Name: Strawberry Tiramisu Recipe
Prep time: 50 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 4 large egg yolks; 1/2 cup granulated sugar; 3 tablespoons framboise (or Cointreau)*; 3/4 cup heavy cream, chilled; 1/4 cup powdered sugar; 8 ounces mascarpone (or cream cheese), softened; 1/2 cup high-quality strawberry jam (like Bonne Maman); 3 tablespoons framboise (raspberry liquor) or Cointreau (orange liquor); 24 lady fingers (from a 7 ounce package); 1 pound of strawberries, stems removed and thinly sliced; 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

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When berry season arrives, this is the very first thing I make! This no bake Strawberry Tiramisu uses strawberry jam to soak the ladyfingers plus a traditional mascarpone filling and plenty of thinly sliced fresh strawberries for maximum flavor.

Square piece of strawberry tiramisu with fresh berries on top.

I’m giving you permission to eat this for breakfast because: fruit and eggs. I’m also begging you to remember tiramisu when you need a make-ahead dessert that requires minimal prep time and doesn’t require any baking! It’s mostly just assembly work here!

I probably should have researched other methods for making strawberry tiramisu before I developed my own recipe, but the thing is: I used all of my favorite things for this recipe instead. My favorite fruit, my favorite mascarpone cream mixture (the same as the one on top of my tiramisu cookies), and my favorite type of cookie!

The best things about this strawberry tiramisu

I used the soft ladyfingers (often found in the produce department) instead of the hard, crispy ones. You may use either ones, but I prefer the soft, fluffy cakey flavor of the soft ones.
My soak for the ladyfingers is my favorite jar of strawberry jam. Don’t use strawberry jelly–grab jam because it often has pieces of whole fruit in it.
I added Chambord (raspberry liquor) to thin out the jam in the soaking liquid. If you don’t have Chambord, you can use orange liquor (Cointreau is the best). If you don’t want to use alcohol at all, use fresh orange juice in its place.

Ingredients

Little bowls with egg yolks, fresh fruit, lady fingers, and jam.

Strawberries. One pound of fresh strawberries, washed, tops removed, and thinly sliced. Save a few for garnish, too!
Sugar. One tablespoon of granulated sugar for sprinkling on top of each layer of fresh fruit in the dish.
Strawberry Jam. One-half cup of strawberry jam (not strawberry jelly). We’re using jam because it’s thicker, has more flavor, and often contains pieces of whole fruit. Jam is made with whole fruit; jelly is made with juice.
Fruit Liquor. My first choice for the soak is Chambord (raspberry liquor) or Cointreau (orange liquor). However, if you want to avoid alcohol, use an equal amount of fresh orange juice in its place.
Ladyfingers Cookies. We need 24 ladyfingers for this recipe. My preference is the soft ones often found in the produce section, but you can use the hard ones instead, if you prefer. If you use the hard ones, you need to double the soaking liquid because they will soak up more of it.
Egg Yolks. We need four large egg yolks to make the mascarpone mixture. Do not use the egg whites; save them for a different recipe or an omelette.
Heavy Cream. We’ll whip 3/4 cup of very cold heavy cream to fold into the mascarpone mixture to lighten it up.
Powdered Sugar. A small amount (1/4 cup) of powdered sugar to sweetened the whipped cream.
Mascarpone. We need one 8-ounce container of mascarpone cheese, slightly softened so we can whip it very well. If you can’t find this slightly softer and sweeter version of cream cheese, you may use cream cheese. However, if you use cream cheese, increase the amount of powdered sugar to 1/2 cup. This will help remove the tanginess of the cream cheese. Mascarpone cheese is often found in the imported cheese section of the store, and sometimes it’s by the ricotta.

How to Make Strawberry Tiramisu

Egg yolks and sugar in a small saucepan.

Yellow cooked zabaglione in a small sauce pan.

First, make the zabaglione: in a medium bowl that you can fit over a pan of simmering water (or the top part of a double boiler), add the egg yolks and granulated sugar. Ensure that the bottom of the bowl does not actually touch the water, however!

Set the bowl over barely simmering water (not boiling!) and beat continuously with an electric hand mixer until it reaches 160 degrees. Once it’s up to temperature, remove the zabaglione from the heat and let cool for 5 minutes.

Yellow mixture with red liquid being folded in.

Bowl with beaten mascarpone and whipped cream piled on top.

Stir in 3 tablespoons of the liquor. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, beat the whipped cream and powdered sugar and have ready on the side.

Add the whipped cream to the mascarpone and liquor mixture, and stir gently to combine.

Shallow bowl with red liquid and pile of red jam.

Red ladyfingers dipped and lined up in the bottom of a square pan.

In a small, shallow dish stir together the jam and 3 tablespoons of the liquor. Set this aside–this is your lady finger dipping mixture.

Have your serving dish ready. Dip one lady finger in the mixture and flip it over immediately so that it doesn’t soak for more than 2 seconds per side. Fit half of them in the bottom of your serving dish (cut some to fit). Continue until the bottom of the serving dish is covered.

Thinly sliced fruit arranged in a single layer in a square dish.

Square dessert piled high with whipped heavy cream.

Place half of the strawberries on top and spread into an even layer. Sprinkle half of the granulated sugar (half of a tablespoon) evenly over the top of the strawberries.

Spoon half of zabaglione-cream mixture on top of the lady finger layer. Then, repeat. The top layer is the zabaglione mixture. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Finished strawberry tiramisu in square dish with one slice missing.

How to make Tiramisu without alcohol:

In the case of this strawberry tiramisu recipe, use orange juice in place of the fruit liquor called for in the soaking liquid. In a regular tiramisu recipe (like my tiramisu for two), simply replace the alcohol with additional coffee.

This dessert keeps in the fridge for up to 2 days and holds its shape well. After day 2, it becomes a little too soggy, but is still very delicious! You can freeze individual slices for up to 3 months if you tightly wrap them in plastic wrap.

Yield: 6