Italy, coffee and mascarpone cheese go hand in hand – that’s always my first thought whenever I think of Italian cuisine and culture. I’m not a huge coffee lover though, I don’t drink it unless I’m in immediate need of an energy boost, but I love its aroma early in the morning and its flavor in desserts. And I love mascarpone cheese as well – the kind of love that gets close to addiction sometimes. Therefore when I was asked to come up with an Italian inspired dish, Tiramisu was my first thought. But since I like thinking outside of the box, I took the basic idea of a Tiramisu and elevated it to the next level.
These miniature cakes were born after a few brainstorming sessions and many sketches. My Tiramisu has a genoise bottom layer, brushed with coffee syrup, topped with an airy, rich mascarpone mousse, followed by a denser, but just as creamy coffee cremeux. The next layer consists of a chocolate mousse studded with bits of praline powder. The glaze felt like the most natural thing to use for these cakes and even though it has an intense taste, it doesn’t overpower the final taste of the cakes at all. As decoration, I decided to go with a chocolate ring and an Amaretto chocolate truffle, plus a touch of edible gold leaf which I find utterly elegant and truly the only thing a cake like this needs to look stunning.
There’s a few things I totally loved about these cakes – the first one is the delicate coffee aroma. Even if you’re not a coffee drinker, you’ll still enjoy this cake – the flavor is delicate and mild and it only brings out the best of chocolate. Another thing I totally loved and was quite impressed with was the praline powder which can easily become a praline paste if you continue pulsing it in the food processor, adding 1-2 tablespoons of vegetable oil while doing so. It’s so delicious! Both powder and paste and be used in a variety of desserts so it’s a great thing to have around. And last but not least, I loved making them – from the first idea to a sketch then a dessert, everything was fun and so enjoyable. True passion, isn’t it?!
Praline powder turned into praline paste
- 4 eggs
- 85g sugar
- 115g all-purpose flour
- 20g cornstarch
- 1 pinch salt
- 40g butter, melted
- 100ml coffee
- 50g sugar
- 150g mascarpone cheese
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4g gelatin + 20ml cold water
- 150g white chocolate, melted and chilled
- 150ml heavy cream, whipped
- 150ml heavy cream
- 75ml strong brewed coffee
- 2 egg yolks
- 20g sugar
- 60g milk chocolate, chopped
- 4g gelatin + 20ml cold water
- - Praline powder:
- 60g sugar
- 30ml water
- 60g hazelnuts
- - Mousse:
- The praline powder from above
- 2 egg yolks
- 50g sugar + 25ml water
- 4g gelatin + 20ml cold water
- 150g dark chocolate, chopped
- 300ml heavy cream, whipped
- 50ml heavy cream
- 80ml water
- 150g sugar
- 100g glucose
- 150ml milk
- 50g cocoa powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee
- 11g gelatin + 55ml cold water
- Mix the eggs with sugar for a few minutes until tripled in volume.
- Sift the flour with salt and cornstarch and incorporate it in the whipped eggs using a spatula, adding one tablespoon of flour at a time and mixing gently.
- Take a few spoonfuls of batter in a bowl and stir in the butter. Transfer the mix back in the batter and mix gently.
- Pour the batter in a 40x30cm baking tray lined with baking paper.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes at 180C.
- When done, allow to cool then cut small circles of genoise and place them in your mini-cake rings (line the cake rings with acetate sheets prior to that). Place aside.
- Mix the coffee and sugar in a bowl and cook over medium flame for 5 minutes.
- Allow to cool then brush the genoise circles with the coffee syrup. Place aside.
- Bloom the gelatin with cold water for 10 minutes.
- Mix the mascarpone with vanilla then add the melted gelatin and chocolate.
- Fold in the whipped cream then pour 2-3 tablespoons of mousse into each cake ring. Place in the fridge to set.
- Bloom the gelatin in cold water for 10 minutes.
- In a saucepan, mix the cream, coffee, egg yolks, sugar and a pinch of salt and place over low heat.
