top of coffee soaked ladyfingers layer in glass dish.

Step 5: Repeat the process of dipping the ladyfingers, arranging them in the casserole, and spreading mascarpone on top two more times and even the top.

Leveling mascarpone with the back of a spoon in a glass dish.

Step 6: Wrap the casserole with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about 8-12 hours. Before you serve it, dust it with cocoa.

PRO TIP: I finished my Authentic Italian Tiramisu recipe with a layer of whipped cream that I piped on top of the chilled dessert and then dusted it with cocoa. It's not part of the recipe, and I did it just out of decoration purposes. From the taste point of view, it doesn't really matter if the whipped cream is on top or not.

Decorative picture of styled tiramisu dessert in glass baking dish.

Storing and Freezing Tips

You can store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Please be sure to wrap the baking dish very tightly with plastic wrap so that no air or odors from the fridge can go inside the dessert.

If you want to freeze it, prepare as described, wrap it tightly, and chill it for 4 hours in the fridge. Then transfer to the freezer and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, transfer to the fridge for 24 hours. Dust with cocoa before serving.

Expert Tips for Success

Size of Your Mixing Bowl: Use a large mixing bowl for mixing the mascarpone mixture. This makes it less likely to over-mix the mascarpone.
Check Your Eggs: I recommend using only fresh eggs. If an egg doesn't look or smell fresh, please don't use it.
Soaking the Ladyfingers: I don't recommend soaking the ladyfingers in coffee for too long. It makes the dessert watery. Just dip them on both sides quickly.
Let It Sit For a Day: It is best eaten on the second day. The taste is getting better and the consistency creamier when you give it time to rest in the fridge overnight.
Use a Coffee You Like: Since the coffee is such an integral part of this dessert, only use coffee that you like the taste of and enjoy drinking.

Recipe FAQs

Why did my mascarpone mixture curdle?

Mascarpone may curdle and looks like cottage cheese within a couple of seconds after you start mixing it. It quickly over mixes because of its high-fat content. So, if this ever happens to you, you are not alone. This can happen to everybody and is not related to this recipe particularly.

Here are my top tips to either avoid or fix curdled mascarpone:

1. Buy mascarpone cream that contains nothing but (milk,) cream, and citric acid and has a high-fat content - around 42g out of 100g. Don't buy any low-light or substitute product.

2. Mascarpone should be used cold and straight out of the fridge.

3. Use a large mixing bowl so that you have enough room to mix the mascarpone.

4. Mix the cream on medium speed and just long enough until smooth and combined.

5. If your mascarpone did curdle, you can still save it by transferring the mixture to a microwave-safe bowl and carefully warming it up or by using a double boiler and whisking until smooth. I read some more excellent tips on the Food52 website on that topic.

Why is my tiramisu watery?

The reason why it's watery is likely due to soaking the ladyfingers for too long. This makes them already soggy when arranged in the baking dish. As the dessert cools, the excess coffee in the ladyfingers will run into the cream and make the dessert watery.

My recommendations to either avoid a watery dessert or fix it:

1. Please make sure that you dip the ladyfingers on both sides quickly so that just the outside of the ladyfingers is soft, but the inside is still solid when you arrange them in the pan.

2. If your dessert is watery, you can just try to transfer the Tiramisu to a clean and dry container and remove the excess liquid.

More European Desserts to Try

If you are looking for European desserts, you've come to the right place. Here are some of my favorite European classics.

If you tried this Classic Tiramisu Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!

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