Lemon and Limoncello Tiramisu
Everyone I have made this Lemon and Limoncello Tiramisu for absolutely LOVES it 🍋! The sponge fingers are soaked in a sweet yet tangy lemon limoncello syrup. The mascarpone filling is super soft and creamy due to the addition of an Italian custard. Then, a smooth and silky homemade lemon curd topping perfects the whole dish.
Finally, we are coming out of winter! Don't you love it when evenings start to draw out, fresh green grass begins finding its way into sunlight, and the daffodils open up. I do love Spring.
And with all that yellow around, it seems only right to create a summery lemony dessert!
Tiramisu is one of my favourite desserts; I could literally live on it. The silkiness of the filling with soft, partially soaked sponge fingers in between. Oh wow.
And Lemon Tiramisu is simply a twist on the traditional coffee tiramisu recipe. Lemony and creamy, it clears the palate after a meal and leaves the mouth tingling with lovely flavours.
I have made tiramisu a couple of times already on Ella's Better Bakes. My Tiramisu Cups recipe also combines a tiramisu filling with a zabaglione custard. It is divine. Then my Cherry Tiramisu🍒 made with soaked black cherries in kirsh is scrumptiously decadent.
Anyway, I do hope you will give this lemon tiramisu recipe a go. It has become one of my favourite all-time recipes 🍋🍋🍋
Jump to:
- Why make this Lemon Limoncello 🍸 Tiramisu?
- Ingredients and Substitutions
- Instructions
- 1st element: Homemade Lemon Curd
- 2nd element: Italian Zabaglione Custard
- 3rd element: Lemon and Limoncello Syrup
- 4th element: Mascarpone Cream
- Assemble your Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu
- Storage
- Alternatives
- In a rush? Follow these shortcuts
- Spare egg whites?
- Top tips for perfect Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu
- FAQ
- Related
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
Why make this Lemon Limoncello 🍸 Tiramisu?
Soft sponge fingers soaked in a lemon and limoncello syrup 🍋
Italian custard for a sublimely delicious creamy filling 🍋
Smooth and zingy lemon curd topping 🍋
Makes a party-sized tiramisu, serves 20 or more 🍋
Each element can be made in advance 🍋
Lemon desserts are great for cleansing the palate after any meal 🍋
Ingredients and Substitutions
See the Recipe card below for the exact quantities.
This recipe makes a LARGE Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu with lemon curd using a dish measuring 28 cm x 23 cm x 5.5 cm.
It yields 20 good-sized portions.
You will need:
- Lemons - 6 in total
- Large eggs - 10 in total
- Limoncello - can be replaced with lemon juice and a little more sugar to taste
- Mascarpone
- Double cream (heavy cream)
- Sponge fingers - (Ladyfingers)
- Caster sugar (superfine sugar)
- Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar)
- Unsalted butter
- Vanilla bean paste - or vanilla extract
- Decorations - such as lemon jellies or white chocolate (optional)
Note: This Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu can be made without the Italian zabaglione custard, i.e. just using the cream and mascarpone. If so, add another 2 tablespoons of sifted icing sugar to sweeten it up a little.
Instructions
See Recipe card at the end for exact instructions.
As I say, the great thing about this recipe is that you can make all of the elements the day before and then put them together when you are ready.
1st element: Homemade Lemon Curd
Add your lemon juice, zest, sugar and butter to a heatproof mixing bowl set securely over a pan of simmering water.
Once the butter has melted, add your lightly beaten eggs and egg yolk and whisk together. Cook for 12-14 minutes, until the lemon curd coats the back of a spoon. Set aside to fully cool.
2nd element: Italian Zabaglione Custard
Again, set a large pan filled to a third with water to simmer. Wash out the same mixing bowl you used and be sure it is cool. Add your egg yolks and sugar.
Beat until the mixture forms a light yellow paste with bubbles across the top. This usually takes about 2 minutes with a hand mixer. Beat in the vanilla bean paste.
Tip: see below for a recipe idea to use up your egg whites!
Place the bowl on the simmering pan of water and continue beating on a medium setting with your hand mixer. Keep going for about 10-12 minutes until the mixture drizzles onto the top and stays there briefly before melting in. Leave to cool.
3rd element: Lemon and Limoncello Syrup
Gently heat your lemon juice, water and sugar in a small pan until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a rolling boil for 5 minutes, then leave to cool. Mix the Limoncello.
4th element: Mascarpone Cream
Add your mascarpone to a large mixing bowl and give it a few stirs to soften up. In another bowl, beat your double (heavy) cream until it forms soft peaks.
Mix your cream into your mascarpone and then add your cooled custard.
Mix everything thoroughly until smooth.
Assemble your Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu
Dip each sponge finger into the lemon and Limoncello syrup individually. Turn them over for 5 seconds and then place them in your serving dish until all of the base is covered.