- Cook for 5-10 minutes until it begins to thicken.
- Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate. Mix until melted then add the gelatin.
- Allow to cool to room temperature then pour the cremeux over the mascarpone mousse and place back in the fridge.
- - Praline:
- Mix the sugar and water in a saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook for a few minutes until it begins to caramelize, washing down the sides of the pan with a brush dipped in cold water as it cooks.
- When it has a golden, amber color, remove from heat and add the hazelnuts. Mix to coat them well and transfer on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
- Allow to cool and set then break and place into a food processor.
- Pulse until you get a fine powder and place aside.
- - Mousse:
- Bloom the gelatin in cold water for 10 minutes.
- Mix the sugar and water in a saucepan and place over low heat. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the sugar melts.
- In the meantime, start mixing the yolks until they turn pale and thick. Gradually pour in the hot sugar syrup, mixing all the time until double in volume.
- Add the melted gelatin then the chocolate and mix well. Allow the mixture to come to room temperature.
- Fold in the whipped cream then add the praline powder.
- Pour 3-4 tablespoons of mousse over the coffee cremeux and place back in the fridge to set.
- Bloom the gelatin in cold water for 10 minutes.
- Mix the remaining ingredients in a saucepan and place over low heat.
- Cook for 5-7 minutes from the moment it begins to boil until it looks thickened and dark.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Add the gelatin, mix well, then pass the glaze through a fine sieve.
- Allow to cool completely before use.
- To glaze the cakes, place them in the freezer at least one hour then remove the cake rings and acetate sheets. Place the cakes on a wire rack over a pan to collect the glaze as it drips off the cakes. Carefully pour the glaze over each cake and allow it to drip off as needed.
- Transfer on cake boards or platters and place back in the fridge.
- Mix the heavy cream and salt in a bowl and place over low heat. Bring to the heating point then remove from heat and add the chocolate.
- Mix well until melted and smooth then add the butter and Amaretto.
- Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for a few hours.
- Take one teaspoon of mixture and shape it into a bowl. Roll right away through cocoa powder.
- To decorate the cakes, I melted some chocolate, tempered it slightly and spread it on an acetate sheet which I then wrapped around a small cake ring and placed in the fridge to set.
- Add a truffle and the décor is finished.
- Enjoy!
Absolutely stunning Oana!!! I love tiramisu, its one of my favourite desserts so I can imagine that these taste divine! Gorgeous photos too! x
Thank you, Louise. We loved them too.. well, I barely had one, they disappeared without me even noticing 😀
This is a work of art my friend. I will have to try it once I have a good chunk of free time. It’s got all my favorite things <3 <3 <3 I would love to see the other potential sketch designs too – what fun 😀
Thank you, Natalie. They are time consuming, but so worth it! Check my instagram for a sketch of this dessert if you want.
Wow, this looks divine!
Oh my gosh, Oana…your desserts are always completely stunning! This is seriously one of the most amazing desserts I’ve ever seen. And I can only imagine the taste! I’m a huge coffee fan (drinking my morning cup right now), so this tiramisu is right up my alley. Thank you for sharing! (Can you send me the leftovers? Haha!)
Thank you, David! Leftovers in the post 😛
Woah! These are ABSOLUTELY STUNNING! And it looks like they taste pretty damn delicious, too! I’m going to Italy for my first time next month, and this post is getting me SO EXCITED!!!
Thank you, Coley. Enjoy your first trip to Italy! 🙂
I grew up in Italy, so tiramisu is one of my favourites and this looks incredible. Also, your photos are stunning, great job! xx
Thank you so much, Elly! It’s like a tiramisu brought to the world of modern desserts.
Absolutely beautiful!!!!
As an Italian this is a must for dessert, but the way you serve it it’s art!
I had to pin it!!!!
Greets
Wilma
Thank you, Wilma. Your pin is much appreciated!
Hi,
Loved this recipe and wanted to make it this weekend. What size rings are you using, I know you say mini, but do you know the dimensions?
thanks for your help
I think they have a diameter of about 6-8cm (can’t measure them precisely right now).
