I would love some of this right now! It's that time of day that this would be a great pick me up! Thanks

+1, Video please?!!!!!!!

definitely video,,,is necessary,,,

Love tiramisu...i use sponge cake sometimes when i couldnt find the biscuit italian finger :D

I just got through making this dessert, and it is chilling now.

Everything seemed to be going fine, I did need to look up what was meant of "ribbon trail" to ensure I had the correct consistancy with the yolk/sugar mixture. In the end I think I did this part correctly.

The yolks were also wisked until soft peaks formed.

Challenges -
In the end I did not have enough cheese mixture to cover both layers of the lady fingers. I used a slightly larger pan, which may have caused the issue. I may cover with some whipped cream.

The cheese mixture is more yellow that white, color does not match the picture above.

The mascarpone cheese did not seem smooth once added to the other items. I may have needed to beat it longer. The consitancy of the cheese mixture was not smooth and creamy in the end.

Any suggestions for my next try?

The reason the mascarpone is not smooth is probably because it was cold. The best way is to let it come to room temperature before mixing.

Just curious to know how it turned out for you. To answer some of your questions/challenges>

As for the amount of filling not being enough, I am sure like you said, this is due to the fact that you used a larger pan.

As for the cheese mixture being more yellow than the picture, I am sure this is due to the egg yolks. These days so many egg yolks are bright yellow, this does affect the color of things.

As for the mascarpone not being smooth, I am imagine this is exactly what Khaled said, the mascarpone was likely just too cold.

Hope this helps! Cheers

The Tiramisu tasted great! I added whipped cream and sifted cocoa powder on the top to correct the look of the dessert. I will make this again and I am sure with the experience of the first try/feedback I can correct the issues I had.

I love to experiment; I combined 50/50 home made sweet whipped cream with good quality honey-walnut cream cheese and a little of Marsala Wine (a few drops only), made the cream, placed it in a plastic bag, in to the refrigerator until ready to eat desert. When ready, I soaked lady fingers in Tia Maria coffee liquor and heat them up for 20 seconds in the microwave (they got really hot). Then cut a corner of the bag containing the cream and layered a wine glass with the lady fingers and the cream, sifted cocoa powder on top and served. It was a hit. The combination of cool and hot and the nutty flavors really added to that desert.

Hi Dawn,
It would be great to have a video for this. please....

It is a favorite dessert, but for some reason, I can not seem to make it from just reading directions. The visual helps make a complete picture for me along with using text for reference. It is a beautiful and very impressive dessert. It would be perfect for completing and complementing many other European-like dinners. Please consider a video for a "how to." Tres Leches cake is another dessert I would love to see a "how to" of.

I will give this a go tonight, but please make a video of this tutorial. I was a little surprised that Tiramisu only had a text recipe -- Tiramisu being one of the champions of the dessert world :-)

I too had problems with the Mascarpone. It separated when I tried to beat it smooth. Having read the comments first, I made sure to leave it out on the countertop for three hours before attempting this -- still no luck.

We really need a more detailed explanation on this step in the recipe. Why is this happening when the Mascarpone is at room temperature? Have I beat it for too long? (I doubt it, as the Mascarpone never got to the smooth and creamy stage.) The recipe says wooden spoon, is this vital to the procedure? (I really see no reason why a metal spoon shouldn't do the trick.)

Hi Richard,

If the mascarpone was separating, it was likely still too cold or you didn't beat it long enough to lighten its consistency. When things like mascarpone and cream cheese aren't at room temperature, they aren't able to evenly incorporate air and can't emulsify properly. The spoon shouldn't have made a difference, but wooden spoons are usually bigger. The back of the spoon can help you to smooth out the cheese before you beat it to a lighter consistency.

Did you use full-fat mascarpone or a lighter version? Sometimes low-fat products won't blend properly.

We will eventually get into more pastry techniques in the Rouxbe School. The most important thing during pastry making is to have your ingredients at the proper temperature before combining them. Hope this helps!

I actually make a recipe very similar to this one on a regular basis. In fact, I made tiramisu last night! Giada DeLaurentis from the Everyday Italian cooking show has this recipe in her book and I watched one episode of her making this a long time ago.