Take half of your mascarpone cream mixture and spread it evenly over the sponge fingers. Then loosely spread over 5 tablespoons of cooled lemon curd.
Add another layer of dipped sponge fingers, making sure all gaps are filled.
Cover with another layer of the mascarpone cream and then spread the rest of the lemon curd over the top.
Beat your 150ml of double (heavy) cream and then fold in 2 tablespoons of sifted icing sugar.
Fit a large piping bag with a 6B piping nozzle and carefully pipe four large swirls in the corners. Then small stars around the outside. Refridgerate for at least 4 hours, better still, overnight.
Storage
Keep your Lemon Tiramisu covered with clingfilm (plastic wrap) and refrigerated. It will be fine for 2-3 days as long as your mascarpone and your cream fall within these dates.
Alternatives
Traditional Coffee Tiramisu
You can use this Tiramisu Cups recipe to turn it into a single tiramisu using a dish measuring 23 x 23 centimetres.
In a rush? Follow these shortcuts
Whilst I do really advocate making every element of this lemon tiramisu as per the recipe for the absolute best results, I do appreciate we are all so busy these days that this is not always possible.
So a few cheeky shortcuts are....
Lemon curd - you can, of course, use bought lemon curd. I recommend choosing a good brand, the best you can find.
Custard - you can use bought custard, I recommend a thick one, such as Ambrosia Devon Custard. Mix 200 grams into your cream and mascarpone. If you feel it still needs to be a bit sweeter, sift in a tablespoon of icing sugar and mix in.
Alternatively, follow the method for this recipe for Proper English Vanilla Custard and reduce the quantities as follows to thicken it up as follows:
- 180 ml whole milk
- ½ tsp vanilla bean paste or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg yolk
- 10 grams caster sugar
- 10 grams cornflour (cornstarch)
Spare egg whites?
You will have 7 egg whites left over after making this recipe.
No need to waste them, though you can:
- Freeze them for up to 3 months
- Use them in one of these recipes: Black Forest Pavlova, Easy Mango Macarons, Earl Grey Macarons, Chocolate Nutella Meringue Nests or Lemon Meringue Mini Tarts
- Use them to make Meringue Shells, then fill the shells with double (heavy) cream beaten until it forms stiff peaks (use the whisk attachment) and sweeten to taste with sifted icing sugar. Dot over any fruits of your choice.
Top tip: Egg whites make far better meringue when they have been refrigerated and therefore "aged" for a day.
Top tips for perfect Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu
Use fresh lemons 🍋
Fresh lemons are really needed for this recipe. They have a far better flavour than bought lemon juice.
Mix in the Limoncello when the syrup is cold
If you want to preserve your limoncello's alcohol content, add it when the syrup is cold. Otherwise, the heat will destroy the alcohol. Never good if you ask me.
Be careful not to oversoak your sponge fingers
Unlike trifle, we don't soak the sponge through when making tiramisu. This is because we need them to retain their shape and hold up the layers of cream above. So a 5 second spin in the syrup is all that is required.
Weigh your mascarpone cream
If you want to be sure that your mascarpone cream layers are equal, simply weigh them out and split them in two.
White chocolate decorations
White chocolate shavings work really well on top of this Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu. I recommend using good-quality white chocolate. Cheaper ones tend not to work as well due to their high fat content.
To make white chocolate shavings, pour melted white chocolate onto a hard surface such as a baking tray. Let it harden, then drag the edge of a sharp knife over the top, pressing down lightly in order to shave off thin layers.
This video shows you how.
FAQ
The flavours in Tiramisu really blend and develop if left overnight. Likewise, the sponge fingers need a good few hours to turn from crisp to soft. Therefore, it is always best to make a tiramisu at least 4 hours before serving, or preferably overnight.
Lemon Tiramisu is not overly tangy or tart. The flavour is not unlike the lemon flavours of a lemon tart.
Certainly not. Given that lemon is great for cleaning the palette after a meal whilst giving a nice sweet taste, this dessert works well at any time of the year. It can be a nice light alternative to the heaviness of Christa's desserts.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
📖 Recipe
Lemon and Limoncello Tiramisu
Here's what you'll need...
- Large heavy based saucepan
- Small saucepan
- Large heatproof mixing bowl for a bain marie i.e. the bowl has to fit on the saucepan securely but not touch the water below
- Hand mixer and/or stand mixer
- Cling film plastic wrap
- Large serving dish ideally sized 30 x 23 cm x 5.5 cm
Ingredients you'll need...
