If you like tiramisu, you will love this cake. Tiramisu is an Italian dessert that layers ladyfingers with a mascarpone filling and it is usually served in pan and cut into squares. This is an elegant cake version of this beloved dessert. I happen to really love tiramisu, it is one of my absolute favorite desserts. If I see it on a menu I have to order it. I made this cake for a friend as a thank you because tiramisu is also one of his favorites. I will be honest with you, this cake is a little more complicated than most of the recipes that I include on Baked Bree, but none of the steps are difficult. It is completely worth the effort because this tiramisu cake is rich and decadent and has the perfect balance of coffee and Kahlua flavors. The frosting is something that I could serve in a bowl and call dessert and be a very happy girl. It is light and fluffy, almost like a mousse. This cake needs to be made the day before you are going to serve it. The liquid needs to soak into the cake layers and the flavors need the time to get to know each other. I forgot to poke holes into my cake layers, and it was still delicious, but I think that it would really add flavor and moisture to the finished product. It is really hard to be patient.
This was the first cake that I made using the damp towel trick. You cut strips from an old towel and wet them. Cover the outside of the pan with the damp towel strips and your cakes will be perfectly level. I did not believe that it would actually work. Not only did it work, I have never made a cake that I did not have to level before. It is pure magic I tell you.
This recipe comes from my favorite baking book, Baking, From My Kitchen to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.
For the cake:
2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
10 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup buttermilk
For the espresso extract:
2 Tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 Tablespoons boiling water
For the espresso syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon Kahlua (or brandy or amaretto)
For the filling and frosting:
1 (8-ounce) container mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 Tablespoon Kahlua (or brandy or amaretto)
1 cup heavy cream
2 1/2 ounces finely chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (or mini chocolate chips)
Sift the dry ingredients together and set aside. Beat the sugar and butter together until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and yolk, one at at time, beating for 1 minute in between each addition. Beat in the vanilla. The mixture will look curdled, but it will all come together, I promise. Turn the mixer on low and add the dry ingredients alternatively with the buttermilk. Start and end with the dry. Scrap down the sides of the bowl really well.
Pour the cake batter into two 9-inch pans that have been sprayed well with cooking spray and lined with parchment. Isn’t it amazing how the towel trick works? They are perfectly level. Bake the cakes in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 28 minutes, rotating halfway through baking. When they are finished, they will be golden and start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let the pans sit on a rack for about 5 minutes, then unmold them and let them cool completely.
Now you are going to make the espresso extract. It is nothing more than combining the espresso powder and the boiling water into a bowl. Set this aside.
In a small saucepan combine the sugar and water. Bring it to a boil. Pour in into a bowl and add 1 Tablespoon of the espresso extract that we just made and the 1 Tablespoon of Kahlua. Set this aside.
Whisk together the mascarpone, sugar, vanilla, and remaining Kahlua. Whisk until blended and smooth. Beat the heavy cream in the mixer until it holds firm peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture using a spatula.
Now we are ready to assemble the cake. I put a few strips of parchment underneath my cake layers (but not underneath the whole thing) so that I would not get frosting all over my cake plate. When I am done decorating, these pieces will come out and the plate will still be clean. Poke some holes with a toothpick or a knife and brush the cake with the espresso syrup.
Spread a layer of the frosting over the first cake layer. Use about a cup and a quarter. Level it with an offset spatula and sprinkle with the chocolate. Add the top layer and again, poke with holes and brush with the espresso syrup.
Add 1 to 2 Tablespoons of the remaining espresso extract to the remaining frosting. Fold together.
Frost the cake with the rest of the frosting. Chill for at least 3 hours but overnight is better.
Dust the top with cocoa powder.
