Easy Tiramisu - a no bake dessert! - The Recipe Rebel (2024)

Last updated on May 25, 2020

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This easy Tiramisu recipe is made with a traditional mascarpone custard filling, coffee soaked ladyfingers, and a fine dusting of cocoa powder and chocolate shavings. It’s an easy no bake dessert!

Just two weeks until school starts up here again and I’m enjoying as much of summer as I can!

This includes my most recent addiction — an afternoon pick-me-up in the form of this easy Tiramisu recipe 😉

It’s cool, creamy, make ahead deliciousness with a kick! (or you can skip the kick — more on that later 😉 )

Traditional Tiramisu has a few steps, and though it is no bake, you do need the stove for a bit.

This recipe is a little easier than most because we are heating the egg mixture in a pan and not a double boiler — do it gently and stir constantly and you will have no issues!

How to make Tiramisu:

1. Grab some ladyfingers from the store or make your own — I made my own for this recipe only because I couldn’t find any at any of our grocery stores! I used this ladyfinger recipe from Baking a Moment and they turned out great! If you are making your own, it’s best to make them a few days in advance and let them get hard and slightly stale, or make them one day in advance and leave on the counter without being covered.
2. Make your custard filling — this has to cool to room temperature before you can start assembling so it’s a good idea to make it a couple hours before you need it.
3. Whip some cream and fold it into your custard filling carefully, once it has cooled. You don’t want to add it to hot custard!
4. Layer: dunk your ladyfingers in the coffee and Kahlua mixture, turning them over a couple times to coat all sides. Place them in the pan, then top with half of the custard filling, and repeat your layers one more time.
5. Let chill for at least 6 hours to set up, then dust with unsweetened cocoa powder and top with chocolate shavings if desired just before serving.

How to make this easy Tiramisu even easier:

If you’re anything like me, you love a good shortcut.

And while I wanted to prepare a traditional custard-based Tiramisu for the downright fanatics, there are a few of us around here who just generally prefer the “much easier, still very delicious” method.

So here we are — options!

If you want to skip the egg yolks and the pots and the tempering, simply whip together:

1. 8oz/225 grams mascarpone
2. ½ cup powdered sugar
3. 1 ½ cups cream
4. 1 teaspoon vanilla

Whip it with an electric mixer on low speed, then on high speed until it’s thickened and fluffy.

Continue with the rest of the recipe as written, and you’ll have an easy no bake, no heat summer dessert recipe, and I promise most people won’t know the difference 😉

How to make Tiramisu in advance:

Tiramisu is a great dessert for making in advance because it does require a certain amount of time to sit and chill so the flavors come together and the ladyfingers soften.

This Tiramisu recipe needs at least 6 hours to chill in the fridge before serving, but you can make it up to 2 or 3 days in advance.

It will last longer than that, so don’t worry if you have leftovers in the refrigerator. But it is best if enjoyed within the first 3 days.

Can I skip the alcohol in Tiramisu?

Absolutely!

Alcohol is traditionally added to the espresso or coffee that the ladyfingers are soaked in, but it’s an easy thing to leave out.

Simply substitute additional water, coffee or espresso for the required amount of Kahlua.

Can I skip the coffee or espresso in Tiramisu?

Sure.

I mean, technically that wouldn’t make it very tiramisu-y, but if there’s one thing we don’t do here at The Recipe Rebel it’s hard and fast rules.

If you’d like to skip the caffeine, because you can’t have it or want to enjoy it in the evening or want to serve it to children, you can easily use decaf coffee.

If you want to skip the coffee or espresso because you just hate the flavor, you can but you’ll have to obviously substitute it with some other liquid. There aren’t a lot of rules here, but you want to pick something that will go well with the rest of the recipe: chocolate milk or hot chocolate (lukewarm), almond or coconut or dairy milk, or go crazy and use something like orange juice.

Just obviously take note of how the change will affect the flavor of the entire dessert.