Hi
This looks incredible and I want to try it out tomorrow. Do you use gelatin leaves or gelatin powder?
Thank you.
Powder or granules, unless stated otherwise 🙂
This looks amazing! Just one question, can I make these without the glucose in the glaze, or can I replace with glucose syrup? Thanks x
Asma, glucose syrup is what I used. You can use honey instead.
Hi, congratulations for this wonderful dessert!!! I really love the combination of all the recipes so I would like to make them. I was wondering more or less which is the diameter of each individual cake… I just ask to know if i can usee some of the small molds I have or I need to nuy some…. Thanks in advance. Regards. Victoria
Thank you, Victoria!
It’s 8cm.
Hi and wow this looks amazing!! I would love to try this recipe. I would like to make a one big cake instead of many smaller ones. Can you tell me how large the springform pan should be if I make the batter according to the recipe? Thanks! 🙂
I believe you would be ok with a 20 to 24cm diameter pan.
Tocmai ce am făcut acest minunat tort și rezultatul este uimitor. Sunt sub linia începătorilor în ceea ce privește aceasta ocupație, dar datorita explicațiilor pe înțelesul tuturor și pas cu pas, totul a decurs conform planului. Te admir tare mult, ești minunata și îți doresc multe succese pe mai departe!
P.S. Gustul este absolut divin, ador aroma de cafea și consistenta extrem de fina a mousseurilor!
I love this so much! Stunning. I love this and finally am getting the courage and know how to finally attempt this.
I have not used gelatin yet so reading all about that 🙂 What size of mini cake pans do I require.
I love your site. It is keeping my enthusiasm and need to learn alive
Hi, I believe there is a mistake in your recipe? The Coffee Cremeux there is 20 g of sugar, but in your method there is no saying that should we melt the sugar together or later, haha but anyways it was an interesting recipe and I’m making it now 😃
It’s fixed now. I’m sorry for the mistake!
Hy! This recipe look amazing. I’ve always wanted to try the mirror glaze. Hope it will come out as nice as yours. I have a question about the glucose in the recipe, is it liquid glucose or powdered, because it says grams and I’m a little confused. I knew that the liquid is used for this type of glaze.
It is liquid, but in pastry, we measure liquids with the scale/grams as well. The difference between grams and ml is quite small, especially at such small quantities.
Hiya! You use ml and g to measure, I’m guessing the ml is for volume rather than weight? Even though you measure liquids in g as well, in your comment…
grams or ml is the same in pastry in most cases. Mine included.
This is beautiful! I want to make it starting today but confused for the glaze. When you mention glucose what are you referring too? I am in Canada
Thanks !!
Your photos are gorgeous! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe, and thank you for printing it in English! I’ve been looking at entremet recipes, and they’ve all said that the cake has to have a “crumb coat” or be covered in a layer of buttercream or mousse so there’s a very smooth surface before adding the glaze. But it looks like you skipped that step and your glaze still looks very smooth and shiny! Do you think the glaze turns out okay without covering the cake with buttercream/mousse? Thank you! Second question: Did you buy stainless steel ring molds? They cost about $8/each in the U.S., so if you made 8 entremets, you’d be spending about $64-$70 on the ring molds – expensive for an item I wouldn’t be making very often.
I made this for my husband’s bday but turned it into 8 inches cake. It was a big hit. I wish I could share a picture though. This is a laborious cake to make lol but soo worth it, won’t blink an eye to say yes if someone request me to make this again. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Hi,
There are instructions for the truffles but I can’t see the quantity of ingredients?
Thank you!
I also am wondering about the ingredients for the truffles. What might those be? Thanks!
Thank you! Very proffessional and technically impecable. I will try it out!
Good morning chef.how Can i use powder gélatine please.i wanna rili try this délicieux tiramisu ans thanks
Powder gelatin needs to be bloomed/soaked in water – 5 or 6 times its weight.
Hi, can I freeze the cake before glazing? Also, after glazing, how long can it stay in the fridge?
Thank you for the recipe!