You will surely fall in love with this Earl Grey Tiramisu, a delicate rendition of the original dessert with fragrant Earl Grey tea replacing coffee.
This recipe was originally published on Nov. 16, 2017 and last updated on Mar. 5, 2019.
Tiramisu is one of those desserts that I was always intimidated to try making at home, but once I did I realized how shockingly easy it is. Which is a good thing because it’s so dang tasty.
Today I’m sharing this recipe for Earl Grey Tiramisu, a spin on traditional tiramisu which is normally made by soaking the lady fingers in coffee. This version uses concentrated black tea as the soaking liquid for the lady fingers, and I must say, I love how the delicate notes from the Earl Grey tea are reavealed in this dessert.
Why you’ll love this Earl Grey Tiramisu
This tiramisu looks exactly like the original but has an unexpected twist of Earl Grey tea flavor that infuses into the lady fingers. It’s a wonderful dessert to make for a crowd and have your guests remark at the different nuance in flavor.
It’s also a great dessert to make in advance, since the layers need time to set in the fridge. Perfect no-fuss, make-ahead dessert for a dinner party!
What does Earl Grey tea taste like?
What does Earl Grey tea taste like?Earl Grey is a black tea that is flavored with bergamot, a citrus variety that grows throughout parts of Europe. When tasting this Earl Grey Tiramisu, you should detect pleasant aromas and flavors of the earthy black tea as well as notes of orange from the bergamot.
Chef’s tips for the best tiramisu
Tiramisu has two main components: the soaked lady fingers and the mascarpone filling. To really extract the most concentrated tea flavor, make sure to wring out the tea bags after steeping them in the water. I also like to add an orange peel to enhance the citrus essence that is present in the tea.
When it comes to the mascarpone filling, I like to cook the egg yolk, sugar and marsala mixture in a heatproof bowl set over simmering water and use an electric mixer to mix everything together. The mixture will thicken and triple in volume, and then it’s time to stir in the mascarpone. It is important to make sure your mascarpone is at room temperature at this stage to ensure smooth and even mixing. Finally freshly whipped cream gets folded into this mixture to create a light and fluffy texture.
How far in advance can I make this dessert?
I recommend making tiramisu no more than two days in advance if you want the best results. The layers of soaked lady fingers and mascarpone filling can be assembled ahead of time, but I suggest waiting until just before serving to dust the cocoa powder on top.
Cozy up with a nice hot cup of tea and a slice of this Earl Grey Tiramisu. I promise you it will be time well spent.
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Earl Grey Tiramisu
You will surely fall in love with this Earl Grey Tiramisu, a delicate rendition of the original dessert with Earl Grey tea replacing coffee.
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 4 Earl Grey tea bags
- 2 1 inch strips orange peel
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons Marsala wine
- Pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 cups mascarpone room temperature
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 18 ladyfingers
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
Instructions
Add the water to a saucepan and and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then remove from heat and add the tea bags and orange peel. Cover and steep for 10 minutes. Discard the tea bags and add the 2 tablespoons sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Pour the tea through a strainer and set aside.
Beat egg yolks, Marsala, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water using a whisk or handheld electric mixer until tripled in volume, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. Beat in mascarpone until just combined.
- Beat cream in a large bowl until it holds stiff peaks.
- Gently fold mascarpone mixture into whipped cream until combined.
- Spread a few tablespoons of the mascarpone filling onto the bottom of a 1-quart baking dish. Dipping both sides of each ladyfinger into tea mixture, line baking dish with 9 ladyfingers, trimming edges to fit if necessary. Spread half of mascarpone filling on top. Dip remaining 9 ladyfingers in tea and arrange over filling.
- Spread remaining mascarpone filling on top. Chill, covered, at least 6 hours.
Let tiramisu stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving, then dust with cocoa powder just before serving.
More tea infused recipes:
White Chocolate Chai Lace Cookies
Hi Dennise,
What a fabulous idea to use the floralness and acidity of earl grey in tiramisu. I love using tea in cooking and it’s always obvious when I land on a fellow chef’s blog. Glad I found you and am now following your insta!
Thank you Sara!
Excellent recipe! I doubled the recipe and used it to create an earl grey tiramisu cake for my mother and I arranged it in a 6 inch springform pan lined with cling wrap. The mascarpone mixture was light, however it held up well allowing me to produce a tiramisu cake with a height of 7 inches after refrigeration. Also, I used a homemade vanilla syrup to sweeten the earl grey tea mixture. I also added vanilla extract instead of Marsala in the mascarpone and added half a vanilla bean to the mascarpone mixture.
I can imagine the Earl Grey scent flood in the mouth. Awesome recipe.
Like to asked what type of Earl Grey that you use. I like to make it fr someone undergoing chemo and cannot take alcohol and coffee.
It was so rich and delicious.
I do have a question or need advice, if there is a way to make the filling more lighter/fluffy and to have a lil more white tone to it? should I add more whipping cream or (someone suggested) cool whip? But i want it to hold it’s shape.