Tiramisu is the iconic Italian dessert that everybody know and love. If you grew up in Italy, like I did, it is often the case that the best tiramisu you have ever tasted is the one your mum or grandma made. In my case, my favourite tiramisu is the one I make, using this recipe. And now, you can make it too!
For an authentic tiramisù, you have to use savoiardi or sponge biscuits, which are perfect to soak up the coffee without crumbling. They are generally easy to find in supermarkets, Italian deli shops or online. These biscuits are ideal for tiramisù, but if you’re looking to add a twist to the dessert, then try using Speculoos (or Biscoff, if you are in the US) biscuits!
I am a big fan of Speculoos in all its forms and I think they work perfectly in a tiramisù. These spiced biscuits add a crunchy texture and cinnamon flavour to this classic Italian dessert.
This dessert – a Tiramisù with a twist of Speculoos (Biscoff) caramelised biscuits – is one of my specialties!
So here’s the recipe for you. I hope you’ll enjoy it!
Tip: make the tiramisù the day before you plan to serve it, so it has time to chill and rest in the fridge. It’ll be so much tastier the next day, trust me!
Ingredients
- 5 free range eggs (as fresh as possible)
- 400g Speculoos biscuits or savoiardi
- 75g (5 tbsp) granulated sugar
- 500g of mascarpone cheese
- 600-700 ml French Press coffee (traditionally, in Italy we brew the coffee in a moka pot so it’s more similar to espresso)
- a splash of rum (or an equal amount of marsala, coffee liqueur, brandy, or cognac)
- 2-3 tbsp cocoa powder, for dusting
Preparation
Break the eggs and separate the yellows from the whites. Mix the yolks with the sugar using an electric whisk until you have a creamy mixture. Add the mascarpone and blend together.
In a separate bowl, mix the egg whites with a pinch of salt, until they become foamy and airy. Don’t overwork it or else the mixture will become too liquid. Fold (do not stir) the whites in the cream using a spatula.
Make the coffee using your preferred method. Pour the coffee in a bowl and leave to cool down.
Use a glass cake dish or small pots (I used both!), it needs to have tall sides to allow for multiple layers. One at the time, dip the biscuits in the coffee (just once on each side), gently squeeze the liquid out, being careful not to crumble the biscuit. Cover the cake dish with the biscuits, laid side by side. Splash drops of Martini Bianco over the biscuits, then spread the cream over.
Create a new layer of biscuits dipped in coffee, splash with Martini, spread cream on top. Repeat one more time (I usually make three layers of biscuits + cream).
Cover with cling film and leave in the fridge overnight. Before serving, sift chocolate powder over the dessert.
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Oh I love tiramisu and I love speculoos! So this recipe sounds perfect! I love the pots which you used.
Thank you for the comment! The pots are recycled from Chocolate Puddings I bought at the supermarket! ;)