A Pick-Me-Up Dessert
Photography by James Stefiuk
A fun detour from tradition, this baked, poke-style tiramisu captures the spirit of the Italian classic in a coffee cup.
Tiramisu, the classic Italian dessert, literally means “pick me up.” It’s the kind of dessert name that promises something sweet, energizing and indulgent. And it’s hard not to smile at the connection: When someone needs a pick-me-up, they often pick up a coffee cup first. This Coffee-Cup Tiramisu leans into that idea on purpose, serving the dessert in the very thing that usually delivers the boost.
Coffee not only wakes people up, but also cheers them up. The aroma alone can flip the mood from sluggish to hopeful. Tiramisu does the same in dessert form: creamy mascarpone, cocoa and a whisper of coffee-and-liqueur flavor that makes every bite feel like a treat. Put them together and you get a double lift of caffeine vibes plus comfort-food nostalgia.
Traditionally, tiramisu is a no-bake classic. Ladyfingers soak up coffee (often spiked), then get layered with mascarpone cream and finished with a dusting of cocoa. It’s elegant, old-school and all about texture.
This version takes a fun detour, borrowing the poke cake concept and involving baking. The spirit is still there, though. Like the traditional recipe, it relies on a mascarpone cream, a spike of liqueur and a dusting of cocoa.
Personally, this recipe taps into a memory that has been stuck with me since childhood.
My mother was part of a cooking club when I was younger, and one month she was assigned to make tiramisu, while everyone else got the “easy” stuff like salad, bread, spaghetti and tea. My mother is an excellent cook, and I will never forget how unbelievably good that tiramisu was. This coffee-cup version is not the same dessert, but the variation and flavors are still seared on my brain in the best way.
This Tiramisu Coffee Cup Dessert is proof that a pick-me-up can be as simple as picking up a cup and digging in.
| Servings |
servings
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- 1 box white cake mix
- 1 1/4 cups 2% milk
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
- 1/3 cup Kahlua coffee liqueur
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 8 ounces mascarpone
- 3 tablespoons Kahlua coffee liqueur
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- coffee beans optional
Ingredients
For the cake:
For the coffee sauce:
For the icing:
Garnish
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- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the cake mix, milk, eggs and oil with a hand mixer until well blended.
- Pour the batter into the prepared dish and bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Whisk the condensed milk, Kahlua, cocoa powder, espresso powder and salt in a bowl.
- You will need 12 coffee cups.
- Use each coffee cup as cookie cutter and press each one into the cake to get a perfectly round-fitted cake inside each coffee cup.
- Using a large fork, poke holes in the cake inside the cups. Drizzle a bit of the coffee sauce over each cake evenly so that it soaks into the cakes.
- Loosely cover and refrigerate the cakes for 2 hours so they have time to soak up the sauce.
- Beat the sugar, mascarpone and Kahlua well with a hand mixer.
- Add the heavy whipping cream and beat until stiff peaks form.
- Add a plop of icing into each cup and use a spoon to even it out.
- Dust each cup with coca powder and drop a coffee bean or two on top (optional).
- Refrigerate until serving.
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