Tiramisu with lemon curd and limoncello is the dessert you need in your life. Sweet and tangy with a hint of boozy liquor, it brings summer vibes straight to your kitchen. It’s easy to make and like every tiramisu, even more delicious the next day.
If I needed to choose one dessert I’d eat for the rest of my life, there’s no doubt, it would be a silky and smooth tiramisu. I’m obsessed with this dessert! It’s like all of Italian cooking in one recipe – simple, a handful of ingredients and a massive punch of flavour.
I understand that nothing can beat the classic recipe – mascarpone cheese filling with lovely lady fingers soaked in coffee. But this tiramisu with lemon curd and limoncello is really worth trying. It has lovely tanginess from the lemon curd (here’s a full recipe on how to make the best homemade lemon curd) and a boozy punch from sweet limoncello. It really is all the best things combined in one recipe.
Tiramisu with Lemon Curd – Everything You Need To Know
I wanted to incorporate some excitement into a classic recipe, so I came up with this tiramisu with lemon curd recipe.
I kept the basis of the mascarpone cheese filling, but changed the egg part for the lemon curd (which also has egg in it). I also added a splash of boozy limoncello, which you can skip completely, but it makes the cake even more exciting.
To make this tiramisu even more interesting, I decided to swap ladyfingers for a homemade Genovese sponge. Now, I know, I know, it’s perhaps controversial to call this dessert a tiramisu but damn it works!
Tiramisu with Lemon Curd Recipe Swaps
This is an easy recipe, so all the swaps come naturally, but here are some suggestions:
- Let’s start with the easiest and the most obvious swap – the dish. Tiramisu can be served in one big dish or in a couple of individual jars. There is no right or wrong answer, just your preference.
- Lemon curd – you can also use clementines, oranges, or a mix of limes with lemons.
- As always, I love to add a splash of alcohol to my desserts. This time I added limoncello, but you can skip this ingredient if you’d prefer an alcohol-free version.
- Genovese sponge – this is the softest sponge you can ever make, and it absorbs all the flavours. However, if you don’t have time to make it, feel free to use classic ladyfingers.
If you love citrusy desserts, give these recipes a go as well:
Lemon and Pistachio Cake with Lemon Curd
Chocolate Orange Tart with Chocolate Ganache
Rich Chocolate Cake with Orange Cream and Chocolate Pudding
Lemon Crinkle Cookies
If you are looking for good Limoncello, try out these brands:
Villa Massa
Limoncello by Assuntina di Capri
Recipe
Ingredients
Sponge:
3 eggs
80g caster sugar
20g melted butter
90g plain flour
Cream layer:
300ml double cream
2 tablespoons of icing sugar
250g mascarpone cheese
Lemon curd:
3 lemons
1 clementine
100g caster sugar
100g butter
3 eggs
20g plain flour
50ml limoncello
Method
Prepare the sponge:
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line a rectangular baking tray (the one you would use to make a swiss roll) with baking paper.
- Whisk the egg with the caster sugar in a bowl above some boiling water, until you get a thick and pale mixture (you should be able to draw an ‘8’ and see it until it dissolves).
- Add the melted cooled butter to the mixture. Mix everything.
- Add the sifted plain flour and gently mix.
- After your batter is ready, spoon it onto the baking tray.
- Bake the sponge in the oven for 12-15 minutes.
Prepare the lemon curd:
- Squeeze the juice from the lemons and clementine into a saucepan.
- Add the sugar and butter. Heat the mixture until the butter melts.
- Lightly beat the eggs in a large bowl.
- Take the juice mixture off the heat and very slowly, always whisking, pour this mixture into the eggs (this way you’ll avoid scrambled eggs).
- Pour the curd back into a saucepan and add the cornstarch with limoncello.
- Heat the curd for 5 minutes, always mixing until it starts firming up.
- Take it from the heat and pour the curd through a sieve to remove any lumps.
- Let it cool completely.
Prepare the cream layer:
- Gently whisk the double cream with the icing sugar.
- Add the mascarpone cheese. Mix everything.
Assemble tiramisu:
- Prepare the dish (or dishes!) in which you want to serve the tiramisu (I used 4 medium sized glasses).
- Add the cream layer to the bottom of your dish and on top of it, add a dollop of the lemon curd.
- Cut the sponge into even pieces and add them on top of the curd.
- Drizzle the sponge with limoncello.
- Repeat the process and finish with the cream layer.
