Family birthdays are exciting but hectic. Especially when Mama Leung’s birthday falls exactly on Mother’s Day. My brother and dad can’t cook, so I’m automatically assigned the duty of preparing dinner and dessert. Studying for a chemistry test can wait. The tiramisu she requested for the celebration was such a success, I had to share it with you all! Of course, it had to be a Healthified Tiramisu.
For this healthified tiramisu to be made completely from scratch, I began with with baking my own ladyfingers. It was my first time working with buckwheat flour, and I am in love with its nutty flavour. Don’t be deterred by the dull grey shade of the batter, it will become golden brown after baking.
So much self control had to be used to prevent myself from eating all the ladyfingers. I got to taste test a mini one; it was a hint sweet, nutty, soft and chewy. These ladyfingers would make a wonderful tea time nibble.
While these vegan, gluten free, and refined sugar free ladyfingers are not identical dupes for the store-bought variety, they fulfill their duty of carrying the coffee and liquor in tiramisu. Speaking of liquor, the only critique my mom had was that she wished there was more Bailey’s. So feel free to increase the ratio of liquor to coffee. I am not endorsing underage consumption of alcohol, but hey, it’s under family supervision -winkwink-
Next, I healthified the mascarpone filling by using coconut whipped cream instead of a custard or heavy cream. The fluffiness of the mascarpone mixture was mesmerizingly beautiful, so soft, voluminous, and aromatic, all thanks to the addition of coconut whipped cream. I highly recommend Rooster Brand Gold Label coconut milk because it is super thick and rich due to having a high coconut cream content. One can of Gold Label coconut milk is plenty for this recipe; it’s even enough to ice an entire two-layered Coconut Flour Cake! This brand of coconut milk can usually be found in the Asian aisle of the supermarket. If using a normal full-fat can of coconut milk, you may need two cans.
After 24 hours of sitting in the fridge, the resulting Healthified Tiramisu had set magnificently. The wee little spring strawberries completed the dessert, making it special occasion-worthy!
The length of the recipe may be intimidating, but trust me, it’s mainly assembly! I baked the ladyfingers in advance and layered the tiramisu the day before serving it. I hope you try this recipe out and enjoy it as much as my family did! Share your recreations with us by tagging @radiantrachels on Instagram or Facebook; we love seeing your photos!
- Ladyfingers
- ⅞ cup buckwheat flour
- 2 tbsp coconut flour
- ½ cup oat flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- A pinch of pink salt
- 1 cup macadamia nuts (toasted if desired)
- 12 large Medjool dates
- ¾ cup water
- 1½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- Tiramisu
- 1 can Rooster Brand Gold Label coconut milk, chilled in refrigerator overnight*
- ⅔ lb mascarpone cheese
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp sweetener of choice (I used coconut sugar)
- ½ cup strong coffee
- ¼ cup Bailey’s
- Cocoa and icing sugar
- To make the ladyfingers, preheat the oven to 390⁰F and line two large baking trays with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together buckwheat flour, coconut flour, oat flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a food processor fitted with an S-blade, chop macadamia nuts until very fine. Add dates, water, and vanilla and puree until as smooth as possible.
- Add date mixture to flour mixture and use a spatula to thoroughly combine.
- Using a cookie scoop, scoop 2 tbsp mounds onto prepared baking trays. Shape each mound into a 1" wide by 4" long by ¼" thick cookies with fingers. Have a small bowl of water nearby to wet fingers as needed to prevent dough from sticking to fingers.
- Bake ladyfingers in preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until surface is browned. Use a flipper to immediately transfer the cookies to a cooling rack once out of the oven. Cool completely before assembling tiramisu. Yields about 24 ladyfingers.
- To make the cream filling,remove the can of chilled coconut milk from the fridge, being careful not to tip it upside down, and spoon out all the hardened coconut cream, leaving the clear liquid in the can.
- Whip the chilled coconut cream with an electric mixer until stiff peaks. Add the mascarpone cheese, vanilla extract, and sweetener and continue mixing until homogenous. If mixture becomes too soft, chill in fridge for a few minutes.
- In a shallow bowl, whisk together coffee and Bailey's.
- Line a 9" x 4" loaf pan with plastic wrap, being sure to completely cover the sides and bottom. Leave enough overhang on each side to seal the top of the pan.
- Begin assembling the tiramisu by soaking cooled ladyfingers in coffee mixture for 10 to 20 seconds on each side and lining the bottom of the loaf pan with a single layer.
- Top the ladyfingers with ¼ of the mascarpone mixture, spreading it into an even layer with a spatula.
- Continue layering soaked ladyfingers and mascarpone cream until you have four layers of each.
- Tightly seal the top of the tiramisu with the extra plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours. Cream should be firm.
- To serve, unwrap just the top of the pan and invert onto a serving plate. Peal off plastic wrap and dust the top with a generous amount of cocoa powder and decorate with icing sugar if desired. Enjoy tiramisu chilled!
Ladyfinger recipe adapted from Gluten Free Vegan Girl
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