Vegan Tiramisu

Rich, decadent, and delicious this easy Vegan Tiramisu is an incredible plant-based dessert that’s sure to impress. Make the individual components from scratch or take a few shortcuts with store bought items.

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Hey Internet, nothing screams special occasion to me quite like Tiramisu. I first had this delicious dessert on a romantic date with my husband back when we first started dating.

I actually am not a coffee drinker, but I’ve always liked coffee flavored desserts for whatever reason. Maybe it’s because I have a major sweet tooth.

But ironically Tiramisu is pretty easy to make. It took me a long time to get this recipe just right, but that’s because you know me and I had to make everything from scratch.

The actual process of making this vegan Tiramisu actually only takes 10 minutes.

If you want to make any of your components from scratch like I did, you can prep most of them in advance. If you’re making my aquafaba whipped cream, though, I recommend doing that immediately before you assemble your Tiramisu.

The vegan ladyfingers and vegan mascarpone though, can be made ahead of time. The cookies will last a few days (or you can freeze them). I recommend making the mascarpone anywhere from 2-24 hours in advance.

BUT you can also use store bought items and your Tiramisu will still be delicious and impressive.

Let’s get into this delicious recipe.

What You’ll Need

So, let’s talk about the components of vegan Tiramisu.

Let’s start with the ladyfingers. You can use my vegan ladyfingers recipe (it’s quite easy) or you can use a prepared vegan cookie from the store.

I recommend Keebler Sugar Vanilla Wafers since according to PETA they are vegan. Unfortunately Nilla Wafers are not vegan.

Next, the mascarpone. Vegan mascarpone is quite easy and very quick to make.

If you do not want to make it, you could mix vegan cream cheese with a little coconut cream to thin it out and add a little maple syrup if you’d like.

Now, the whipped cream. You can make aquafaba whipped cream or you can buy it from the store. I wouldn’t use the stuff from the can because they are expensive and don’t hold a lot.

Instead, I’d recommend So Delicious Dairy Free Cocowhip or a similar brand. Cocowhip is REALLY good, and the only reason I didn’t use it for this recipe is because I’m avoiding oil.

Now, for the ladyfingers, you want to dip them in espresso. While you can use regular brewed coffee, espresso is traditionally used and is nice and strong.

You’re just dunking them a few times, not pouring the espresso into the cake, so it won’t be bitter or too strong. I mentioned I’m not a coffee drinker and I love this recipe. For real.

I used espresso powder for this recipe.

Now these two things are optional, but I added organic grade A maple syrup and a splash of spiced rum to my coffee mixture.

I added these things while the water was still simmering (after adding my espresso powder) so the alcohol mostly cooked off.

The flavor of the spiced rum adds a great warmth to the espresso liquid. But you can omit it if you are avoiding alcohol.

Finally, the top of the vegan Tiramisu gets dusted with cocoa powder. Use a nice quality cocoa powder for a great flavor.

I used a peeler to sprinkle a few dark chocolate bar shavings on top. I used a raspberry flavor dark chocolate for fun.

Tips for Assembling Vegan Tiramisu

Since you’re either making my other recipes or buying the components for this recipe, the only real instructions here are for assembly and they’re pretty simple.

First though, I want to recommend a pan.

While you can use any square or rectangular deep pan or glass dish, I can’t recommend this square springform pan enough.

You can build your tiramisu, chill it, then just release the walls of the pan for a clean and beautiful presentation.

This also makes it easier to cut and scoop out the pieces of your tiramisu.

Anyway, onto the assembly process.

• Start by boiling your water and adding the espresso once it comes to a boil. Whisk it into the water until dissolved. If using, add maple syrup (or any other sweetener) and spiced rum now. Whisk and turn down the heat to a low simmer. Let it simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat and let cool until it is only just warm or room temperature.
• Use a spatula to gently fold some vegan whipped cream with your vegan mascarpone. I recommend no more than 2-3 cups of the whipped cream, as the mixture can get too light and then it won’t set.
• Set up your assembly station with your pan or dish, bowl of espresso mixture, Ladyfingers, and mascarpone mixture.
• Add the ladyfingers to the bowl of espresso mixture a few at a time. Turn them over a few times in the coffee, allowing them to absorb a little, but not too much. Don’t let them get soft or they’ll make your Tiramisu soggy.
• Start by adding a layer of espresso dipped ladyfingers to the pan, covering the pan in rows of the cookies. Spread on a generous layer of the mascarpone mixture and repeat 3 times so you have 3 layers of cookies each topped with a layer of mascarpone mixture. The mascarpone mixture should be the top.
• Use a fine mesh handheld strainer or a flour sifter to sprinkle cocoa all over the top in an even layer. Clean up the edges of the pan if you like.
• Optional topping: Add a few (or a lot) shavings of a vegan dark chocolate bar using a peeler.
• Refrigerate overnight and then freeze 1 hour before serving for the best texture, or just freeze for 2-3 hours before serving and let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes before cutting. I recommend cutting with a serrated edge knife or a very sharp knife to cut through the layers.
• Store in the fridge for 3-4 days or freeze individual pieces in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.

More Impressive Vegan Desserts

Wowing vegans and nonvegans alike has never been easier or more delicious. Check out some of my favorite showstopper desserts:

• Chocolate Vegan Babka
• Vegan Matcha Pound Cake
• Coconut Cake
• Vegan Smores Cookie Bake
• Apple Cake
• Vegan Pumpkin Pie
• Chocolate Chip Scones
• Vegan Pineapple Upside Down Cake
• Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

Anything Else?

I really hope you like this recipe! I know I do and so does Mr. Zardyplants, who was happy to eat up all the extra cake we had from testing.

This vegan Tiramisu is:

• Sweet but not too sweet
• Moist (sorry)
• Coffeeeeeeeee (what… that’s a descriptor…?)
• Tender
• Fluffy
• Impressive
• And really easy to make!

Let me know in the comments below if you make this recipe or tag me @Zardyplants on Instagram so I can see your beautiful recreations! If you tag me on IG, I will share your post in my stories :)

Also, one quick request: if you love how this recipe looks or tastes, please leave me a 5-star rating and a nice comment–ratings help more people find my recipes which helps me keep providing them! Thank you!

<3 Liz

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