Ingredients
- For the cake:
- 2 cups cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 10 Tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- For the espresso extract:
- 2 Tablespoons instant espresso powder
- 2 Tablespoons boiling water
- For the espresso syrup:
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Kahlua (or brandy or amaretto)
- For the filling and frosting:
- 1 (8-ounce) container mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 Tablespoon Kahlua (or brandy or amaretto)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 1/2 ounces finely chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (or mini chocolate chips)
Instructions
- Sift the dry ingredients together and set aside. Beat the sugar and butter together until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and yolk, one at at time, beating for 1 minute in between each addition. Beat in the vanilla. The mixture will look curdled, but it will all come together, I promise. Turn the mixer on low and add the dry ingredients alternatively with the buttermilk. Start and end with the dry. Scrap down the sides of the bowl really well.
- Pour the cake batter into two 9-inch pans that have been sprayed well with cooking spray and lined with parchment. Isn’t it amazing how the towel trick works? They are perfectly level. Bake the cakes in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 28 minutes, rotating halfway through baking. When they are finished, they will be golden and start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let the pans sit on a rack for about 5 minutes, then unmold them and let them cool completely.
- Now you are going to make the espresso extract. It is nothing more than combining the espresso powder and the boiling water into a bowl. Set this aside.
- In a small saucepan combine the sugar and water. Bring it to a boil. Pour in into a bowl and add 1 Tablespoon of the espresso extract that we just made and the 1 Tablespoon of Kahlua. Set this aside.
- Whisk together the mascarpone, sugar, vanilla, and remaining Kahlua. Whisk until blended and smooth. Beat the heavy cream in the mixer until it holds firm peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture using a spatula.
- Now we are ready to assemble the cake. I put a few strips of parchment underneath my cake layers (but not underneath the whole thing) so that I would not get frosting all over my cake plate. When I am done decorating, these pieces will come out and the plate will still be clean. Poke some holes with a toothpick or a knife and brush the cake with the espresso syrup.
- Spread a layer of the frosting over the first cake layer. Use about a cup and a quarter. Level it with an offset spatula and sprinkle with the chocolate. Add the top layer and again, poke with holes and brush with the espresso syrup.
- Add 1 to 2 Tablespoons of the remaining espresso extract to the remaining frosting. Fold together.
- Frost the cake with the rest of the frosting. Chill for at least 3 hours but overnight is better.
- Dust the top with cocoa powder.
oh i love TIRAMISU so I am so I would also love this cake!! Do you have any good tiramisu recipes?
Sisters Running the Kitchen recently posted..Sweet Potato- Apple and Chipotle Soup
I don’t have any good traditional ones, but I will be sure to add some soon.
Wow, this looks amazing! I’m new to your site, but I love your food choices and photos. I can’t wait to make chicken/cheese taquitos this week!
Welcome Paula! Thank you so much.
What a beautiful cake!! I wish I could go home and make it right now!!
Thanks Melissa.
What a great idea for a cake – I love tiramisu too. Delicious!
Emma @ Poires au Chocolat recently posted..Alfajores
I cannot take credit, it was all Dorie’s idea.
That is such a pretty cake!
Hannah recently posted..Applesauce
thank you Hannah!
Wow. Your tiramisù (grave accent on the “u”) looks fantastic! Beautiful.
MEMORIA!!! I am so happy to hear from you. I have missed you. How have you been? I miss your blog updates.
This looks delicious! Just a factoid as to why the towel works: the reason a cake is not level when you don’t use a towel is because the sides of the pan heat up, cook the outside of the cake faster, and since the inside doesn’t have any place to expand (because the sides are baked), the only place it can go it up. When you use a towel (or pre-fab baking strips from Wilton), you cool the sides of the pan, which allows the cake to bake at the same rate. But ALWAYS be sure to drench the towel or baking strips!!!
Can’t wait to try this recipe out.
thanks for explaining Dana!
my husband would LOVE this!
melissa @IWasBornToCook recently posted..Whos the lucky winner
Make it for him! I am sure that he will love it.
The tiramisu cake looks gorgeous… my husband is a big fan of tiramisu and has a b’day coming up in Feb. I thought I had decided on what cake to bake for him. I will now have to seriously rethink that. I think I’m going with this one. Thanks for sharing!
