Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

Name: Chocolate Tiramisu Cake
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 700 min
Ingredients: 240 grams (2 cups) cake flour; 80 grams (1 cup) black cocoa powder; 1/2 tsp fine sea salt; 14 grams (1 Tbsp) baking powder; 350 grams (1 3/4 cup) granulated sugar; 160 mL (2/3 cup) canola oil (or any neutral oil); 2 large eggs room temperature; 150 grams (2/3 cup) sour cream; 240 mL (1 cup) hot coffee (I use Americano); 24 ounces (3 small tubs) mascarpone cheese (cold (I recommend Belgioioso)*); 300 grams (2 1/2 cups) powdered sugar; tiny pinch fine sea salt; 480 mL (2 cups) heavy whipping cream, cold; 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste; 180 mL (3/4 cup/6 shots) fresh brewed espresso (room temperature or cold); 50 grams (1/4 cup) granulated sugar; 12 lady fingers (trimmed to the size of your cake); Cocoa powder for dusting (I used dutch)

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Chocolate tiramisu cake combines two of my favorite desserts – chocolate cake and tiramisu. I used my favorite black cocoa cake and pretty much built a tiramisu in the middle of two cake layers.

chocolate tiramisu cake with a plate and mugs next to it

Why You Will Love This Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

The recipe may have many steps, but I laid it out in an easy to follow fashion and once completed, it will have been so worth it!
The cake is so soft and fluffy and is served well cold or you could bring it out to room temperature and serve it just slightly chilled.
It’s somewhat versatile – if you don’t like coffee, you can do a chocolate milk soak instead of the coffee. You could turn it into triple chocolate and add a little cocoa powder to the cream as well, the possibilities are endless!
The cake layers can be baked ahead of time and the cake must be put together at least 1 day in advance. This is a great option for an event because it always frees up some time on the day of the event.

If you’ve read some of my other recent posts you know I recently became obsessed with my new Black Cocoa Cake and I have literally not stopped posting new recipes with it. Today is no different, but if you want to see others, take a look at my Chocolate Smore’s Cake, Turtle Cake, or add some zazz to your life with my Lemon Chocolate Cake and Chocolate Pistachio Cake.

If tiramisu makes your mouth water, then make sure to try my Tiramisu Cake and my Tiramisu Latte. They’re both family and reader favorites! I also have traditional Tiramisu and of course even homemade ladyfingers. Or take a look at my brand new Oreo Tiramisu recipe!

slice of chocolate tiramisu cake on a plate

Ingredients for Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

Flour: I use all purpose flour in most of my recipes BUT sometimes you just cannot beat the texture of cake flour. I highly recommend King Arthur’s Cake Flour. It is far superior to some alternatives in the grocery stores.
- I have used the “homemade cake flour” trick by replacing 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour with cornstarch.
- I HIGHLY recommend using a digital scale, as flour is so often over measured.
Baking Powder: to leaven the cake. I’ve also tested this with baking soda and it worked fine with about 3/4 tsp.
Sugar: I used granulated sugar in the cake and I don’t recommend cutting any out as it contributes a lot to texture and it’s not overly sweet… it’s actually not very sweet at all (even though it seems like a lot).
- I also used powdered sugar in the mascarpone cream and don’t recommend cutting any out.

Cocoa powder: I use black cocoa powder for the cake, making it darker and stunning to look at. I also use a dutch-process cocoa powder on top of the mascarpone but any unsweetened cocoa powder works.
Salt: salt brings out natural flavors and cuts the sweetness a bit. I always use fine sea salt which is a bit more mild than table salt.