Tips:

-the marscapone should be at room temperature
-the recipe I use is double the amount of whip cream and marscapone, so I never run out of filling.
-I also use espresso instead of coffee and that gives the tiramisu an amazing flavor.

Hope this helps. Tiramisu is one of my favorite deserts!

+1 for video.

in the recipe i've tried before, number of egg whites was only 1/2 of egg yolks.

for 500 g. of cheese i used 6 yolks and 3 whites.

Does it make any sence?

I would love to try this, but have 2 problems and wondered if anyone had any useful ideas.. problem 1, I don't drink so the Kahlua needs to be replaced with something but, more importantly, problem 2, I can't do coffee of any sort.. the caffeine gives me horrible migraines. I had this once, years and years ago and I remember it being very good, but have been unable since to try it, and as much as I'd love to make it, I don't see the point since I wouldn't be able to even taste it. Does anyone have any ideas that might help?

Sorry, we have not made tiramisu without alcohol or coffee as these are classic ingredients in this dessert. Perhaps other users have tried this. Other than that, you can always search online. We searched for "tiramisu without coffee or alcohol" and found quite a few recipes. Good luck!

This didn't turn out so good for me. I had exactly the right pan size, and used exactly 40 ladyfingers so that part went well. What didn't go well.......whisking the egg yolks, sugar, then Marsala. No way this was going to triple in volume. It looked at first like it was increasing but then it started to lose volume. After 5 or 6 min. I just gave up as no way this was going to increase in volume or do anything like a 'ribbon'. So carried on with the recipe as if it did increase in volume. I had no trouble with beating the cheese, or folding in the egg yoke mixture and then yolks. All is fine. Then assembling the tiramisu.... ran out of the Espresso/Marsala blend for dipping the ladyfingers in so had to quickly make more to finish the top layer of ladyfingers. And my, do you ever have to work fast so the ladyfingers don't soak up too much and crumble! Like mere seconds. Had enough cheese to cover the top just perfectly. It all looked great and chilled in the fridge etc. Time to eat it and couldn't! It was way too strong of Marsala and actually ruined what would have been a pretty decent dish if the alcohol was milder. Maybe Kahlua should be used?? Don't know but my gosh it was so strong. The texture and tast of the cheese mixture was pretty good though! Next time will use more espresso and less booze!

Making the Zabaglione can be tricky. It is helpful to have the eggs at room temperature. Making the zabaglione is nearly the same thing as making a sabayon for hollandaise (the mixture just contains sugar and booze).

See Topic 3 in the Hollandaise lesson for some reference/guidance. Warming the mixture and vigorous whisking will increase the volume of the zabaglione. This whole process just takes plenty of practice to get it right.

Yes, when dipping the lady fingers, this needs to be done very briefly and quickly as they can quickly fall apart. In terms of the flavor, there are so many variations of this dessert; perhaps this one is just too strong for you. Feel free to make tweaks the next time you make it.

This is a very technical dish. We will eventually cover more pastry-related items in the cooking school; however, we are currently focused on culinary lessons. Hope this helps in the mean time! Cheers!

Making this tonight--will report back. Have made a very similar version from an Italian cookbook and had trouble with the mascarpone as well. Looking through other recipes we decided to go with a 50/50 mascarpone and homemade whip cream, gently folding the two together. This has worked well for us, but it is important to very gently fold them or the mixture gets too runny.

Is there any substitute for Kahlua liqueur, or can I just make the tiramisu without it?

Here is a good reference guide for food substitution suggestions that you may want to bookmark. It is really up to you and your tastes on which liqueur you want to use. Cheers!

I added the zabaglione to the mascarpone in two batches, but the result was a liquid mess instead of a cream. I wonder why… Can you give some advice on how to combine these two together?

Was it because I beat the mascarpone too much? Should I add the zabaglione gradually? Should I let the zabaglione cool even further?

Thank you.

It's hard to say ; there could have been several issues. It could be that you didn't develop the zabaglione enough to a good ribbon stage, the mixture may not have been cool enough or the zabaglione and the mascarpone weren't at the approximate same temperature when combining the two. Because you want to retain the most air in the zabaglione, it is best to add it in stages. Try adding about 1/3 of the zabaglione into the mascarpone to "lighten" the overall texture, then fold in the remainder in two other batches. Cheers!