As soon as fall hits, we’re all craving comfy, cozy flavors. For many, pumpkin is the flavor of the season. Yes, a classic pumpkin pie is always tasty, so is a pumpkin spice latte—but why not expand your horizons? Give a classic dessert a fall spin with pumpkin tiramisu, including homemade pumpkin ladyfingers.
After all the piping, whipping and layering, you’ll find that this pumpkin tiramisu was worth every single bit of effort. The combination of pumpkin, cream cheese, warming spices and a hint of rum really sing. The crispy cookies and velvety fillings are also a phenomenal pairing—one that will have guests coming back for seconds. While this is definitely a fall take on a classic, you might find yourself craving this pumpkin tiramisu all year.
Pumpkin Tiramisu Ingredients
Pumpkin ladyfingers:
- Butter
- Sugar
- Egg
- Honey
- Canned pumpkin
- Dark rum
- All-purpose flour
- Ground cinnamon
- Baking soda
- Ground ginger
- Ground cloves
- Salt
Tiramisu:
- Canned pumpkin
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground ginger
- Ground cloves
- Heavy whipping cream
- Sugar
- Cream cheese
- Dark rum
- Ground cinnamon or nutmeg
Directions
Step 1: Stir the ladyfinger batter
For traditional tiramisu, you might rely on a package of pre-made ladyfingers. Not here! Instead, you’ll be making a batch of pumpkin and spice-flavored cookies.
To begin, cream room temperature butter and sugar together until light and fluffy—about 5 minutes. Then use a mixer to beat in the egg and honey. Stir in the pumpkin and rum.
In another bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, baking soda and salt. Gradually beat the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until combined.
Step 2: Pipe ladyfingers onto baking sheets
To get that just-right ladyfinger shape, grab a piping bag (a zip-top bag will also work in a pinch). Fill the bag two-thirds full (any fuller and it can get hard to handle or it’ll spurt out the back end!) and cut a three-quarter-inch hole in the tip. You can use a plain piping tip here, but just the hole in the bag will work too.
Then pipe the dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. You want the fingers to be about two-and-a-half inches long and two inches apart.
Step 3: Bake the ladyfingers
Bake the cookies at 350ºF for 12 to 14 minutes. When golden, remove and cool completely on a wire rack. When we say completely, we mean it!
Editor’s Tip: If you want, you can prep the cookies a day in advance so they are absolutely cool.
Step 4: Make the whipped cream
Whipped cream gives this tiramisu its velvety texture. To make whipped cream from scratch, beat the whipping cream until it begins to thicken. Then add sugar and beat until soft peaks form. You can tell the cream has reached the soft peak stage when you lift your beaters out of the bowl, flip them over and the peaks droop a bit when turned.
Step 5: Make the pumpkin filling
In another bowl, mix together the canned pumpkin and spices. Fold a third of the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture. Be gentle while you fold so you don’t deflate the cream.
Step 6: Mix the cream cheese filling together
Grab another mixing bowl and mix the room temperature cream cheese until smooth. Then beat in the remaining whipped cream until combined.
Your typical tiramisu doesn’t have two types of filling, but this one is over-the-top and delicious.
Step 7: Lay the base of the tiramisu
Next, grab a 13×9-inch pan and arrange ladyfingers in a single layer. You want to cover the bottom of the pan, so if there are any large gaps, you can break the cookies to fit (you won’t be able to tell with the finished product).
Then brush the cookies with rum. This helps to soften the cookies a bit and adds flavor.
Step 8: Layer the tiramisu
Once the base is laid, top the ladyfingers with a third of the pumpkin filling and then a third of the cream cheese mixture. An offset spatula really helps here. With both layers of cream in place, repeat the process twice more: ladyfingers, rum, pumpkin and cream cheese.
Your last layer should be cream cheese. Use the back of a spoon to give the tiramisu some pretty swirls or use an offset spatula to make the finish nice and smooth—it’s up to you!
Step 9: Chill and serve
Cover the pumpkin tiramisu and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, though overnight is even better—tiramisu is one of those desserts that gets better as it sits.
Before serving, sprinkle with cinnamon. A small sifter helps here—you don’t want to overdo it with this spice.
How to Store Pumpkin Tiramisu
Tiramisu of any kind benefits from a stay in the fridge. This allows the crispy cookies to soften up and the flavors blend together nicely. You can make this dessert a day in advance and feel confident that it’ll taste even better after dinner the next day.
To store the tiramisu, cover and stash in the fridge. Try to eat it all (or hand out leftovers) within three to four days. If you know you can’t finish it all, you can freeze pumpkin tiramisu for up to three months. Just wrap the pan or individual pieces tightly, then thaw when you’re in the mood for a treat.
Pumpkin Tiramisu Tips
How do you get straight ladyfingers?
An easy way to get consistently sized and spaced ladyfingers is to draw lines on the reverse side of your parchment with a pencil. Just mark out the right sizes and pipe away!
What do you do with the extra ladyfingers?
This recipe will make some extra ladyfingers. Whatever you don’t use in your pumpkin tiramisu, dunk in your morning coffee. You can use extras to make crumb crusts for delicious desserts or just snack on them. Store spares in an airtight container for a week. If you can’t finish them all in that time, pop ’em in the freezer where they’ll keep for a year.
