Tiramisù in a Different Form

The classic tiramisù is a layered dessert served in a dish. But the flavors — espresso, mascarpone, cocoa, ladyfingers — turn out to be remarkably portable. Italian pastry chefs have been testing the limits of the format for decades, turning the same ingredients into cakes, cheesecakes, ice cream, truffles, cupcakes, and brownies. The results are different enough to feel like new desserts, familiar enough to taste immediately right.

Here are six of the best.

Tiramisù Truffles The simplest transformation on this list — ladyfingers blitzed to powder, bound with mascarpone, coffee, and powdered sugar into a dough that rolls cleanly into balls, then coated in unsweetened cocoa. No baking, no layers, no dish. Ready in under thirty minutes, yields around thirty pieces, and holds well in the refrigerator for several days. The one to make when you need to bring something to a table without any fuss.

Tiramisù Cake Two homemade ladyfinger discs — baked from scratch, dusted with sugar, golden and fragrant — sandwiched with a pâte à bombe mascarpone cream and soaked in espresso. This is tiramisù dressed up for a birthday or a celebration, sliceable and impressive in a way the classic dish version isn't. It requires patience. The result justifies every step.

Tiramisù Brownie A 70% dark chocolate brownie base — dense, fudgy, deeply chocolatey — topped with a soft mascarpone and coffee cream that mirrors the flavors of the classic tiramisù. Italian and American in equal parts, cut into squares, dusted with cocoa. The name is "browniemisu" or "tiramisù brownie" depending on who you ask. Either way, it disappears fast.

Tiramisù Cupcakes Coffee-flavored sponge cupcakes topped with a pâte à bombe mascarpone cream piped in generous swirls and dusted with cocoa. The format is American, the flavors are entirely Italian — espresso in the batter, mascarpone cream made the proper way, bitter cocoa on top. The version to make when you want something elegant enough for a dinner party but easy enough to share at a table of twelve.

Tiramisù Cheesecake with Ladyfingers A base of blitzed ladyfingers bound with butter and espresso, topped with a mascarpone and cream cheese filling set with gelatin, layered with coffee-soaked ladyfingers, and decorated with a cocoa checkerboard. It has the structure of a cheesecake and the flavor of a tiramisù — firm enough to slice cleanly, rich enough to serve in small portions. The most technically involved dessert on this list, and the most spectacular.

Tiramisù Ice Cream A recipe by Tuscan gelato master Sergio Dondoli — mascarpone churned into a custard base with espresso and vanilla, served over ladyfingers soaked in coffee and amaretto, dusted with cocoa and coffee powder. Every element of the classic dessert, frozen and reassembled. The most unexpected version on this list, and the one that works best in summer.

Six formats, one set of flavors. The tiramisù turns out to be more versatile than anyone had a right to expect.

Related: The Only Tiramisù Recipe You Need to Master First → / Tiramisù Beyond Coffee: The Fruit Versions Worth Trying → / Tiramisù for Everyone: Vegan, Gluten-Free, and Egg-Free →