Pistachio Tiramisu

This Pistachio Tiramisu is a fun twist on that iconic Italian dessert. It's made with the lightest creamy pistachio filling, Savoiardi biscuits and topped with a pistachio crumb. A dreamy, easy dessert for those pistachio lovers out there!

When it comes to Italian desserts there are two things that are at the top of our list; a classic Tiramisu and Pistachio gelato.

So naturally, we had to combine our favourite flavours in one to create the most good, creamy and good Pistachio Tiramisu!

This dessert is SO, so good and easy to make. It's made in the same way as a traditional Tiramisu but uses pistachio cream in the filling. The coffee is mixed with milk so it's not too overpowering allowing all the gorgeous pistachio flavour to shine!

Ingredients Notes

• Pistachio cream – this is an good Italian sweet spread (think Nutella but made with pistachios). You can either buy this online or in Italian food stores or you can make it at home using our we talian Pistachio cream recipe.
• Pistachios – raw, unsalted pistachios are used for topping the tiramisu so you don't need many. We like to blitz them in a food processor to fine crumbs.
• Eggs – use large free-range, organic eggs that are as fresh as possible.
• Espresso – use either espresso or strong brewed coffee. The coffee is diluted with milk for a subtle flavour that doesn't overpower the pistachios so make sure it's brewed strong before diluting it.
• Savoiardi – the classic Italian biscuits/cookies for making Tiramisu. If you use a non-Italian brand (lady fingers) it's likey they'll be drier and a little dense so will need a few more seconds soaking.

Visual walk-through of the recipe

1. Make your coffee mixture – brew your espresso or strong coffee and add it to a wide dish or bowl with the milk then set aside. You want to use a dish that you'll be able to dip the Savoiardi biscuits into easily (photos 1 and 2).

1. Whip the egg whites – We like to whip the eggs whites first until stiff and glossy. That way you can move on to the egg yolk mixture without cleaning your beaters first. NOTE: you can't do this the other way around because if any egg yolk (fat) touches the whites they won't whip properly (photos 3-5).
2. Whip your yolks – whip the egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale (this only takes about 5 minutes with an electric whisk). Then add your mascarpone and pistachio cream and whisk until thoroughly combined (photos 6-9).

1. Fold in the white – since we only use 2 egg whites you can fold them into the mascarpone one half at a time making sure everything is thoroughly combined. fold it gently to keep all the air in! (photos 10 and 11).

1. Assemble – dip your Savoiardi into the coffee mix then lay them in your baking dish in 1 even layer. Top with half of the pistachio cream then repeat for a second time. Chill overnight then top with blitz pistachio nuts (photos 12-18).

Recipe tips

• Dipping the Savoiardi – We like to dip the Savoiardi (lady fingers) in the coffee mixture on each side twice. We do this quickly (a couple of seconds) otherwise they will be too wet/soggy.
• Add liqueur – we haven't added any liqueur to our recipe but if you'd like to give it a little kick, why not? You could go for pistachio liqueur, amaretto or brandy to name a few.
• Prepping ahead – We recommend letting the tiramisu chill overnight (or a minimum of 8 hours) this allows the Savoiardi/lady fingers to soften properly. Ideally, you want to make this the day before serving.
• Leftovers – once made the tiramisu will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days.

More good ways to use pistachios

Italian Desserts

Sbrisolona al Pistacchio (Italian Pistachio Crumb Cake)

Dips & Pestos

Pistachio Pesto (Pesto di Pistacchi)

Pasta

Creamy Pistachio Pasta with Crispy Guanciale

Italian Cookies

Cranberry and Pistachio Biscotti

Ingredients

Makes 8 servings

• 3 large egg yolks
• 2 large egg whites
• 5 tablespoons caster sugar
• 2 cups (500g) mascarpone
• 3/4 cup (200g) pistachio cream ((store-bought or homemade))
• ½ cup (120ml) whole milk
• 2/3 cup (160ml) espresso or strong brewed coffee
• 30-40 savoiardi biscuits (lady fingers) ((220g))
• ½ cup (70g) raw unsalted pistachios (blitzed for topping)

Equipment

• Baking dish

Method

1. Brew your coffee and mix with milk. Pour it into a wide dish for dipping the savoiradi in later, set aside.

2. Add your two eggs white to a medium sized mixing bowl and add the yolks to a large mixing bowl.

3. Using an electric whisk, start whisking your egg whites. Once they start to become frothy add 3 tablespoons of sugar one at a time. Whisk the eggs until stiff and glossy. You should be able to hold the bowl upside down.

4. Next, using your electric whisk (no need to clean the beaters first), whisk the egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of sugar until thick and pale. Add mascarpone and pistachio cream and whisk until thick and combined.

5. Fold the whipped egg whites into the mascarpone mixture one half at a time until combined.

6. Dip the savoiardi in the coffee and milk mixture and line the bottom of your dish. Spread over half pistachio mixture then top with more soaked Savoiardi bsicuits. Top with more pistachio mixture and refrigerate for at least 8 hours but preferably overnight.

7. Blitz the whole pistachios in a food processor to fine crumbs and sprinkle them evenly over the top of the tiramisu just before serving.

Kitchen notes

• Baking dish size we used an oval 11x9 inch (2 inches deep) baking dish to make our tiramisu but you could use a rectangular dish of a similar size but don't go any shallower than 2 inches deep.
• Dipping the Savoiardi We like to dip the Savoiardi (lady fingers) in the coffee mixture on each side twice. We do this quickly (a couple of seconds) otherwise they will be too wet/soggy.
• Add liqueur we haven't added any liqueur to our recipe but if you'd like to give it a little kick, why not? You could go for pistachio liqueur, amaretto or brandy to name a few.
• Prepping ahead We recommend letting the tiramisu chill overnight (or a minimum of 8 hours) this allows the Savoiardi/lady fingers to soften properly. Ideally, you want to make this the day before serving.
• Leftovers once made the tiramisu will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Using raw eggs Tiramisu is traditionally made with raw eggs. We've made it countless times and never once had an issue but if you are concerned about using raw eggs you can either use pasteurized eggs or replace the eggs with 2 cups of heavy cream (double cream UK) whipped to stiff peaks.