Trisha recently posted..Gaajar ka Halwa
This cake looks delightful!
Also, I just love your countertops. They remind me of funfetti cake mix.
thank you Sarah!
Your opening sentence about liking tiramisu and loving this cake concerns me, as I love tiramisu. Will I then kill for this cake?
Looks awesome. I could seriously eat the entire thing in one sitting.
Be concerned. Very, very concerned.
Can’t wait to try your towel tip!!!!
That is a jaw-dropping dessert.
Heather recently posted..Vegetarian Carbonara
thank you Heather! It was pretty tasty.
I love cake very much. I can’t wait to eat this so I’m going to try it out. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Anukant recently posted..Another jolt to Microsoft
You are welcome Anukant.
Another delicious recipe and that’s cake… Cake is my favorite.
Shailender @ Romantic Getaways recently posted..Romantic Vacations
Me too. Love cake.
I tried the wet towel trick today-to make my cake level. I had to bake 2 – 9 X 13 cakes to cut out a guitar shape for my daughter’s Rock Star Birthday party tomorrow. So I baked one with the towels and one without, just to see. Sure enough, the one without the towels had a rounded top and the one with the wet towels wrapped around it came out PERFECTLY level ! Genius! Thank you so much! You have truly revolutionized my cake baking!
Karen Whitney recently posted..Sweet Treats Jumbo Cupcake – Pink-Green
Is that not the most amazing tip ever? Life changing!
Can you use Kahlua midslide mix instead of regular Kahlua? Hubby picked up the wrong kind?
I don’t see why not. Try it out.
I just made this last night. We licked the frosting bowl clean and may have eaten the tiniest smidgeon. My husband and I agree that this is just about the mist brilliant cake ever invented. Thank you so much!
P.S., I doubled the alcohol and used Amaretto and Irish Cream. This cake will not be served to children
Isn’t the frosting amazing? I am so happy that you both loved it.
I work at a fraternity on campus and have heard horror stories from the boys about the previous cook and tiramisu cake…..apparently it involve a lot of vodka and little cake! As a surprise to some of the members, I used your recipe and made them try it with their eyes closed, not knowing what they were getting (good thing they trust their cook).I have never seen their eyes get so big, it is an amazing recipe and they now know what a real tiramisu cake should taste like. I thank you for posting it online!
How fun to cook for frat boys! Glad that they liked the cake! Go Vandals!
Hi. This cake looks really delicious and fun to make. I would like to make it soon. Would I be able to use springform pans for this recipe and do the towel trick?
You know what, I don’t know. I have never made them in a springform pan.
This cake looks delicious! I make traditional Tiramisu quite often but when my daughter requested it for her birthday, I needed to find a cake recipe instead. Thank goodness for your wonderful page… I can’t wait to make this for her party tomorrow!
I hope you like it, I love this cake. The frosting is crazy!
beautiful! i am gonna try it.. thanks for the recipe!
Great!
Hi.
I baked this Tiramisu cake today using the damp towel trick and the cakes came out leveled! And I used a springform pan and the towel trick works just as well.
However, my frosting turned it too runny (nothing like what yours looked like in the photo), and I had to thicken it with whipped cream to get the consistency that I can frost without it running on me. ;( Any tips/advice why it turned out runny, and how I can thicken it like yours?
Thanks!
Kelvin (The Daily Bake, Singapore)
Isn’t the towel trick amazing? It is like magic.
I am not sure why your frosting was runny. Usually when something doesn’t work for me, it is my fault, usually me reading the size wrong. Other that that, I am not sure. I wish that I could be more helpful.
I am about to make this cake for my friend, and i am confused what you do with the chocolate chips, do you just put them in the middle, melt them or what?
Yes, put them in the middle.
Bree my husband and I love tiramisu…i want to bake this cake for him for our first wedding anniversary…will it be fine if i bake and refrigerate this cake a day in advance…hope it wont turn out to be soggy.
Yes, I bet that it will taste even better after it has had some time to let the flavors marry. But I would only do it one day in advance.