This cake, friends. It’s something else. My husband and I polished off half a cake by ourselves each time I made it. And I made it twice in less than 24 hours. I’m no math major but…that’s a lot of cake.
First, though, let me get this out of the way: this is in no way a classic tiramisu recipe. If you’re looking for something authentic this ain’t it. I brainstormed other names for this cake: coffee-soaked vanilla cake with tangy whipped cream, vanilla cake with coffee and tangy whipped cream, and so on. But I kept coming back to the inspiration for this cake which was (you guessed it!) tiramisu.
Our family spent some time in Rochester, MN at the Mayo Clinic this fall for our youngest. The trip was weird and wonderful and hard, but our friends and family were so gracious that we didn’t have to think twice about food costs. So on our last night we went bonkers and DoorDashed from an Italian restaurant. When I say the tiramisu was transcendent what I mean is I had a STRONG visceral reaction to that dessert. And I haven’t stopped thinking about tiramisu since.
This cake doesn’t compare to that experience, but it does bring a smile to your face. And you can make it start to finish in under 2 hours with ingredients you have on hand. If that’s not transcendent, I don’t know what is.
tiramisu-esque cake
Ingredients
for the cake
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup milk (I used whole milk!)
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
for the coffee soak
- 1 cup / 8 fl oz water
- 1 ½ teaspoons instant coffee, see notes*
- ¼ cup brown sugar, packed
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, or at least a pinch!
for the whipped cream
- 1 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- a pinch of kosher salt
- cocoa powder, for finishing touches
Instructions
for the cake
- Preheat your oven to 350. Butter/grease an 8×8 pan.
- With a handheld mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the softened butter and sugar. Mix for at least 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- Add egg and mix to combine. Don't forget to scrape down the sides of the bowl!
- Add your vanilla, milk, and sour cream. Mix to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl before adding dry ingredients.
- Whisk together your dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Then mix into your butter/sugar mixture, stopping when there's a few streaks of flour left. Finish mixing by hand. This ensures you don't overmix!
- Pour into prepared pan, spreading the batter as evenly as possible.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. This is *exactly* 28 minutes in my oven!
for the coffee soak
- While your cake is baking, start the soak.
- Combine your soak ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly.
- Remove from heat once your mixture boils for a few seconds. Set aside to cool.
for…soaking the cake (lolz)
- Once the cake is out of the oven, prick all over with a toothpick. Loosen the edges of the cake gently from the sides of the pan.
- Pour your coffee soak evenly over the cake. (Yep you're using all of it!) The soak tends to collect in corners, so try to distribute evenly over the cake itself before getting to the corners. Or just claim those corners for yourself–that's what I do! 😉
- Let the cake cool completely. You can also let it cool a bit before putting it in the fridge if you're wanting to expedite the process! (I always am.)
for the whipped cream
- Pour your cream into a medium sized bowl and place in the freezer, along with the whisk attachment from either a handheld mixer or stand mixer, for about 5 minutes. You want your cream, bowl, and whisk REALLY cold here.
- Add the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, and pinch of salt to the bowl. Whip until thick and creamy!
to assemble
- Spread the whipped cream evenly over the cake. Top with a dusting of cocoa powder.
- Back to the fridge! Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and let chill for at least 30 minutes. Then slice, serve, and enjoy!
- Cake lasts about 4-5 days tightly covered in the fridge. But it's never lasted that long at our house. 😉
