A few weeks ago I saw a picture of a bourbon pumpkin dessert in Las Vegas Magazine. It looked so good we almost booked a reservation at the restaurant serving it. But we didn’t. Instead, I decided to try making pumpkin tiramisu at home.
After debating whether to make it round, square or rectangle, what type of ladyfingers to use, and whether I should make the tiramisu with mascarpone or cream cheese, I ended up making a "more casual" tiramisu based on a trifle I saw in Taste of Home. It wasn’t exactly elegant, but it tasted good and Todd said I should make it again.
Some Notes on the Recipe
-- For the ladyfingers, I used the hard type ( Alessi’s Biscotti Savoiarde).
-- The dish used was an 8 inch square pan. The tiramisu was quite tall in the 8 inch pan so I think a 9 inch pan would work just as well. I also think the recipe would be terrific halved and made in a foil lined loaf pan. You could pull it right out and slice it. You could also serve the dessert in big bubble shaped wine glasses.
-- And finally, I used cream cheese instead of mascarpone. I like cream cheese as much or maybe more than mascarpone, but I still might try another recipe with mascarpone.
Pumpkin Tiramisu
3-4 tablespoons Bourbon or Rum
About 27 Italian style ladyfingers (the hard type) – you’ll need about 27 for 8 inch
1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened Half of a 15 oz can canned pumpkin (not pie filling)
⅓ cup firmly packed brown sugar
¼ cup milk
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla plus another ½ teaspoon for whipped cream
2-4 tablespoons powdered sugar
Arrange ladyfingers in a single layer in the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch square pan. I used an 8 inch square pan and fit the bottom with 9 ladyfingers. Brush the ladyfingers with Bourbon.
In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream until stiff peaks form. Scrape the whipped cream into another bowl to get it out of the way. No need to clean stand mixer bowl.
Add the cream cheese, pumpkin and brown sugar to the stand mixer bowl and beat until smooth. Beat in the milk, pie spice and 1 teaspoon of vanilla until blended. With a heavy duty scraper or rubber spatula, fold in about half of the whipped cream. At this point, do a quick taste test. If mixture isn’t sweet enough for you, add 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar. Spread half of the pumpkin mixture over the ladyfingers.
Arrange a second layer of ladyfingers over the pumpkin mixture and brush with the Bourbon. Spread remaining pumpkin mixture over ladyfingers, then top with a final layer of ladyfingers and Bourbon.
Sweeten the remaining whipped cream to taste using what’s left of the powdered sugar. Gently spread the whipped cream over the top. If you want to make it prettier, you can pipe it. I drizzled some store-bought caramel topping on it for garnish, but that's completely optional. Makes 6-9 servings.
Mackenzie @ The Caramel Cookie says
Oh yum! I love pumpkin and this looks like a wonderful altnerative to pumpkin bread :)!
Emily says
This looks amazing! I like that you used cream cheese! Much cheaper. Mascarpone is about $4 here for a small container.
Brenda says
This sounds fabulous. A great alternative to pumpkin pie. You always have the best recipes!
melissa says
Mmm. This looks amazing!!
Sondra says
I wish I had some ladyfingers. I would make this and surprise my boyfriend. Sounds delicious.
the blissful baker says
what a wonderful version of tiramisu! anything with pumpkin has got to be wonderful!
Katrina says
Ok, I'm in Facebook mode and was just looking for the "like" button. 😉
Sounds like a great creation.
Rina says
This looks fantastic! If you are looking for another bourbon/pumpkin dessert, I recommend the bourbon pumpkin cheesecake from epicurious (with a few tweaks, I used a gingersnap pecan crust and doubled the bourbon). I made it for Thanksgiving and it was a hit!
Karen says
Yum! My daughter is having 7 friends over for Hannukah this weekend - I was thinking about a pumpkin roll or a pumpkin cheesecake but this looks so good (and less work!)
I also spotted another pumpkin tiramisu on foodgawker this morning using espresso and mascarpone:
http://www.cooklikeachampionblog.com/2010/11/pumpkin-tiramisu.html
I don't think I've ever had pumpkin with coffee, so I think I will stick to your version.
Cheryl says
What a great alternative to pie! Looks so light and fluffy!
Anna says
Sue, they sure do. My tiramisu was in the refrigerator for about 8 hours before I cut into it, but I think they'll soften up in as little as 6 hours.
Melanie says
Well, tiramisu is one of my favorite desserts ever - a pumpkin version? Brilliant! This looks incredible.
Sue says
Do the hard ladyfingers soften up? I've only ever used the soft ones. I'm glad you used cream cheese. I love mascarpone but it's really difficult to get good mascarpone here, and there's nothing worse than grainy mascarpone.
Camille says
This is gorgeous!
I will definitely have to make this when the time is right 🙂
Shelley says
I was wracking my brain for an alternative to pumpkin pie for Turkey Day but all I could come up with was pumpkin cake. Wish I had seen this in time- looks divine!