The most delicious lemon tiramisu, made with layers of sweetened mascarpone cheese, limoncello soaked ladyfingers, fluffy whipped cream, and lemon curd.
You might also love these recipes for classic tiramisu, strawberry tiramisu, and tiramisu cupcakes.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy to Make. There’s no baking involved when making this lemon tiramisu. You’ll only need to make a simple sabayon or custard, whip some cream with mascarpone cheese, dip the lady fingers in lemon syrup, and then layer everything together.
So Good Leftover. One of the best things about tiramisu is how good it even days after assembling. You can make it the day before you plan to serve it, to let all the flavors mingle and allow the custard to set up.
Soft, Cold and Creamy. I love cold desserts in the summer, and this one doesn’t disappoint. The ladyfingers soak up all the glorious mascarpone cream filling, limoncello and lemon curd for a soft, cake-like texture.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude. Today’s recipe will work at any altitude, though.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Egg Yolks, Sugar and Milk. These ingredients are the base of the custard (also called sabayon). It will not be thick like pudding, since there’s no thickener like corn starch or flour, but rather thin and pourable.
- Mascarpone Cheese. The delicate sweetness of mascarpone cheese is a classic flavor in tiramisu. In a pinch, you can also use full-fat, block style cream cheese, which works just as well. Be sure to let it soften for several hours at room temperature, for a smooth texture in the filling.
- Heavy Whipping Cream. The whipped cream lightens the mascarpone cheese and custard for a fluffy, creamy filling that you’ll love.
- Lemon Juice. You can use either bottled or fresh lemon juice to make the lemon syrup. You’ll need sugar, too, of course, to balance the tartness, but the limoncello is optional. If you choose to make yours alcohol free, just replace the limoncello with water.
- Ladyfingers. Look on the cookie aisle for packages of ladyfingers. You’ll need 2 packages (24 per package) for an 8×11 pan, or 3 packages for a 9×13 pan.
- Lemon Curd. For the final layer on top of the tiramisu, jarred or homemade lemon curd adds a sunny yellow color and more lemon flavor.
Instructions
Make the Filling
- In a saucepan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and milk. Over medium heat, cook the mixture for about 8-10 minutes until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. It should have the consistency of a thin, pourable custard.
- Pour the custard into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap resting right against the surface of the custard, and chill in the refrigerator until completely cooled. (You can speed this up by chilling it in the freezer for 30-60 minutes.)
- Place the mascarpone cheese or cream cheese in a bowl, and use an electric mixer to beat until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Add the vanilla and the cooled custard to the mascarpone, and beat for 1-2 minutes until smooth.
- Pour the cold heavy whipping cream into a separate bowl. Use your electric mixer to whip the cream for several minutes until soft, thick, fluffy peaks form.
- Add the whipped cream to the mascarpone mixture and fold together with a spatula until combined.
Lemon Syrup
- In a saucepan, whisk together the lemon juice, sugar and limoncello or water. Bring to boil over medium high heat, then simmer for a couple of minutes, just until the sugar is dissolved.
- Remove from the heat, pour into a container, and refrigerate until completely cooled.
Assembly
- Set out your pan and decide how you’re going to arrange the ladyfingers. With two packages of ladyfingers, I had 48 ladyfingers. In an 8×11 pan, I was able to fit about 14 ladyfingers per layer, with the ones on the end cut in thirds to fit, so I assembled three layers, leaving me a few ladyfingers leftover. This size pan will make a very full layered dessert if you do three layers. If you use a 9×13 inch pan, you might also need a third package of ladyfingers to fill the pan with three layers, or you can just use two packages and assemble two layers.
- Start by dipping the ladyfingers in the lemon syrup, then arranging them in the bottom of the pan. When dipping, hold the ladyfingers in the syrup for about 2 seconds.
- Once the pan is filled with the first layer of ladyfingers, spread 1/3 of the mascarpone filling over the ladyfingers.
- Repeat two more times, with layers of lemon-dipped ladyfingers, mascarpone filling, lemon-dipped ladyfingers, and finishing with the last of the mascarpone filling.
