Puff Pastry Tiramisu
It should not be a surprise that I love tiramisu, I mean I have done it as pancakes and have shared a full recipe where I make the deliciously creamy coffee-chocolate dessert from scratch.
However, sometimes we find ourselves without access to ladyfingers or without the necessary baking skills to make them ourselves, but we do happen to find ourselves with a sheet of refrigerated puff pastry instead…how relatable of a scenario does that sound?
With this recipe, we swap the traditional tiramisu ladyfingers with puff pastry, leading to a flaky, crispy texture woven within the mascarpone cream filling. This might not exactly be reinventing tiramisu, but it is certainly an easy and delicious way to do it that almost makes it like a mille fuille, a French layered puff pastry dessert.
Before diving into the recipe, let’s talk about puff pastry for a moment.
The way puff pastry is made is by rolling and folding a sheet of butter within a dough, the goal of which is to create hundreds of layers of dough and butter that, as the pastry bakes, causes the dough to puff up (hence the name puff pastry) into flaky, crispy glory.
If you trust your baking skills and want to try making puff pastry from scratch, I say go for it! Let me know how it goes. However, it is very time-consuming. The proper puff pastry has to be chilled for at least 2 hours between each of the 3-4 folds that it receives as that firms up the fat within the dough to help create those all-important layers, it most often has to chill overnight even.
For the average home baker, I say that frozen sheets of puff pastry are perfectly acceptable to use, and most grocery stores have them these days. They’re convenient, easy to use, and once you know how to use them, they can translate into a wide range of delicious treats, both sweet and savory. Tarts, pies, turnovers, tarte tatin, kolaches, you name it.
With that out of the way, let’s do this!
Puff Pastry Tiramisu
Serves 8
1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed
Flour, for dusting
1 large egg
A pinch of salt
Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
1/2 cup of hot coffee or espresso*
2 tablespoons of coffee liqueur, such as Kahlua
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon of sugar
1 1/2 cups of cold heavy cream
1 tablespoon of instant espresso powder
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
8 ounces of mascarpone cheese
Cocoa powder, for dusting.
*If you’re worried about caffeine, then decaf coffee and espresso powder are perfectly fine.
Step 1: Prepare the Puff Pastry
Heat the oven to 375 degrees and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll out the thawed puff pastry dough, then roll on a floured surface into an 8x16 rectangle.
Trim the edges of the dough, then cut it in half crosswise, then cut crosswise into eighths, making 16 rectangles. Place 8 pieces onto each baking sheet, then chill for 20 minutes to firm up the fat in the pastry and ensure a flaky pastry.
Step 2: Bake the Pastry
Prick each dough rectangle all over with a fork, then top with another sheet of parchment and stack the baking sheets on top of each other. Place a third baking sheet on top to weigh down the pastry, then bake until the pastry is golden and crisp, about 20 minutes. Doing this will make the puff pastry sturdier when it comes to layering later on.
Meanwhile, beat the egg with 1 tablespoon of water and the salt.
Unstack the baking sheets, then brush each pastry sheet with the egg mixture and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake for 5 to 7 more minutes, or until the pastry is deep golden. Allow the pastry to cool.
Step 3: Make the Fillings
Stir together the hot coffee, coffee liqueur, and 1 tablespoon of sugar in a shallow bowl until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool.
Beat the heavy cream and espresso powder in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until the espresso dissolves. Gradually add the remaining 1/3 cup of sugar, then beat until soft peaks form. Add the vanilla and beat to combine.
Add the mascarpone in dollops, beating on medium speed just until thick and smooth. Do not overwhip, or the mixture may separate.
Step 4: Assemble and Chill
To assemble, briefly dip (1 to 2 seconds) 8 of the puff pastry pieces in the coffee mixture and arrange on the bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan.
Top with half of the whipped cream mixture, smoothing it out as best as you can, then repeat with the remaining pastry, coffee mixture, and cream, arranging the pastry layers in the same direction as the first one. Cover the dish and chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
Step 5: Garnish and Serve
Before serving, dust the whole tiramisu with cocoa powder before slicing it into 8 pieces and using a spatula to remove it, making sure to follow the breaks in the pastry.
I have no issue with ladyfingers whatsoever, they’re the standard for tiramisu for a reason, but I do like the flaky, crispy texture you get with the puff pastry and I can see myself making tiramisu this way again.
