White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu
White chocolate and cherries make a delightful pairing, coming together in this twist of a familiar Italian classic. Think, billowy white chocolate mascarpone cream meets a bright cherry compote meets the aromatic bitter notes of coffee-soaked lady fingers. Sublime!
Real talk. I was turned off tiramisu for a solid decade 😅 Growing up, my dad’s well-meaning Italian friend Lena made us tiramisu at a high frequency over many, many years. My mom, who has a limited culinary repertoire, also began making tiramisu for every dinner party she hosted. I got so sick of it that I refused to even look at a tiramisu for a long time.
Fast forward to current day, when tiramisu seems to be having a renaissance?!? Seeing it on my feed so much finally psyched me up enough to enjoy this iconic Italian dessert once again. I mean, I looooove coffee and I love desserts! I’m also very fond of a little boozy cherry moment c/o my Homemade Maraschino Cherries so I riffed a similar cherry compote for this. And what pairs well with cherries? Dark chocolate, yes lol. But also white chocolate! Presto, that is how this White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu came to be.
It would have been a lovely full circle moment to get Lena’s tiramisu recipe. Unfortunately she passed away some years ago. Instead, I leveraged Erika (pancakeprincess)’s Best Tiramisu Bake Off analysis to hone in on A Cozy Kitchen’s Authentic Tiramisu which served as the jumping off point for my recipe. Thanks ladies!
🎥 Watch video for White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu
On a whim, I also made a white chocolate crumble topping using 6 leftover ladyfingers. I call it “optional” in the recipe but I really want you to make it because it adds such an amazing textural and flavour component to the final dessert!
Eat well and be well,
Sonia x
what you’ll need:
Ingredients for White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu
(scroll down to recipe card for full recipe)
Mascarpone — A rich, sweet Italian fresh cheese from Lombardy, Italy. It has a buttery, velvety texture with high milk fat (60-75%) and is famous all over the world as the key ingredient in tiramisu.
Savoiardi Ladyfingers — Light, dry, sweet sponge cookies shaped like large fingers, famous for their crisp exterior and airy interior that perfectly soak up liquids, making them a key ingredient in desserts like tiramisu and Charlotte cakes. I recommend store-bought over homemade. I have made from-scratch before and think it’s not worth it. Many commercial ladyfingers come in 400g-packs. We use about 250g for the tiramisu but see my recipe for making an optional white chocolate crumble topping with leftover biscuits!
Strong brewed coffee or espresso — Espresso is the original ingredient in tiramisu but a high quality, strong coffee works too. If you’re feeding kids or cannot tolerate caffeine after noon (me, sadly), use a really good quality decaffeinated coffee instead. Note: Decaf is not 100% caffeine-free.
Egg yolks — Gives the mascarpone cream richness, body and flavour.
Heavy cream — Contributes lightness to the mascarpone cream.
White chocolate chips — Lends a butter, vanilla-y sweetness. Not traditional to tiramisu but is a fabulous flavour twist paired with cherries.
Frozen pitted cherries — Convenient to use at this time of the year! It’s made into a sauce for the middle layer of the tiramisu.
Maraschino liqueur — Adds complex, woody, bittersweet flavour profile to the cherries. Omit for alcohol-free.
Granulated sugar —Used to sweeten the mascarpone mixture and cherry sauce.
Sliced almonds (optional) — for the leftover lady finger crumble topping.
Pinch of salt
steps at a glance:
How to make White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu (scroll down to recipe card for full recipe)
Make white chocolate mascarpone cream: Melt white chocolate by pouring hot cream over top. Set aside. Mix mascarpone, egg yolks and sugar together. Add the white chocolate mixture and the heavy cream. Whip 4 minutes until thick and billowy.
Assemble: Arrange coffee-dipped ladyfingers in a single layer to cover the entire dish, followed by half the white chocolate mascarpone cream, and the cherry compote. Repeat with coffee-dipped ladyfingers and the remaining white chocolate mascarpone cream.
Chill: Wrap well and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
Optional white chocolate crumble topping — Should you have leftover ladyfingers (5 or 6), break them up and place into small food processor along with sliced almonds. Pulse to get a crumbly mixture (sieve and discard cookie dust). Drizzle melted white chocolate over crumbles, add a pinch of salt and toss to coat. Let chocolate cool and harden in the fridge for 15 minutes.
To serve — Scoop tiramisu into serving dish, top with optional crumble topping and reserved cherries on top.
Tips & FAQs
Not all brands of mascarpone are the same quality or thickness
Mascarpone cheeses are not all the same due to differences in the quality and fat content, processing methods and the presence of additives. For this recipe, choose a high quality brand with no additives, and a super thick consistency (even thicker than Greek yogurt). I use Italian brand Galbani which is very thick and contains no additives. See my video for a visual of the thickness.
Why did my mascarpone cream curdle?
Mascarpone has a fragile structure and can split or break when whipped. To prevent this, make sure mascarpone, heavy cream and egg yolks are all fridge-cold when mixed together to avoid curdling.
Can I make this caffeine-free?
While not technically 100% caffeine-free, using decaffeinated coffee is a great alternative to keep caffeine content to a minimum. Because the flavour and aroma of coffee is so central to tiramisu, don’t compromise with bad decaf! I specifically seek out really good, locally-roasted decaf coffee for this recipe.
How do I prevent melted white chocolate from clumping?
Some white chocolates chips contain stabilizers that keep it in that shape. These stabilizers (soy or sunflower lecithin or palm oils) may prevent it from melting smoothly. To avoid this, look for brands without stabilizers. Callebaut, Guittard, Ghirardelli, and Valrhona are examples of good brands. You can also use white chocolate bars or chunks, cut into small, evenly-sized pieces.
