Carrot Cake Tiramisu

Carrot Cake Tiramisu

Carrot cake tiramisu is the best combination of two of my favorite desserts! Carrot cake is a quintessential Spring time dessert! It’s beautifully moist and full of flavor and depth, while being light and fluffy as well! The spices like cinnamon and nutmeg found in carrot cake compliment the deep flavors of espresso in such an amazing way!

In this carrot cake tiramisu, you’ll find light and moist layers of carrot cake sandwiched between layers of a light whipped cream (with a secret ingredient!). Traditional tiramisu uses mascarpone in the cream, giving it a rich flavor. This recipe uses mascarpone AND cream cheese in the cream! This is because carrot cake is usually made with a cream cheese frosting. I’ve married the two desserts and it’s better than ever!

What You’ll Need

Equipment

• Food scale
• Mixing bowls
• Whisk
• Carrot grater
• 9in x 13 in baking pan
• Parchment paper
• Handheld mixer or stand mixer
• Cake leveler
• Pastry brush
• Offset spatula

Ingredients

1. All purpose flour
2. Baking soda
3. Baking powder
4. Kosher or sea salt
5. Ground Cinnamon
6. Ground Nutmeg
7. Granulated Sugar
8. Brown Sugar
9. Eggs
10. Vegetable oil
11. Milk
12. Pure vanilla extract
13. Whole fresh carrots
14. Mascarpone
15. Cream Cheese
16. Heavy whipping cream
17. Espresso or strong coffee
18. Cocoa powder

How to make Carrot Cake Tiramisu

• Prep and bake the carrot cake in a 9×13 inch baking pan (the same one you plan on assembling the tiramisu in

• Cool cake completely and using a cake leveler, cut the cake in half horizontally. Place in fridge to chill.

• Prepare tiramisu cream: cook egg yolks and sugar over a double boiler, whisking constantly until sugar is completely dissolved and mixture is thick and very pale yellow. This is called a zabaione. (about 10-15 minutes). let cool to at least 90 degrees F. Beat room temperature mascarpone and cream cheese slightly, then while whipping on medium speed, stream in cold heavy cream. Gradually increase speed and whip to firm peaks. Whisk in vanilla and then mix in cooled zabaione on low speed until combined.

• Assemble carrot cake tiramisu: place half of the carrot cake on the bottom of the baking pan. Brush generously with prepared espresso or strong coffee. Top with half of the cream mixture and spread evenly all the way to the edges with an offset spatula. Carefully top with remaining half of carrot cake, brush with espresso, and top with the rest of the cream, smoothing it out again. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge to set for at least 6 hours (preferably overnight). When ready to serve, dust with cocoa powder, slice, and enjoy!

Tips for making carrot cake tiramisu

1. When baking the carrot cake, use the same 9×13 inch pan that you plan on assembling the tiramisu in! This ensure that that cake fits exactly into the pan and there’s no need to trim any excess cake.
2. Get a cake leveler! I got mine for $3! helps you cut cake exactly level, even, and neatly, without any wonky layers!
3. After cake is cooled, flip it upside down to remove the bottom parchment paper FIRST before cutting! This will make things run more smoothly.
4. When making the cream, wait for the egg yolk mixture to cool to about 90 degrees F before adding it to the mascarpone/cream cheese whipped cream.

Other recipes to try:
Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust and Toasted Meringue
Blood Orange Cheesecake Tart
Asparagus Mushroom Galettes

Carrot Cake Tiramisu

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Additional Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 3 hours

Carrot cake tiramisu has moist and fluffy carrot cake layers sandwiched by a heavenly mascarpone and cream cheese cream!

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Ingredients

for the carrot cake

• 1 1/2 cups (192g) all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 2/3 c (133g) granulated sugar
• 1/3 c (70g) light or dark brown sugar, packed
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 c (165g) vegetable oil
• 1/4 c (60g) whole milk
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 c (140g) finely grated carrots

for tiramisu cream

• 6 large egg yolks
• 2/3 c (133g) granulated sugar
• 8 oz mascarpone, room temp
• 8 oz cream cheese, room temp
• 2 c (475g) heavy whipping cream, cold straight from fridge
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

for assembly

• 1 cup espresso or strong coffee
• cocoa powder for dusting

Instructions

Prep and bake carrot cake

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside
2. In a large bowl, combine sugars, eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla. Whisk very well to combine. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk slowly until all flour is just incorporated. Add finely grated carrots and mix gently to combine, do not over mix.
3. Grease and line a 9x13 inch baking pan (the same one you want to assemble your tiramisu in) with parchment paper so that the excess hangs over the sides, acting as a sling to help you pull the cake out when it's baked. You can use a metal binder clip on either side to keep the parchment paper in place.
4. Pour cake batter into pan, smoothing it out, then bake for 25-30 minutes. Cake is done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cake cool for 20 minutes, then carefully remove from pan (you may need to run a knife along the edges of the pan) and cool on a wire rack or in the fridge.

Prepare the tiramisu cream

1. Prepare a double boiler by bringing a medium pot with about 2 inches of water to a simmer. In a large heat safe or glass bowl that can sit on top of the pot without touching the water, whisk together egg yolks and sugar. Sit the bowl over the pot and whisk constantly over low heat until all the sugar has melted (check this by rubbing a bit of the mixture between your fingers). The mixture will become very pale yellow. This can take up to 10 minutes. Remove from heat, cover with plastic wrap, and let cool to about 90 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl or the bowl of stand mixer, beat room temperature cream cheese and mascarpone together for a few seconds just to smooth it out. With the whisk on medium speed, add heavy whipping cream in a slow stream. Gradually increase speed and whip to firm peaks. Add vanilla and cooled egg yolk mixture, whisk in gently just until combined.

Assemble carrot cake tiramisu

1. With a cake leveler, cut the cooled carrot cake in half so you have two 9x13inch sheets of cake. Place the bottom piece on the bottom of the clean baking pan. Generously brush espresso or strong coffee on top.
2. Dollop about half the tiramisu cream on top, then smooth out evenly all the way to the edges and corners with an offset spatula.
3. Place remaining half of carrot cake on top, brush with espresso or strong coffee, and top with the rest of the tiramisu cream. Spread it out evenly with offset spatula.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
5. When ready to serve, dust with cocoa powder and slice! ENJOY!