Oil: I like oil in chocolate cake recipes – any neutral oil, like avocado, canola, etc. is fine.
Eggs: I use 2 large eggs, make sure they’re room temperature. If not, then just place it in a cup of hot water for 10 minutes before using it.
Sour Cream: I’ve used greek yogurt and sour cream in this recipe and they both work well. You can also use plain yogurt.
Coffee: I use hot coffee in this cake. I usually use Americanos for the cake batter but fresh brewed coffee is fine too. If you don’t want to use coffee, hot water will work as well, the flavor will just be a little less intense… The acid from the coffee also helps make it a little more tender and it’s not a noticeable coffee flavor so I do recommend the coffee.
- I used 1 cup/240mL/8oz of fresh espresso as a soak for the cake and the lady fingers – about 1.5oz for each layer of cake and 5oz for the lady fingers.
- You can use strong brewed coffee or espresso powder coffee, but make it strong because you will be losing flavor.
Vanilla: I like vanilla beans or vanilla bean paste for creams and frosting such as this mascarpone cream.
Mascarpone: I tested this with different brands of mascarpone, they all worked however, some of the mascarpone’s held a little more water than others. My favorite was BelGioioso Mascarpone but if you find something with an even higher fat content, use that. The cheese should be smooth and creamy (not wet like cottage cheese or ricotta).
- If you use another brand and you see water in it (usually at the bottom) , drain the cheese to avoid adding extra liquid to the cream. You can also add an extra ¼-½ cup of powdered sugar and/or reduce the heavy cream by ¼-½ cup to stiffen it up a little.
- Make sure the mascarpone is cold, straight from the fridge when using.
- Dairy free cream cheese and coconut milk should work the same but will obviously have a different flavor.
- Make note that you can’t use a traditional tiramisu cream because the eggs would make it too runny to hold a cake up.
Heavy Whipping Cream: I recommend using the cream with the highest fat you can find and make sure it’s cold when adding it to the mascarpone.
- When you do add it in, you’ll notice the ‘frosting’ getting softer first, just keep beating at full speed for a few minutes and the cream will “whip up”, stiffening the frosting. Once it’s holding good peaks, stop beating so you don’t over-whip the cream.
Lady Fingers: I just posted a recipe for homemade lady fingers but to be totally honest, if I’m making Tiramisu I usually use store bought ladyfingers. I usually find the Delallo brand (cookie aisle or foreign food aisle) at most grocery stores.

slice of chocolate tiramisu cake on a plate with a bite taken out

Step-by-Step Instructions

Black Cake

Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt until they’re evenly distributed.
In a separate bowl, whisk the oil, sugar, eggs and sour cream until they’re well combined and smooth.
Sift the dry ingredients over the wet and whisk just a little – about halfway.
Pour in the hot coffee and whisk until the batter is completely smooth.
Scrape the edge of the bowl and give it a good mix. Pour into prepared cake tin(s).
Back until the tallest part of the cake springs back when you press on it. If you’re hesitant, give it another minute or so.
Let the cake rest for 10 minutes in the pan, then flip over onto a tea towel.
Let the cake cool upside down for 30 minutes or so and then flip back over.
Once it’s cooled, slice the cake into two halves so you have a two layer cake. If you have a huge dome, feel free to trim some of it off – I left mine.
- *brew the espresso for the soak so it has time to cool.

dry ingredients whisked together — wet ingredients whisked together

Mascarpone Cream

Beat together the cold mascarpone with the powdered sugar and salt until it’s completely mixed and smooth. Starting at lower and moving to higher speeds.
Add the vanilla bean paste and turn the mixer to medium speed. Stream in the cold heavy whipping cream in 3-4 increments, stopping to scrape the edge of the bowl each time.
Once all the heavy whipping cream is added, it may seem soft so turn the mixer up to full speed and it should thicken and hold peaks within a couple of minutes. Don’t over-beat once you’ve reached this stage.

finished mascarpone cream — mascarpone beat with powdered sugar

Assemble

Brew the espresso (do this earlier) and mix it with the granulated sugar and cool it in the fridge.
Place the first layer of cake onto a flat surface and cut some acetate to go around the cake. (I had to cut two strips and tape them together to get it tall enough). Wrap it around the cake as tight as you can and tape it on the outside so it sticks. Then you’ll layer all your ingredients inside the acetate and remove it after it’s chilled.
Spread about 3 tablespoons of espresso on top of the cake. Then spread about ⅓ of the mascarpone cream on top.
Dip the lady fingers in the espresso for 1-2 seconds on each side and place them flat on the cream. Then top them with another third of the mascarpone cream.
1. You may have to trim some of them to make them fit well.
Spread another 3 tablespoons of espresso onto the final layer of cake (on the sliced side) and then flip it over, placing it sliced side down onto the cream.
Spread the rest of the mascarpone cream on top, swirling it for some texture then refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
Top with a dusting of cocoa powder and remove the acetate around the edge of the cake before slicing and serving.

chocolate cake topped with mascarpone cream surrounded by acetate — wrap the cake tightly with acetate, brush with espresso and spread a layer of mascarpone cream

lady fingers layered into black cocoa cake — wrap the cake tightly with acetate, brush with espresso and spread a layer of mascarpone cream

Equipment Needed

So this cake is a little particular in the sense that you can’t just stack it and expect it to stay. The main thing you’ll need is a cake collar roll/acetate sheets. Sometimes I use a cake mold ring to make it a little easier and more sturdy but you can do it without if you just wrap the acetate around the bottom layer and be gentle when assembling.

