If you love pretty desserts, you really need to have a ladyfingers recipe in your arsenal. These delicate little cookies are sometimes hard to find in stores (Tip: check under their Italian name, Savoiardi, as well) but they’re relatively easy to make at home and they open up a world of simple but pretty desserts you can draw on.
A classic tiramisu is the best-known example, but you’ll find scores of other uses for them as well. Or you can just eat them as a light and simple cookie, perfect with a cup of tea or coffee. Although they look elegant and sophisticated, they use the same technique as a simple sponge cake. So if you’ve ever made a sponge cake from scratch, you can make ladyfingers too!
Ladyfingers Ingredients
- Eggs: Ladyfingers are made very much like a sponge cake, and, just as a sponge cake does, they rely on beaten eggs for their light texture.
- Cream of tartar: Adding an acidic ingredient to the egg whites helps them whip to a lighter, airier foam. Unlike lemon juice or vinegar, cream of tartar provides that advantage without adding a noticeable flavor of its own (Fun fact: Cream of tartar is a winemaking byproduct).
- Sugar: Sugar plays two roles here. In the egg whites it acts primarily as a stabilizer for the foam, helping keep it from deflating as you fold the whites into the rest of the batter; while in the batter it acts mostly as a sweetener.
- Vanilla extract: Vanilla adds a warm, complex note to desserts and makes sweet flavors feel bigger and better rounded.
- Lemon extract: Lemon extract is a secondary flavor in the ladyfingers, giving them a lightness on the palate that matches the lightness of the cookie itself.
- All-purpose flour: The starches and proteins in the flour give the cookie its structure. Without it you’d have a meringue, but with it you have a crisp cookie.
- Baking powder: Baking powder acts as a secondary leavening agent in this recipe, a “belt-and-suspenders” way to ensure that the ladyfingers are light even if you’ve struggled with folding the egg whites into the batter.
- Confectioners’ sugar: The confectioners’ sugar is a final garnish for the cookies before they’re served, giving them a pretty appearance and a bit of added sweetness.
Directions
Step 1: Beat the egg whites
In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until they make a light, airy foam. Gradually add ¼ cup of the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating the eggs at high speed until glossy, stiff peaks form and the sugar is fully dissolved (about six minutes). Set the whites aside.
Step 2: Finish the batter
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the remaining ⅓ cup of sugar for three minutes, or until the mixture is thick and lemon-colored, then add the water and extracts. Mix the flour, salt and baking powder together in another bowl, and stir the dry ingredients into the egg yolk mixture. Gently fold in the beaten egg whites, taking care to deflate them as little as possible.
Step 3: Pipe the ladyfingers
Cut a small hole in the tip of a disposable pastry bag, or in the corner of a freezer- or food-storage bag. Insert a #12 round tip into the hole. Spoon the batter into the bag until it’s no more than ⅔ full, and twist the top to seal in the batter. Pipe 3 ½-inch lines of batter 2 inches apart onto a greased and floured baking sheet. Repeat if necessary until the batter has all been used up.
Editor’s tip: If your piping skills are shaky, take a moment to review our tutorial on how to use a piping bag before you start. It’s a skill worth acquiring because it’s used in many desserts and other dishes.
Step 4: Bake the cookies
Bake the ladyfingers at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove them to a wire rack to cool completely. Once they’re cool, pack them into an airtight storage container and freeze them for up to 1 month.
Step 5: Using frozen ladyfingers
To use your frozen ladyfingers, thaw them in the refrigerator overnight. Remove them from the refrigerator and dust them with confectioner’s sugar. They can now be served as a simple cookie, or used in other desserts.
Ladyfinger Recipe Variations
- Lemon ladyfingers recipe: For a bright, citrusy take on ladyfingers, omit the vanilla extract and increase the lemon extract to ½ teaspoon. Add a teaspoon of finely minced or grated lemon zest to the batter before folding in the egg whites. You can do the same with orange zest and orange extract, if you have it.
- Almond ladyfingers recipe: Replace the recipe’s vanilla extract with almond extract (but keep the lemon, it plays nicely with almond extract). Before baking, top each ladyfinger with a light scattering of toasted sliced or slivered almonds.
- Chocolate ladyfingers recipe: For a chocolate version, replace 2 to 3 tablespoons of the flour with cocoa powder.
How to Store Ladyfingers
Freezing is the best way to store ladyfingers if you won’t be eating them immediately or using them in recipes. Pack them into a freezer-safe container with a tight-fitting lid, and only remove as many as you’ll need for a given serving.
Can I make this ladyfingers recipe ahead of time?
If you plan to serve the ladyfingers fresh as cookies, you can make them a day or two ahead of time as long as you transfer them to an airtight storage container as soon as they’ve cooled (if you leave them out, they’ll become hard). You have more leeway if you plan to use them in a recipe such as tiramisu, where they’ll be dunked in liquid and it won’t matter if they’re a bit too hard.
How long will ladyfingers keep?
Freshly baked lady fingers cookies will only keep for about two to three days. Pack them into an airtight container, or a storage bag with the excess air squeezed out, as soon as they’ve cooled. In your freezer, they’ll last about a month in an airtight container. For the longest possible storage, put them in freezer bags first, squeezing out any excess air, and then put the bags into a freezer-safe container with an airtight lid. This double protection can stretch their storage life to as much as two months.
Ladyfingers Recipe Tips
Why didn’t my ladyfinger batter hold its shape when I piped it?
If the batter started to spread as soon as you piped it, it probably needed another spoonful or two of flour. Eggs vary in size, so sometimes the batter is wetter, or “looser,” than it should be. If that happens, scrape the batter back into your mixing bowl and thicken it slightly. Clean and re-grease the pan, and try again. To save some cleaning, you can try piping a few “test” cookies onto a sheet of wax paper just to make sure they hold their shape.
Is there a trick to folding in the egg whites?
Folding in whites successfully requires a specific technique, and it’s a useful skill to learn because so many recipes rely on beaten egg whites for their leavening. Your best bet is to start by stirring ¼ of the whipped egg whites into the batter, to thin it slightly. Then use a flexible spatula to fold in the rest by drawing the thicker batter from the bottom to the top, and folding it over the egg whites (it takes a light and gentle hand). Repeat until the egg whites are reasonably blended, but don’t try to make every little streak of white disappear or you’ll overmix them.
What can I use ladyfingers for besides tiramisu?
Oh, all kinds of things. You can make almost any kind of cheesecake, torte or pudding look fancier by lining the pan with lady fingers cookies before filling it, or layer them with moist ingredients to make a parfait. A simple bowl of sliced fruit or berries becomes an eye-pleasing dessert if you stand a ladyfinger along one side and top the fruit with whipped cream. We have dozens of dessert ideas using ladyfingers, and even if they go stale you can crush them and use them as cookie crumbs in a crumb crust or crumbled topping. One additional tip: If you make alternative versions of ladyfingers with different flavors (see Variations, above), you can have fun matching the ladyfingers to the dessert. Lemon ladyfingers go well with strawberries, for example, while chocolate ladyfingers might add an interesting twist to your favorite tiramisu recipe or parfait.
