I love tiramisu, but I haven’t had it nearly enough. In fact, I may have eaten tiramisu only twice in my life. The most recent tasting was amazing. My husband’s work had a Christmas party at an Italian restaurant early this past December. I stayed at home with the kids that night, and I was surprised to see that my husband had brought something home for me. It was a rather large slab of tiramisu. It looked beautiful and even had an intricately designed sugar decoration on top of it. It was absolutely delicious.
It inspired me. I had to make my own tiramisu. Well, I decided to just make a little foray into the world of tiramisu first and make a batch of tiramisu cupcakes, recipe courtesy of who else but Martha Stewart.
The cake recipe is a little more time-consuming that your average cake recipe. It isn’t tricky, it’s just that there are a few more steps involved. It is totally worth it in the end though. Don’t try to substitute an average cake recipe; definitely use this one to experience a more tiramisu-like flavor.
After the cakes come out of the oven, you’ll need to prick them all over their tops with a fork and then drizzle over a coffee-Marsala syrup. This is easy – just stir together freshly brewed coffee, Marsala and sugar. As I planned on letting my children sample these, I omitted the Marsala altogether and it still tasted wonderful.
The frosting is super easy as well. It’s just a mix of heavy cream, mascarpone and confectioners’ sugar. This tastes lovely and I could have just eaten the whole bowl full of it rather than frost the cupcakes with it! The frosting is dusted with cocoa powder and decorated with chocolate shavings.
While this isn’t a classic tiramisu (as classic tiramisu is not a cupcake!) this can pretty much hit the spot for any tiramisu craving you may have. I definitely recommend these and I would definitely make them again. The recipe can be found on the Martha Stewart website and in Martha’s Cupcakes book.
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment, hit up one of those stars to rate it, and be sure to tag any photos with #sweetestkitchen on Instagram if you made this recipe! I'd love to see what you've created!
These are so gorgeous! And they sound delicious too…mascarpone frosting?! Divine!
My mouth is watering just looking at these. Definitely putting this one in the recipe box to make sometime soon. How did you make the pretty chocolate shavings for the top?
There is a video tutorial here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9s2T3baX8w that could help you out with making chocolate shavings. Personally, I use a chocolate bar that is slightly warm, but not at all melted, which you can do by perhaps sitting the bar on top of a warm oven for a couple of minutes. I find that warmer chocolate makes bigger shavings. I also use a regular sharp knife instead of a vegetable peeler.
I can’t tell you how much I wish I was your next-door neighbor. 🙂
Amazing. I’m craving tiramisu now.
It’s funny you should say that, because I actually did take leftovers to my next-door neighbour! 😀
Did you have any trouble with the paper liner sticking to the cupcake? I made these last night as mini cupcakes but the liner kept sticking.
Also, you shavings are beautiful. Any tips?
Thanks.
No, I didn’t have trouble with the cake sticking to the liner. I do remember reading about someone else having this problem a few months ago and it was suggested that perhaps the baker didn’t bake the cupcakes for long enough?? I really have no other idea! I hope yours still tasted great though!
For the chocolate shavings, I just did a brief google search and this video should give you a good idea on how to do it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9s2T3baX8w Personally, I use a chocolate bar that is slightly warm, but not at all melted, which you can do by perhaps sitting the bar on top of a warm oven for a couple of minutes. I find that warmer chocolate makes bigger shavings. I also use a regular sharp knife instead of a vegetable peeler.
These are sooo unbelievably drool-worthy! I’ve seen this recipe in Martha’s book and now I see I just have to make it!
I am such a huge fan of Tiramisu, these are definately going to be tested and featured on my food blog. Thanks for sharing!
This sounds incredibly yum! I’m not a huge fan of tiramisu in its original form (I know, what a shame) but I like the sound of it in a cupcake! I will have to try it out, and I know for sure that others around me would love tiramisu.
These look AMAZING!!
I don’t buy vanilla beans so how much vanilla would think I should put in?
Hi Jessica, a teaspoon of vanilla extract should be fine. 🙂
Your cupcakes look amazing. I want to make these for a party and found martha’s recipe before stumbling upon your blog, and I didn’t like her presentation all that much. Yours look gorgeous though and def party-material. I was wondering though, was it difficult to pipe the frosting into a swirl since it is so soft? And did then swirls hold up (I’m guessing they should be refrigerated)?
Thanks!
Hi Sam, thank you for your wonderful comments! The frosting is very soft, but definitely firm enough and easy to pipe. Yes, you will need to refrigerate these. If you have difficulty piping the frosting because it is soft, you could spoon the frosting into the piping bag, and then refrigerate it until it is firm enough to pipe. Really though, the mascarpone makes the whipped cream firmer than you may think. 🙂
I’ve been thinking of making Tiramisu cupcakes for a while now and after seeing your mouthwatering photos I’m definitely going to have to give them ago (getting hungry typing this). I think yours look a lot better then the original one that’s for sure.
Thanks for the inspiration :o)
Mem