You can also do it with a springform pan if you have that but it would need to be the perfect fit. I suggest baking the cake in the springform pan in that case so that it’s the perfect size. I baked this cake in an 8 inch pan but since mine was so tall I do recommend a 9 inch pan instead. You could probably even get away with a 10 inch pan but the layers would be much thinner.

If you don’t want to purchase any special equipment, you can make this cake with a few changes. Just pipe a border of mascarpone cream around the edge of where the lady fingers would go, similar to my turtle cake (see photos below) and then freeze the cake for about an hour or so to make sure the cream is solid before placing the lady fingers inside the border. Then you’d finish the cake the same way.

Make sure to be very gentle if you’re doing it this way. If it feels soft/unsteady at any point, refrigerate it or freeze it for 20-60 minutes or so and then proceed with the next step.

black cocoa cake with a layer of chocolate frosting and a border or frosting piped around the edge.

border filled in with caramel pecan filling — black cocoa cake with a layer of chocolate frosting and a border or frosting piped around the edge.

Expert Tips On Getting Perfect Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

Don’t swap ingredients unless I mentioned them in the ingredient section above.
Don’t reduce the sugar. I know a lot of people do that for some recipes but I don’t recommend it.
Weigh your ingredients with a digital scale
Weigh the batter for each cake tin to get even layers (if you’re using multiple pans).
Make the mascarpone cream right before using it.

What Sizes Can I Make This Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

Make sure to read my Black Cocoa Cake post for more details on how to adjust the cake to the different sizes but I baked this cake in an 8 inch pan and sliced it in half.

I recommend baking it in a 9 inch pan and slicing it in half, it would be easier to serve and the proportions would be better. You could possibly get away with a 10 inch cake but the layers wouldn’t much thinner and you’ll need a little more coffee because you’ll be using a few more lady fingers then.

When baking, generally a thinner layer will get 20-25 minutes of baking and a thicker cake layer will get 30-45 minutes. Once it no longer looks wet, press on the center of the cake gently and it will spring back when it’s done baking. If it doesn’t spring back, give it another few minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use all-purpose flour?

I have used the “homemade cake flour” trick by replacing 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour with cornstarch. The cake will work if you make them this way but they won’t be quite as soft and tender.
I HIGHLY recommend using a digital scale, as flour is so often over measured.

Can this be made dairy free?

You can definitely use a dairy free yogurt or sour cream, whatever you find, for the cake. If you can find dairy-free mascarpone cheese, substitute it with some dairy free cream cheese, that should work as well. And you’ll need a dairy free cream that whips up, like coconut cream.

Can this be made gluten-free?

I haven’t tested it but pretty much all my other cakes work fine with a 1:1 substitute like Bob’s or King Arthurs so I don’t see why not. There are also gluten-free ladyfingers you can buy.

Can I make this ahead of time?

The cake must be assembled at least 1 day before serving but you can do it a couple days early too.
The cake layers can also be baked ahead of time and stored at room temperature for a day or frozen for a couple of weeks.

Do I have to use black cocoa powder?

I used black cocoa powder because this is my black cocoa cake and I love it but it should work just fine with regular unsweetened cocoa powder.

How do I know when it’s done baking?

Just like all the rest of my cakes, I test if it’s done baking by pressing gently on the tallest part of the cake. The cake will spring back if it’s done baking. If it stays indented, give it a few minutes in the oven, before testing again.

chocolate tiramisu cake close up with a slices removed

How To Store Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

If the cakes are not yet frosted, keep it airtight at room temperature for a couple of days. If it’s frosted, store it airtight in the fridge for up to a week.

I don’t like when things taste like “the fridge” lol so if you leave it uncovered it can get a weird fridge taste (maybe that’s just me?) so I recommend covering it but it’s hard to cover without messing up the mascarpone. A tall cake dome would work best if you have one.

If not, then I just refrigerate it until it’s firm, then wrap it in plastic wrap or foil gently, trying not to mess up the top.

Or you could just slice it and lay them in a large pan and cover the pan with plastic wrap. You can also freeze it like this.

Thanks so much for reading today’s post, if you have any questions just comment down below.

If you make this fabulous chocolate tiramisu cake, I’d love it if you left a star rating or a review for me!

As always, have a blessed day and happy baking!

Love, B