What should I do with the unused egg whites?
Egg whites freeze beautifully so if in doubt, put them in the freezer. I recommend freezing them in an ice cube tray. My silicon tray has 1.3cm cube cavities which perfectly fits one large egg white. Once frozen solid, transfer into freezer bags for storage for up to 3 month. Thaw frozen egg white overnight in the fridge and it will return to the original consistency. Freezing them in single portions makes them easy and convenient to use later for things like my Lion’s Head Meatballs (egg whites are the secret to them fluffy meatballs!!), meringue for a Pavlova or Baked Alaska, Swiss meringue buttercream for a cake, whipped whites to fold into fluffy pancakes, or just to add to other eggs for scrambled eggs and fried rice.
What is maraschino liqueur?
We make homemade maraschino cherries every summer using Luxardo Maraschino Originale liqueur. Do not think of these as the florescent-red orbs in a Mai Tai or Shirley Temple! Cherries soaked in maraschino liqueur are sublimely flavoured with complex, woody, bittersweet profile.
Can I use a different liqueur or omit altogether?
Feel free to omit or experiment with different liqueurs. Tiramisu traditionally uses marsala wine. Other popular options include Kahlúa or Tia Maria to intensify the coffee flavour, Amaretto (almond) or Frangelico (hazelnut) for nutty flavours and Bailey’s and rum. Maraschino liqueur pairs well with cherries in this recipe!
Can I make this ahead?
Tiramisu is best when made ahead and chilled in the fridge for at least 6 hours to overnight, and up to 2 days in advance. This makes it a great fuss-free make ahead dessert for hosting.
Can I freeze tiramisu?
Tiramisu freezes very well. Wrap tightly in a layer to plastic wrap, followed by a layer of foil, and then slip the whole dish inside a zip top freezer bag if it can fit (I use the extra-large size bags). Freeze up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge.
You may also be interested in these other dessert recipes:
White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu
White Chocolate Cherry Tiramisu
Ingredients
Instructions
- Take out an 8 x 8 dish.
- Make cherry sauce: Add frozen cherries, sugar and maraschino liqueur to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Scoop out 8 cherries to garnish 8 servings later. Continue to simmer another 10 minutes or when liquid is reduced by almost half. Transfer all the cherries and most (but not all) of the liquid into a food processor or blender and pulse 5 or 6 times until the consistency of a thick sauce with chunky texture (or puree until completely smooth if you prefer). Add more liquid only if needed to adjust to a saucy consistency. Cool. Discard or use leftover syrup for cocktails.
- Make white chocolate mascarpone cream: Place white chocolate in a small heat proof bowl. Heat ¼ cup of the heavy cream until scalding. I do this in the microwave 3 times at 20 seconds each increment to avoid spillover. Pour cream evenly over white chocolate chips and let sit undisturbed for 5 minutes to let the heat melt them. Stir until smooth.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, place mascarpone, egg yolks and sugar. Mix at medium speed to combine. Scrape the bowl. Add white chocolate cream mixture and mix again at medium speed to combine. Add remaining ¼ cup heavy cream. Switch from paddle to whisk attachment. Whip mixture until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes (start on low speed to avoid splashing at the beginning when mixture is thin, then increasing to medium speed). The consistency should be like thick yogurt.
- To assemble: Place cooled coffee in a small shallow dish for dipping lady fingers. One at a time, quickly dip and flip lady finger in the coffee, for about 1 second. (The coffee continues to soak into the cookie as it sits. Dipping too long can result in the tiramisu being overly soggy, my pet peeve). Place dipped lady fingers in a single layer in the 8 x 8 dish. Cut or break lady fingers as needed to fill in empty spaces to cover the entire surface. Spread half the mascarpone cream evenly on top. Dollop and spread cherry sauce on top of the mascarpone mixture. Repeat with coffee-dipped lady fingers and remaining mascarpone mixture. Cover and refrigerate 6 hours up to overnight.
- To freeze: Wrap well in a layer to plastic wrap, a layer of foil, then slip the whole dish inside a zip top freezer bag (I use the extra-large size bags). Freeze up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge.
- For the optional white chocolate almond crumble (with leftover lady fingers): Break lady fingers into 4 smaller pieces and place in a small food processor. Add almond slices and pulse until they are uniformly chunky crumbs. Be careful as lady fingers get pulverised into cookie dust pretty quickly! Shake the food processor around to get evenly broken bits. Pour mixture through a sieve to filter out the cookie dust. Melt white chocolate in the microwave at 50% power in 20-second increments, three times for a total of 60 seconds, stirring in between, or until melted and smooth. Drizzle over crumbles along with pinch of salt and toss to coat. Spread crumbles on a small parchment-lined baking sheet or plate to cool fully.
- To serve: Scoop tiramisu into serving bowls. Sprinkle crumbles on top and garnish with a reserved cherry on top.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
861Fat
46 gSat. Fat
27 gCarbs
98 gFiber
2 gNet carbs
96 gSugar
62 gProtein
14 gSodium
124 mgCholesterol
270 mgDisclaimer: Nutritional information is auto-generated and may not be 100% accurate. Use as an approximate guide.
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Hi, I’m Sonia
I share recipes inspired by my food cravings and what I make for my family. My role as a working mom of two girls, my life in Toronto Canada and my background as a Chinese immigrant from Hong Kong all inform the things I love, crave and create. This means an emphasis on wholesome recipes that are approachable for busy weeknights and fun recipes to make on weekends and for friends!
homemade food to nourish and indulge …
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