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Recipes

How to Make Classic Tiramisu at Home

This article is written by a student writer from the Spoon University at UC Berkeley chapter.

Tiramisu, Italian for “pick-me-up,” is a classic no-bake dessert worthy of its name. Easy, elegant and most importantly, delicious, it’s the perfect mood-booster to lift you out of the dark depths of finals season, and can double as a foolproof crowd-pleaser to round out a holiday dinner.

Fragrant, coffee-soaked ladyfingers are layered with mounds of dreamy mascarpone cream, then finished with a healthy dusting of cocoa for a stunning final presentation. Bonus: You can spike the whole thing with alcohol for a boozy — but still classy — treat.

While traditional tiramisu uses egg yolks, this college-student-friendly shortcut recipe nixes them to save time and effort. Don’t worry, the result is equally as delicious — rich, creamy and fully Spoon-approved.

Tiramisu

Difficulty:BeginnerPrep time: 30 minutesCook time:2 hours Total time:2 hours 30 minutesServings:9 servings

Ingredients

Instructions

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    In a large bowl, whisk together the mascarpone, sugar and coffee liqueur (optional) until smooth.

    #Spoontip: Try swapping out the coffee liqueur for rum, amaretto or Marsala wine, according to your taste.

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    In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form.

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    Fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture until well-combined.

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    Lightly dip half the ladyfingers in the coffee and arrange them in a single layer on the bottom of an 8×8 in square pan. (We used a 6×9 in pan.)

    #SpoonTip: Be careful not to dip the ladyfingers in the coffee for too long — less than a second will do — to avoid soggy cookies.

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    Spread half of the mascarpone filling over the ladyfingers.

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    Repeat with the rest of the ladyfingers, arranging them on top of the mascarpone filling.

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    Spread the remaining mascarpone filling over the ladyfingers.

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    Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

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    Dust with cocoa powder or grated chocolate before serving.

  10. Photo by Isabel Wang

    Enjoy!

Crystal Shi

UC Berkeley '18

Crystal is a third year Cognitive Science major with an affinity for baking, dark chocolate, and Studio Ghibli soundtracks. A troubling mix of aspiring health nut and sweets enthusiast, she often finds herself torn between eating kale by the handful and downing ice cream by the carton.