- Refrigerate the tiramisu for 12 hours (or overnight). I found this dessert needed a long chill time, to allow the ladyfingers enough time to soften from the moisture of the filling.
- Before serving, spread the lemon curd over the top. (I reserved about 1/2 cup of the mascarpone filling, whisked it together with the lemon curd, and spread that on top for a paler yellow color.)
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
This dessert will keep for about 3-5 days. Honestly, it gets better and better each day.
Yes, you really do. When I’ve tried slicing it 4-5 hours after assembly, the lady fingers were still crisp. But by the next day, they’ll be perfectly soft and cakey after absorbing the moisture from the custard and cream.
Yes, you can omit the limoncello and replace it with the same amount of water.
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Lemon Tiramisu
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Electric Mixer (Stand or Hand-Held)
- Medium-Sized Saucepan
- 8×11 or 9×13 Baking Dish
Ingredients
Filling
- 6 large egg yolks
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- â…” cup whole milk
- 1 lb mascarpone cheese or full fat block cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 ¼ cups cold heavy whipping cream
Lemon Syrup
- ¾ cup lemon juice
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup limoncello (or water, for a non-alcoholic version)
Other
- 2 pkg ladyfingers (a 7-oz package should contain about 24 ladyfingers, for 48 total)
- 1 cup lemon curd
Instructions
Make the Filling
- In a saucepan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and milk. Over medium heat, cook the mixture for about 8-10 minutes until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. It should have the consistency of a thin, pourable custard.
- Pour the custard into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap resting right against the surface of the custard, and chill in the refrigerator until completely cooled. (You can speed this up by chilling it in the freezer for 30-60 minutes.)
- Place the mascarpone cheese or cream cheese in a bowl, and use an electric mixer to beat until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Add the vanilla and the cooled custard to the mascarpone, and beat for 1-2 minutes until smooth.
- Pour the cold heavy whipping cream into a separate bowl. Use your electric mixer to whip the cream for several minutes until soft, thick, fluffy peaks form.
- Add the whipped cream to the mascarpone mixture and fold together with a spatula until combined.
Lemon Syrup
- In a saucepan, whisk together the lemon juice, sugar and limoncello or water. Bring to boil over medium high heat, then simmer for a couple of minutes, just until the sugar is dissolved.
- Remove from the heat, pour into a container, and refrigerate until completely cooled.
Assembly
- Set out your pan and decide how you're going to arrange the ladyfingers. With two packages of ladyfingers, I had 48 ladyfingers. In an 8×11 pan, I was able to fit about 14 ladyfingers per layer, with the ones on the end cut in thirds to fit, so I assembled three layers, leaving me a few ladyfingers leftover. This size pan will make a very full layered dessert if you do three layers. If you use a 9×13 inch pan, you might also need a third package of ladyfingers to fill the pan with three layers, or you can just use two packages and assemble two layers.
- Start by dipping the ladyfingers in the lemon syrup, then arranging them in the bottom of the pan. When dipping, hold the ladyfingers in the syrup for about 2 seconds.
- Once the pan is filled with the first layer of ladyfingers, spread 1/3 of the mascarpone filling over the ladyfingers.
- Repeat two more times, with layers of lemon-dipped ladyfingers, mascarpone filling, lemon-dipped ladyfingers, and finishing with the last of the mascarpone filling.
- Refrigerate the tiramisu for 12 hours (or overnight). I found this dessert needed a long chill time, to allow the ladyfingers enough time to soften from the moisture of the filling.
- Before serving, spread the lemon curd over the top. (I reserved about 1/2 cup of the mascarpone filling, whisked it together with the lemon curd, and spread that on top for a paler yellow color.)
Heather–this was the first time trying out this new flavor for us. The taste woke up our taste buds! Thanks for this new-to-us flavor. Creamy, almost light, yet luxurious, it’s now a new favorite for us! Thank you so much for all the time you take to explore new combinations and additions to treat everyone’s tastebuds.
Very creamy, light, satisfying, easy, worth the long wait