The Tiramisu Twist Your Brownies Are Begging For

Cakey, fudgy, or chewy? Edges or middles? Whatever your preference, brownies are an iconic dessert and perfectly satisfying even at their simplest. However, part of the joy of baking is taking classic recipes and mixing them up to create something entirely new. And even brownies, delicious though they may be, are ripe for such experimentation. Enter the tiramisu brownie. It's a simple concept: Top your cooked (and cooled) brownies with a thick layer of sweetened mascarpone cream, and dust the finished product with an even layer of cocoa powder to create that classic tiramisu look.

Of course, it wouldn't be your standard tiramisu without coffee, and there are a couple of ways to add it to your brownies depending on which recipe you use. One way is to poke holes into your finished brownies and drizzle them with a mixture of coffee and coffee liqueur. The other is to incorporate espresso powder or coffee directly into your brownie batter — and, for good measure, into the mascarpone cream on top as well. So you have no shortage of options; feel free to mix and match. Keep it alcohol-free or add a splash of Kahlua as you see fit. The result in any case is going to be a multi-textured and incredibly indulgent dessert.

Your typical tiramisu flavors are a mouth-watering blend of coffee, cream, vanilla cookies (ladyfingers), and a hint of cocoa. The brownie layer in these tiramisu brownies really emphasizes the chocolate flavor provided by the cocoa. But, as both chocolate and coffee are famously versatile ingredients that pair well with anything from fruit to nuts — and even meat — there's no reason not to get even more creative with this dessert.

Chowhound has provided instructions in the past on the following tiramisu variations: banana bread tiramisu, raspberry and cream tiramisu, and even one with limoncello for a lemony twist. And of course, there are more to be found. The three variations listed here ditch the coffee element entirely (however, if you've ever tried chocolate chip espresso banana bread, you might find it tempting to add the coffee back into the banana bread version at least!). The point is, any of these flavors — banana, raspberry, and lemon — could be incorporated into a tiramisu-style brownie (or blondie) to great success. For example, make the brownies and dot them with raspberries before adding your mascarpone mixture. Even better, swirl some raspberry jam throughout the brownies so you really get that nice, tart flavor coming through. Or whip up a banana bread brownie, soak it with a coffee (and rum?) mixture, and then spread on the mascarpone layer. You could even swap the coffee liqueur for limoncello and pour that over your brownies before adding the mascarpone. It's really up to you to decide how far you'd like to take your tiramisu brownies.