Eco-Friendly Tiramisu!

Tiramisu is one of my favorite desserts of all time. However, when I was vegan, I can no longer eat it. There's a growing demographic of people who are either allergic to dairy or are vegan. so, are you smart knowledge of veganism and dairy-free living to recreate one of my favorite dessert recipes so that it would be both good for the environment, good for the animals, and good for humans.

Before the desert is complete...

Typically, tiramisu is made with mascarpone cheese, a very delicate creamy cheese, and emulsified with raw eggs to give it their signature creamy taste. Since I don't eat much of either of these things, I needed to create an alternative but I could eat. and so, my following recipe was born. drop your mixing bowl and your best baking dish, and it's time to wake up some very hipster tiramisu!

Be sure to read all the way to the bottom, as I will be including a lot of footnotes about this recipe!

You will need:

1 package ladyfingers (about 25 ladyfingers)*

2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided into two portions

1/4 cup Marsala wine or non-alcoholic Sherry

2 Cups espresso style coffee**

1 1/2 cups cane sugar, jaggery, or radapura***

1 cup of egg substitute****

3 cups milk substitute*****

8 ounces of Coconut Cream/paste (or an extra cup of egg substitute if you're allergic to coconut)

1 Cup cacao powder, or ground cacao nibs

STEPS:

1) Start by making your cream filling, as this will take the longest to prepare and settle. start by adding the vanilla extract and egg substitute to a dish, whisk it together, and then add in the coconut milk. Whisk together thoroughly, and then use a hand mixer to mix this with the non-dairy milk of your choosing. (note: for extra thickness, take a half cup of cashews, soften them in water for an hour, and chop them up with some water in a blender, and mix them in as well.) Place in the refrigerator to let it sit for about 6 hours.

2) Take the other half of the vanilla extract and add it to you're Marsala wine. Prepare your coffee sauce and mix it together with the wine and vanilla extract. For a bit of Zing, add a dash of cinnamon and Nutmeg. (notes, and espresso machine works best for the coffee, but preparing it with a French press works just as well.)

3) To prepare the tiramisu, lay down a light layer of coffee into a thin baking dish. Dip the lady fingers sideways into a shallow bowl filled with the rest of the coffee mixture, soaking for about half a second, and line the bottom of your tray with coffee soaked ladyfingers. spread a layer of your cream mixture over top of the lady fingers, even it out, and dust with powdered chocolate/ thinly ground cacao nibs.

4) Repeat this process of coffee soaking ladyfingers, placing them in the dish over top of the cream mixture, and covering the next layer with cream of mixture and powdered chocolate. Do this until you have two or three layers.

5) Put a little extra coffee on the top layer to seep through for a stronger flavor. Cover the rest of the top with the rest of the cream mixture, and coat generously with powdered chocolate.

6) Cover and place in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or until everything is set in place.

7) Cut up the Tiramisu and get ready to serve.

8) Enjoy your freshly made eco-friendly treat! Your hard work has paid off.

...And after it's finished.

* :Lady fingers are shortbread pastry that are typically made with eggs, but if you look in your local organic food store, you can usually find some that are vegan and made without animal products. inversely, you can make your own vegan ladyfingers Buy making vegan cupcakes, but by spreading the batter into a baking sheet instead of baking cups.

** :You can check out my post here about different types of coffee. But typically, the stronger you can make your espresso ground, and the more of it you can get, the better this dessert will be.

*** :All of these sources of sugar are vegan. Refined sugar and white sugar are usually made using bone Char from pigs. Plus, the undertones of natural sugar enhance the vanilla flavor in the cream.

**** :There are several things that work, such as pea protein powder, applesauce, or banana, but there is usually add unwanted flavor to your dessert. The organic aisle of your local feed store should have egg substitute powder. I use Ener-G Egg Replacer.

***** :The type of milk you want to use depends on your allergies and preferences. Since this will really only be used to thicken your cream mixture, pea protein milk and flax milk will work very well because they have no taste. Or, if you want to have some almond flavored coffee cake, use some almond milk and go for it.