Lemon Curd
- 125 ml Lemon juice from about 3 lemons. (½ Cup)
- 2 tablespoon Lemon zest
- 200 g Caster sugar (1 Cup of superfine sugar)
- 95 g Unsalted butter cut into 2 cm cubes (6 tablespoons)
- 3 Large eggs
- 1 Large egg yolk
Italian Zabaglione Custard
- 6 Egg yolks from large eggs
- 80 g Caster sugar (6 tablespoons of superfine sugar)
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla bean paste or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Lemon Limoncello Syrup
- 125 ml Lemon juice from about 3 lemons
- 2 tablespoon Lemon zest
- 140 ml Cold water (9 tablespoons)
- 125 g Caster sugar (10 tablespoons of superfine sugar)
- 85 ml Limoncello (6 tablespoons)
Mascarpone Cream
- 500 g Mascarpone at room temperature (2 Cups)
- 600 g Double cream (2½ Cups of heavy cream)
- 2 tablespoon Icing sugar (confectioner's sugar) sifted
Assembly
- 2 Packs sponge fingers (Ladyfingers)
Decoration
- 150 ml Double cream (10 tablespoons of heavy cream)
- 2 tablespoon Icing sugar (confectioners sugar)
- Lemon jellies, white chocolate shavings, or spinkles optional
Here's what we do...
Lemon Curd
- Create a bain marie - i.e. take your large saucepan and fill it about a third full with boiling water and allow it to simmer.Check that your heatproof mixing bowl will fit on the top without touching the water below.
- Add your lemon juice and zest, your sugar and cubed butter to the mixing bowl and place it securely over the pan of simmering water.
- Stir gently until the butter has melted.
- Lightly whisk your eggs and egg yolk together until incorporated.
- Cook for 12 minutes, stirring intermittently to be sure that the curd cooks evenly.
- After 12 minutes, you should find that if you dip a dessert spoon into the curd, it will coat the back. That means the curd is done. If not, continue to cook for another couple of minutes.
- Remove the bowl from the pan and set it aside to allow it to fully cool, stirring every now and then. (Note that if you are using the same bowl for the custard, as per below, you may want to decant the lemon curd into another heatproof dish to cool instead.)
Italian Zabaglione Custard
- As above, create another bain marie by setting your large pan of water to simmer. Ensure your heatproof bowl will fit snugly on top without touching the water below.
- Place your egg yolks and sugar into your heatproof bowl and, using your hand mixer with the beaters attached, beat together for about 2 minutes until pale yellow, creamy and little air bubbles can be seen on the top.
- Briefly beat in your vanilla bean paste or extract.
- Set the bowl on the pan of simmering water and continue to beat the eggs and sugar mixture continuously for another 12 minutes. Wipe down the sides of the bowl with a spatula regularly to be sure everything cooks evenly.
- The custard is ready once it has thickened up and a trail of it sits on the top for a few seconds before disappearing. The temperature should be between 150-165℉.
- Remove the custard from the heat, cover with a layer of cling film (plastic wrap), and leave to fully cool.
Lemon Limoncello Syrup
- Add the lemon juice and zest to your small saucepan, along with the water and sugar and mix together.
- Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved.
- Turn up the heat and bring to a rolling boil. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Remove the lemon syrup from the heat and allow it to fully cool.
- Mix in your limoncello.
Mascarpone Cream Filling
- Add your mascarpone to a large mixing bowl and give it a brief mix to be sure it is soft there are no lumps. Try not to overmix as this can affect the texture.
- Fit the whisk to your stand (or hand) mixer and beat your cream in a separate bowl until it forms droopy soft peaks.
- Mix the cream, cooled custard and sifted icing sugar into the mascarpone until smooth and lump-free.
Assemble your Lemon Limoncello Tiramisu
- Now to put it all together! Submerge a sponge finger into your cooled lemon and limoncello syrup and twizzle it over for 5 seconds. Remove, let the excess briefly drain and then place in your serving dish. Repeat until all the base of the dish has been covered in soaked sponge fingers.
- Take half of your mascarpone cream and spread it evenly over the sponge fingers.
- Dot over 6 tablespoons of your cooled lemon curd. (I don't tend to really mix it in as it will just disappear into the cream and you will lose that hit of flavour.)
- Repeat the first step above so that you have another layer of soaked sponge fingers. (You may have some syrup left over, don't worry about using it all.)
- Cover with the rest of the mascarpone cream.
- Evenly sponge over the rest of the lemon curd, then use a butter knife or small spatula to spread it evenly over so that all of the cream filling is covered.
Decoration
- With the whisk attachment fitted to your mixer, beat your double (heavy) cream until it reaches stiff peaks.
- Sift in your icing sugar and fold it in.
- Fit your 6B piping tip to your piping bag and stand it in a pint glass, pulling the sides of the bag down over the sides of the glass to make it easier to fill with cream.
- Fill with cream and squeeze it down until the lower half of the bag is full, then twist the excess bag at the top to secure the cream inside tightly.
- Pipe a swirl of cream in each corner and then small squeezes around the outside to give a flower like appearance.
- Decorate further however you want, such as white chocolate swirls or lemon candies, or leave plain if you prefer.
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before eating. Better still refrigerate over night.
Comments
No Comments